Crispy edges with a chewy center, these are my favorite oatmeal raisin cookies. Undetectably vegan and gluten-free – they’re just so good!

vegan oatmeal raisin cookies on plates flatlay

These are, hands down, my favorite oatmeal raisin cookies – vegan or not! They’re crispy on the edges, chewy inside, just sweet enough, and packed with cozy, nutty flavor. I’ve gone through quite a few cookie trials over the years trying to achieve my *perfect* vegan oatmeal raisin cookies, so I’m so excited to finally get to share these! Obviously everyone has their own taste preference, so these may not be everyone’s perfect cookie – but my boyfriend and family also really like these, so it’s not just me! Give them a try and let me know what you think 🤎

Key Ingredients

Along with the usual cookie ingredients, we are adding a few other elements to create a balanced flavor and texture:

Walnut Butter ⟶ Adds buttery, nutty flavor that vegan butter alone doesn’t have.
- See the FAQ below for substitutions.
Oat Flour ⟶ Provides more nuttiness especially as the flour gets cooked and toasted during baking.
Ground Flaxseed ⟶ Binds the cookie together. Oat flour spreads more easily and makes the cookies more crumbly compared to other gluten-filled flours (or gluten-free flours that have binders added). Combining ground flaxseed and plant milk creates a vegan “egg” that will help prevent the cookies from overspreading and being too delicate.
Cinnamon ⟶ Technically optional, but I love the combination of cinnamon and raisins.

Tips for Success

Use melted butter ⟶ Melted butter makes for chewier cookies. Softened butter gets aerated when creaming with sugar and thus will result in a more cake-like texture.

Cool the melted butter before using ⟶ Let the butter sit at room temperature for a few minutes so it’s not hot when you add the flours.

Chill dough ⟶ This allows the flour to hydrate and break down into sugars, resulting in a more flavorful cookie with better browning. The dough will also thicken more so the cookies don’t overspread in the oven.

Tap pan on counter after baking ⟶ The cookies will puff up in the oven, so when you take them out be sure to tap the pan on the counter once or twice to deflate them. This will create flatter cookies with those lovely cracks on top.

Use gram measurements! ⟶ I highly recommend weighing your ingredients (mainly flour, sugar, and butter) with a kitchen scale*.

Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookie FAQ

You can use all purpose flour (or a gluten-free all purpose flour) and omit the flaxseed. The cookies will be thicker and softer but still tasty!

I have made these cookies with olive oil instead of butter and they were delicious! Use 40 grams olive oil + 15 grams soy milk (in addition to the soy milk called for in the recipe card). The cookies will not spread as much, so I recommend flattening them a bit before baking.

There are a few options:

If you have walnuts, you can make your own walnut butter! See my homemade walnut butter recipe.
Use a different nut/seed butter, but note the flavor of the cookies will change slightly depending on the nut/seed butter you use. Pecan butter would be phenomenal (albeit pricey), almond or cashew butter would be my next choice for more neutral flavor, sunflower seed butter would be good taste-wise but may turn the cookies green, tahini can work if you don’t mind the slight bitterness, and peanut butter would be most affordable.
Omit and double the amount of vegan butter. Originally I made these cookies with just vegan butter, but I love the subtle buttery, nutty flavor the walnut butter adds.

This is likely due to over-baking. Oat flour dries out quickly so pay close attention to the bake time. I recommend just baking one or two as a test batch first, since all ovens vary. If your cookies come out dry, reduce the bake time by a minute. If your dough feels particularly dry, add extra soy milk one teaspoon at a time.

close up oatmeal raisin cookies overhead shot

More Vegan Cookies!

hand grabbing an oatmeal raisin cookie off platter

If you try out these vegan oatmeal raisin cookies, don’t forget to leave a comment/rating down below and tag me in your photos on instagram @ellielikes.cooking. I love seeing all of your tasty recreations!

Prep Time:15

Cook Time:10

Servings: 16 cookies

Ingredients

2 tbsp soy milk
2 tsp ground flaxseed
52 grams (¼ cup) melted vegan butter**
60 grams (¼ cup) walnut butter
56 grams (4 tbsp + 2 tsp) sugar
56 grams (4 tbsp + 2 tsp) brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
90 grams (¾ cup) oat flour**
120 grams (1 ½ cups) rolled oats**
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt if butter is unsalted
½ cup raisins

Instructions

Bring all ingredients to room temperature before mixing.
Mix soy milk and ground flaxseed in a small bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes to gel.
To a large mixing bowl, combine melted butter and walnut butter.
Add sugars and beat until combined. Stir in flax mixture and vanilla.
Add flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt (if using). Mix until a dough forms and no dry flour is left.
Stir in raisins.
Cover and transfer the dough to the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes (up to 24 hours).
Take the dough out of the fridge and preheat the oven to 350°F.
Scoop about 2 tbsp of dough and roll into balls. Place 2-inches apart on a baking sheet.
Tip: If you chilled your dough overnight and prefer thinner cookies, slightly flatten the cookie dough to encourage spreading. The flour will soak up more liquid overnight, so the cookies don't spread as much as if you bake them the same day.
When the oven is ready, place the cookies in the oven and bake 9-10 minutes. The edges should be just set but the center still soft when you remove them from the oven. They will look underdone but they continue cooking on the pan.
Bang the pan on the counter once after baking to flatten the cookies. Cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes, then transfer cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Notes

Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free oats and oat flour.

Oil instead of butter: I have made these cookies with olive oil instead of butter and they were delicious! Use 40 grams olive oil + 15 grams soy milk (in addition to the 2 tbsp soy milk). You can try other oils as well, just be wary of strong-flavored oils as it will affect the flavor of the cookies.

Nutrition Facts

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