I lived in the dorms during my freshman year of college, and with only a small fridge the size of a microwave and no kitchen, I purchased a meal plan and ate most of my lunches and dinners in the dining hall. Although usually somewhat skeptical of the entrées, I could always count on the salad bar for healthier options before stopping by the dessert station for sweet treats. Even then, I needed my daily fix!
Sometimes I felt adventurous and sampled their latest raw vegan carrot cake or tofu chocolate cupcakes, but their cookies were always the best. Chocolate chip, peanut butter, snickerdoodle, tuxedo… Those were the softest and chewiest you’d ever imagine. It was like biting into little circles of heaven!
But with the extra chewy factor and ample amounts of cinnamon, the oatmeal raisin cookies were always the first I’d reach for. I often headed down to dinner with my next door neighbor, who enrolled in many of the same classes and quickly turned into my study buddy. Since oatmeal raisin were his favorite too, we’d grab a plate to nibble on while quizzing each other about mechanisms and equations for our next chemistry and physics midterms.
Thank goodness the rest of the freshmen seemed to avoid that flavor!
So now, quite a few years later, I decided that it was finally time to develop a recipe of my own that rivaled—if not surpassed—those oatmeal raisin cookies. Something incredibly soft, unbelievably chewy, and absolutely irresistible… Exactly the opposite of the boring, bland, or dry reputations oatmeal cookies sometimes attract. And of course, being me and my blog, I wanted to make them healthier.
So… These are it! They’re the Ultimate Healthy Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. They’re chock full of hearty oats, sweet raisins, and lots of warm cinnamon. They’re also just 100 calories with no refined flour or sugar. Trust me, you’ll never need another recipe ever again!
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES
Now let’s go over how to make these ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies! I’m going to walk you through some important ingredients you’ll need and a few keys steps to help you avoid some of the more common issues. I cover many of these things in the video beneath the recipe too. If you’d rather skip straight to the recipe and start baking, go right ahead!
To start, you’ll need whole wheat flour or gluten-free flour. No refined all-purpose flour in these cookies! You’ll also need instant oats (also called “quick cooking” or “one minute” oats). Instant oats are smaller and thinner than traditional old-fashioned rolled oats. This means they soften faster, which keeps your ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies supremely soft and chewy! You can usually find instant oats in canisters right next to the old-fashioned oats at the grocery store. (And no, they’re NOT the same thing as in those flavored individual brown paper packets!)
It’s extremely important to measure both the oats and flour correctly. Use this method or a kitchen scale if you own one. (I highly recommend the latter! This is the one I own.)
If your cookies turned out dry or failed to spread on the baking sheet, it’s mostly likely because there was too much of either of those dry ingredients, especially the oats. They act like little sponges and soak up moisture, so adding too many will quickly turn the cookies crumbly.
I promise these ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies are worth taking the extra 10 seconds to measure your flour and oats correctly!
Whereas traditional recipes usually call for a full stick (or more!) of butter, you just need 2 tablespoons of coconut or oil butter. That really helps keep your ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies low calorie and low fat, and if you use coconut oil, they’re also dairy-free!
Also unlike traditional recipes that use refined granulated sugar, you’ll actually sweeten your ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies with honey, agave, or pure maple syrup. These are unrefined sweeteners, and they all work equally well!
Then here’s one of my favorite tips for making the best ever healthy oatmeal raisin cookies…
Don’t add your raisins into the cookie dough straight from the package! Instead, hydrate your raisins first. This is super simple to do! Add them to a microwave-safe bowl, cover them with water, and place a lid or plastic wrap on top. Microwave them on high for 1 minute. Let them sit for at least 5 minutes (or while you measure and mix together the rest of the ingredients!). By the time you’re ready to drain them and stir them into the cookie dough, they’ll be exceptionally plump and juicy… Which definitely creates the best healthy oatmeal raisin cookies imaginable!
Now that your cookie dough is all mixed together, chilling is mandatory. Most of the time. If you added the correct amount of oats and flour, the dough should be wet and look more like thick muffin batter. Chilling will help stiffen the dough so it doesn’t spread as much while baking. If your cookie dough is already stiff, skip the chilling and bake it right away.
(The video just above the recipe shows what the textures before and after chilling should look like!)
However, your ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies will only spread some after chilling (not excessively!), so if you want wider, somewhat thinner cookies, make sure you flatten them slightly before baking. Just give them a little pat with a spatula. If you prefer thicker cookies, skip that and bake them right after scooping them onto the baking tray.
Finally, do not overbake these cookies! I always pull mine out slightly early, then let them sit on the warm baking sheet longer. This allows the centers to continue to set without turning the outsides crisp and crunchy. Your ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies will stay soft and chewy for an entire week that way!
These Ultimate Healthy Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies didn’t stand a chance at my house. Even with just me eating (and sneaking) them, they only lasted four days. I hope you enjoy them just as much!
And when you make your own oatmeal raisin cookies, 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 ultimate healthy oatmeal raisin cookies!
(My Healthier Chocolate Treats cookbook is full of sweet and healthy recipes like these oatmeal cookies! You can see a sneak preview of all of the recipes inside here!)
The Ultimate Healthy Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (100g) instant oats (measured like this & gluten-free if necessary)
- ¾ cup (90g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120mL) honey or agave
- ¼ cup (40g) raisins (see Notes!)
Instructions
- Whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg, and vanilla. Stir in the honey or agave. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the raisins. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops onto the prepared sheet, and flatten slightly. Bake at 325°F for 11-14 minutes (see Notes!). Cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
Here is what the cookie dough should look like just before chilling. It resembles thick muffin batter more than cookie dough!
Here is what the cookies look like before and after baking. They some, but not too much, so be sure to flatten them slightly with a spatula just before popping the baking sheet in the oven.
You may also like Amy’s Other Recipes…
♡ Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Almond Joy Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Raspberry Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Apple Pie Oatmeal Cookies
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy oatmeal cookie recipes!
Hi Amy! Looks like an amazing recipe but I don’t want to use sugar, honey or maple syrup in my baking. My husband is diabetic. I’ve started experimenting with Monkfruit. It tastes just like sugar. What are your thoughts on using it? I looked for a sugar free category on your website but can’t find one.
I really appreciate your interest in this recipe, Jill! That’s so sweet of you to look for recipes to try while accommodating your husband’s dietary needs. We’d love to talk more about using Monkfruit, but first, it would be helpful to know the exact product (brand + product name!) that you’d like to use. That will give us a much better idea of whether it’ll work and what potential modifications you’d need to make to the recipe. 😉
Thanks for your reply Stacy. The product I use is Monk fruit (Erythritol). It looks and tastes just like sugar and I use it at the ratio of 1:1. I buy it at Bulk Barn so no specific brand. I just pack up a bag of it and use sparingly.
Thank you, Jill! Based on the info that you shared, if you’d like to use that Bulk Barn sweetener, we’d recommend ½ cup of your sweetener + 6 ½ to 7 tablespoons of milk (any type!) to replace the honey in our oatmeal raisin cookie recipe.
Although the “1-to-1” monk fruit sweeteners do sweeten like 1 cup of sugar, they don’t behave like 1 cup of sugar — at least in our AHB recipes! Erythritol both absorbs and dissolves differently in liquids compared to coconut sugar or cane-based sugars. As a result, it generally makes AHB cookie doughs too dry, which is why you’ll need to add milk to achieve the correct cookie dough consistency and fully baked cookie texture. I hope that’s helpful for you!
I also wanted to link our Sugar Free Recipes here for you! We also have over 250+ recipes that use Stevia in case that would be something you’d be willing to try as well. I’d love to hear if you find any other recipes to try! 😉
Thanks very much for your reply Stacy. I’ll try that.
I’m happy to help, Jill! 🙂
Delicious cookies! I substituted 1T Flaxseed & 3T of water for the egg and added some coconut flakes. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Will be making these again!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these cookies, Peggy! Thanks for taking the time to let us know and share your modifications too. We always love to hear what recipe tweaks work out! 🙂
Hi Stacy, Can I use salted butter rather than unsalted. I just won’t add salt. I usually just have salted butter in my fridge. What do you think?
I prefer using unsalted butter and adding salt myself because there isn’t a “standard” amount of salt that every butter brand uses in their salted butter. Therefore, the sodium content (and therefore the flavor of your baked goods!) can vary depending on what brand you use… Whereas if you use unsalted butter and add the amount of salt provided in the Ingredients list, you’ll end up with the same flavor every time in your baked goods.
You’re welcome to use salted butter and reduce the amount of salt if you prefer. (I don’t think it’s necessary to eliminate it altogether!) I just can’t personally vouch for how much you’ll need to decrease the salt or how that will affect the flavor of your baked treats.
I hope that’s helpful, Jill! 🙂
These are awesome! I never comment on recipes, but felt compelled to with these! The flavor is perfect. I did add some nutmeg, ginger, and cloves because I love spicy cookies. Only thing for me was they were a little dry, so next time I’ll use a little less flour or add milk. Thank you for a healthier, simple alternative to my family’s favorite treat!
I’m so happy you loved these cookies, Jacqueline! I love your idea to add more of the spices to the cookies, too! If they were a little dry, I would recommend checking the Notes section, which is directly below the recipe. There are a couple of tips there that may help if you make these cookies again sometime. 😉 Thank you for taking the time to let us know and rate the recipe! We really appreciate your kind words!
This recipe needs more cinnamon and maybe nutmeg, they were pretty tasteless tbh but I opted for this recipe instead of one that took 3 sticks of butter and you can definitely taste the difference 🤣🤣
It means a lot that you tried my recipe, Megan! That sounds disappointing and not like how these cookies are supposed to turn out, so I’d love to help figure out what happened, if you’d like. 🙂 In order to do so, I have some questions for you!
Was it just their flavor that was lacking? Or was their texture off as well?
Could you describe their flavor a bit more? Was it just the spices that were lacking? How was their sweetness level?
Also, would you mind elaborating on what you meant by “taste the difference?” My first thought was that you meant they had a prominent “whole wheat” like flavor, but I wanted to double check!
Did you make any substitutions or modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups/spoons for all of the ingredients — especially the oats, flour, and honey/agave?
If you used measuring cups, can you describe how you used them to measure the oats and flour? Did you happen to dip them into the containers, by any chance? Or, if you used my “fork” technique, did you nudge the measuring cups side to side while filling them at all?
Which flour option did you use?
Did you use the full amount of honey/agave?
Out of curiosity, what brand of cinnamon did you use? (I’ve found some brands are blander and don’t have as strong of a spice flavor as others, which is why I ask! 🙂 )
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!
I LOVE these! They’re perfect! Just what I’ve been looking for. Easy and not too sweet! I did, however, add an extra half teaspoon of cinnamon only because some reviews found they needed a tad more spice, and I love cinnamon so it was the natural thing to do. Thank you SO much for posting this. Next one up will be the apple pie cookies.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed these cookies so much, Karen! We really appreciate you sharing feedback about the cinnamon, too. It’s always great to hear what modifications work out well. I can’t wait to hear what you think about the apple pie cookies! 😉
Made these with spelt flour instead of whole wheat since it’s what I had and they tasted delicious!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these cookies, Jena! Thanks for taking the time to let us know and share your modifications too. We always love to hear what recipe tweaks work out! 😉
Nowhere can I find how many calories there are in each cookie. They taste so good they must be on my food list of foods to avoid.
We really appreciate your interest in our recipe! The full nutrition information (including calories per serving!) is included directly underneath the recipe box. I know it can be really easy to miss though! 😉 I’m so happy you enjoyed these cookies so much!
I just made these and the texture is wonderful however, they have a really strong cinnamon taste and I don’t know if that’s normal or if I read the recipe wrong anybody else have it overwhelming taste? Mine are also much darker than the ones that are shown are used for wheat flour. I don’t know if that is why mine are dark compared to the example ones above. I would love to know what I did wrong or any suggestions going forward because I feel like this would be amazing if they didn’t taste like cinnamon 🙂
Hi Jessica! I’m so happy you liked these cookies, despite the strong cinnamon flavor! Do you happen to know how much cinnamon you used when measuring?