Thick and Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies-a bakery recipe!
Amycakes Bakes | amycakesbakes.com
This easy recipe makes thick and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies with a delicious cinnamony and nutty flavor AND a super soft texture. Juicy raisins and pecans add to the moisture and crunch of these bakery-style cookies.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 200 gram (1 ½ cups) All-Purpose Flour I use Gold Medal
- 176 grams (2 cups) Old Fashioned Oats
- 24 grams (3 Tablespoons) Instant Clearjel Please make sure it is labeled as "INSTANT." Instant Clearjel is a bakery ingredient you can use at home--see the Notes secion
- 114 grams (½ cup + 1 Tablespoon) Sugar
- 170 grams (¾ cup packed) Brown Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
- 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon I use McCormick
Wet Ingredients
- 1 large Egg
- ¼ cup Vegetable Oil
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- ¾ teaspoon Almond Extract optional, but I recommend it as it provides a delicious hint of nutty flavor
Other Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup Raisins
- 1 stick (4 ounces) Salted Butter, softened but not melted
- 1 cup Chopped Pecans optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
- Place the raisins in a bowl and pour hot or boiling water over them until they are covered. Soak the raisins for 5 minutes, then strain them well.
- In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients until well blended.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the wet ingredients until blended.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, add the softened salted butter, and mix until the dough comes together with a wooden spoon or sturdy spatula. Use your hands as needed to combine the ingredients into a uniform dough, as the dough will be thick. Make sure the butter is fully incorporated.
- Reserve ¼ cup raisins and ¼ cup pecans for the tops of the cookies. Add the remaining strained soaked raisins and pecans (if using), and mix that into the dough, using your hands as needed.
- Using a 2-ounce scoop, scoop the cookie dough and place the balls onto cookie sheets or sheet pans lined with parchment paper. (If you don't have a cookie scoop, you can just divide the dough into 15 to 16 equal cookie dough balls).
- Place the cookies around 4 inches apart, then flatten the cookies slightly so that they are around 2 ¼ inches wide and uniform in height. Press the reserved raisins and pecans into the tops of cookie dough before baking.
- Bake the cookies on the middle or top rack (avoid bottom rack) in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until the edges are set and the top is only slightly shiny. The cookies will look slightly underdone but will continue to bake on the cookie sheet as they cool. Avoid overbaking (if they are baked even a couple of minutes too long, they will be more cake-like and less chewy). Enjoy!
Notes
Read my article Instant Clearjel: a Magical Bakery Ingredient to see why I think this ingredient is worth having in your pantry. Instant Clearjel is what gives these cookies their extra soft and chewy texture and keeps them from overspreading in the oven. Instant Clearjel must always be whisked thoroughly with other dry ingredients before being added to wet ingredients to avoid clumping. Make sure whatever brand you purchase is labeled as “Instant.” Cooktype Clearjel is a different product that does not work the same in baking.