Can you get someone fired by giving them cookies?
I’m not sure I want to know the answer to that… Because I certainly thought I did last fall!
In October, after perfecting the recipe for my toffee coffee cookies, I packed up a few in a little bag to hand to the hilarious college-age cashier with dreadlocks at Trader Joe’s. When I failed to see him on every one of my bi-weekly shopping trips after that day, I basically blamed myself for him losing his job.
A few months later, on a rainy Saturday morning in February, I sprinted through the downpour and into the store; picked up my usual bananas, spinach, and eggs; and hopped into the shortest line. As I waited for the girl to finish packing up the previous patron’s bags, I glanced towards the employee station — and there he was! Smiles, positivity, dreadlocks, and all.
Whew — he had just changed his shift!
Fast forward to a random Wednesday in July, and I happened to pick his line again. As I handed over my eight bananas (I eat one every morning with breakfast, so they disappear faster than my dark chocolate stash!), he asked if I planned on baking banana bread.
“I’m not sure yet,” I replied. “But I’m baking cookies this afternoon!”
“Will you bring me some?”
“I already did!”
“I remember — and they were the BEST cookies ever!” He turned to the shopper ahead of me and explained, “She’s the nicest person ever! I just asked if she’d bring me cookies one time, and she showed up, like, 40 minutes later with the best cookies!”
He continued, looking back at me, “I get off work at 6, so… If I gave you my address, would you mind dropping them off? I live just around the corner!”
Laughing, I agreed. But… I kind of forgot to mention that I needed to photograph them first. Sometimes people don’t quite understand the whole “food blog” thing.
“Wait, so you bake… And take pictures… Of everything? As your job?” is the typical response I get.
Sometimes it’s just easier to say that I bake for a living!
But anyway, back to the story… These healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies were the ones that I baked and shared! Incredibly soft and chewy, with just a subtle hint of spice, these treats taste like the epitome of summer from their sweet dough and fresh juicy berries. They’re also easy to make using common ingredients. You probably have everything you need in your kitchen already!
So… Are you ready to bake (and eat!) some cookies??
KEY INGREDIENTS TO MAKE HEALTHY RASPBERRY OATMEAL COOKIES
Let’s talk about what you’ll need to make these healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies! While developing this recipe, I started with the most popular recipe on my blog: my ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies. Hundreds of readers have baked them, and they commented that those were the softest and chewiest cookies they’ve ever made… And that their families and friends couldn’t tell they were healthy. That’s basically the biggest compliment a healthy baking blogger could ever ask for!
I tweaked a few things from my original recipe to let the raspberries shine, but I kept many of the others the same. Here’s a rundown of the key ingredients that you’ll use!
Oats. Other than the fruit, the oats are the most important ingredient! You’ll use instant oats to make these cookies, which are also called “quick cooking” and “one-minute” oats. They’re not the ones that come in those individual packets with flavors like apple cinnamon and maple brown sugar! Just like old-fashioned rolled oats, instant oats only contain one ingredient… Oats! However, they’re smaller and thinner than old-fashioned rolled oats, which means they soften faster. That gives your oatmeal cookies the best moist and chewy texture!
Tip: To make these healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies gluten-free, then use certified gluten-free instant oats. They work perfectly!
Flour. To make these raspberry oatmeal cookies healthier, I opted for whole wheat flour. It has more fiber and micronutrients compared to all-purpose flour! My taste testers couldn’t tell… With how sweet and irresistible these cookies turned out, they assumed I used regular all-purpose flour!
Tip: If you’d like to make your healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies gluten-free, then see the Notes section of the recipe. I’ve included my top recommendations there!
Cinnamon. I love the combination of oats and cinnamon! To ensure the raspberries’ bright fruit flavor shone through, I reduced the amount of cinnamon compared to my ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookie recipe. That smaller amount provides the perfect cozy background warmth. Yum!
Unsalted butter or coconut oil. Just a bit! Unlike traditional recipes that call for ¼ to ½ cup (or more!), you only need 2 tablespoons. That helps keep your raspberry oatmeal cookies low calorie and low fat! Both produce the same soft and chewy texture, so use whichever one you prefer or have on hand. No need for a special trip to the store!
Tip: If you use coconut oil, then your healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies will be dairy-free!
Sweetener. Instead of refined granulated sugar, I turned to honey to sweeten these oatmeal cookies (and make them clean eating friendly!). Because of its liquid state, it helps them spread while baking, and it yields a really soft and chewy texture too!
Tip: If you’re not a fan of honey, then check the Notes section of the recipes, as well as my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page. I’ve provided alternatives there!
Raspberries. They’re the most important part! I prefer fresh raspberries, and I dice them into bits approximately the same size as chocolate chips. This ensures they’re evenly distributed and every bite contains a burst of sweet fruity flavor!
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY RASPBERRY OATMEAL COOKIES
Let’s cover how to make these raspberry oatmeal cookies! This recipe is easy and straightforward, but I still have some tips to ensure you bake the best possible cookies.
Measure correctly. To make sure your raspberry oatmeal cookies turn out extremely soft and chewy, make sure you measure the flour and oats correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. Do NOT stick the measuring cup into the container and scoop them out! You’ll end up with 1 ½ times as much of both ingredients, which will dry out your cookies and turn them cakey or crumbly. But if you measure the flour and oats properly, you’ll end up with the softest and chewiest oatmeal cookies imaginable!
Chill. Initially, the dough will be very sticky, almost like thick muffin batter, so chilling is mandatory! Chilling allows the oats to absorb some of the liquids and stiffens the dough. If you forget to chill, you’ll end up with one big cookie blob… So learn from my mistake and pop your bowl in the fridge!
Drop + shape. When dividing up the cookie dough to place on the baking sheet, try to drop them into rounded scoops, about as tall as they are wide. The raspberries contain a fair amount of water, which they release while baking, so the cookies spread a lot. Shaping the dough into taller mounds helps minimize the spread (so they don’t form that dreaded cookie blob!).
Bake. Because you’re using honey, which caramelizes at a lower temperature than granulated or brown sugar, you’ll bake these cookies lower and slower than many typical recipes, at 325°F. Do not over-bake them!
When you remove the cookies from the oven, they should still look and feel underdone — and that’s a good thing! You’ll let them cool for at least 15 minutes on the warm baking sheet, which allows the centers to finishing cooking through without the outsides turning crisp and crunchy. They’ll stay soft for an entire week, if they last that long!
(And yes, I did double check. It was pure torture leaving the container on the counter for a full seven days!)
Bright and fruity, these healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies may require some serious willpower to avoid polishing off the entire batch… Those cute pink freckles, with the oaty flecks peeking through, are just too tempting — and their extra soft, chewy texture makes them even more addictive! 😉
And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy raspberry oatmeal cookies!
Healthy Raspberry Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (measured like this and gluten-free if necessary)
- ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120mL) honey
- 6 tbsp (53g) fresh whole raspberries, diced
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil or butter, egg, and vanilla. Stir in the honey until thoroughly incorporated. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the raspberries. Chill the dough for 30 minutes. (If chilling longer, cover with plastic wrap, ensuring it touches the entire surface of the cookie dough.)
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops on the baking sheet. (If chilled longer than 1 hour, flatten slightly.) Bake at 325°F for 13-15 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for at least 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Peach Pie Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Apple Pie Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Pineapple Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Apricot Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Banana Oatmeal Cookies
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy oatmeal cookie recipes!
Hi Iv just made theses and they don’t seem to have flattened out as much as I had hoped, I put the dough in the fridge for 1 hour and flattened them After putting into balls on the tray. Could you let me no what went wrong for them to not flatten out as well as I had hopped.
Thanks
I’m honored that you tried my recipe, Jade! I’m happy to help solve that issue. In order to do so, I have some questions for you! 🙂
Did you make any modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section or on my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups to measure all of the ingredients, especially the oats, flour, and honey?
How did the texture of your cookie dough compare to the texture of my cookie dough in the video directly above the recipe before and after you chilled it?
Did your cookies spread at all while baking, or did they remain the exact same shape and thickness?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but I’ll have a much better idea of the culprit once I know your answers to all of them!
Just made these but the texture is strange, almost cake like and they’re a little dry even though cooked for the right amount of time. What’s gone wrong?
I’m honored that you tried my recipe, Fiona! I’ve actually covered the most common reason that oatmeal cookies turn out cakey and/or dry on my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page, and there’s a link to that FAQ Page in the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions!). I know it can be easy to miss! 🙂
I did measure for and oats with kitchen scales
I see! Did you measure the coconut oil/butter, raspberries, and honey with a kitchen scale as well?
If i want to substitute honey for agave will that change my baking time and temperature??
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Bridget! I’ve actually covered this exact question on my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page, and there’s a link to that FAQ Page in the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions!). I know it can be easy to miss! 🙂 I’m excited to hear what you think of these oatmeal cookies!
These were great! I think they would be good as muffins though 🤷🏼♀️ But I did modify. I used salted butter, I used real oats as I didn’t have quick cook oats. Not too too sweet! Good for breakfast cookie I would say!
I’m glad you enjoyed these cookies, Tiffany! 🙂 That’s interesting that they weren’t too sweet and had more of a breakfast-like flavor though. It sounds like they may have been on the cakey or bready side too, rather than soft and chewy, if you think they’d be good as muffins — is that true?
If so, I’d love to help figure out why that was, in case you’d like these to turn out like sweet, chewy, true “dessert” cookies! 😉
Did you make any other modifications, besides salted butter and old-fashioned rolled oats? Also, did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups to measure all of the ingredients, especially the flour, oats, and honey?
Just made these and they are delicious! Crisp on the outside and chewy. I did make some modifications. I subbed in almond flour, steel cut oats, 3/4 cup coconut sugar and frozen raspberries. I combined the dry ingredients and blitzed them in the food processor. The raspberries microwaved to thaw. The cookies were much darker in colour due to the coconut sugar I think and the were very flat. I think I’ll use the tip above to blot the extra moisture out of the raspberries and also they were plenty sweet so I’d use less coconut sugar. Thanks for this great recipe! Just about to start a clean eating diet and will definitely rely on these for those sugar cravings!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these cookies, Erica! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know. That really means a lot! 🙂
The extra moisture from the thawed raspberries definitely would’ve made your cookies spread more. If you thoroughly blot that with paper towels first, it should help! Also, if you’d like to use coconut sugar instead of honey, I’d recommend following my substitution suggestion on my Oatmeal Cookie FAQ Page (there’s a link to that FAQ Page in the Notes section of the recipe, located directly underneath the Instructions!). Since you mentioned your cookies were plenty sweet and you’d be okay using less sugar, I have a feeling you may like that recipe modification a bit more too! 😉
So yummy! I did half with diced raspberries and the other half with diced blueberries. I also added in a tiny bit of maple syrup too, such a great recipe – thanks for sharing!
These look tasty. I usually make oat cranberry ones, this would be another great option to change it up.
I’d love to hear what you think of these oatmeal cookies if you try making them, Keira!
Hello, would you be able too give a carb count per serving? My 9 year old daughter is diabetic but, I think she would love these! 😍
You’re so sweet to consider making these for your daughter! She’s truly lucky to have you. 🙂 The full nutrition information (including carb count per serving!) is actually included directly underneath the recipe. I know it can be easy to miss! 😉
I’d love to hear what you and your daughter think if you end up making these oatmeal cookies!
100% I will make these again AND I’ll try the other flavors too. I refrigerated mine overnight, used a cookie scoop & flattened slight. So delicious.
I’m so glad you enjoyed these cookies, Michelle! That’s the highest kind of praise there is, if you already think you’ll make them again and would consider trying some of my other flavors too. I’m honored — thank you SO much for rating this recipe and taking the time to let me know too! 🙂
Can you use freeze dried fruit without modifying the recipe?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Til! I haven’t tried, so I’m not personally sure how that substitute would turn out and don’t want to lead you astray. If you do end up making these cookies, I’d love to hear what you think of them! 🙂