Healthy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe [vegan + easily gluten free]
A healthier cookie for when you want to stay on track, but have a need to soothe that sweet tooth! Naturally sweetened Healthier Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are soft and chewy, with just a hint of cinnamon. This recipe is vegan, vegetarian and easily gluten free. *see notes to make these cookies with chocolate chunk/chips and also, gluten free.
Servings 32 Cookies
Calories 90kcal
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (105 grams) Raisins *see notes for chocolate chunk/chips
- 3/4 cup (230 grams) Pure Maple Syrup room temperature
- 1/2 cup (130 grams) Smooth Almond Butter no stir or fresh ground almond butter with no additives at room temperature (**see note if using gloppy/runny almond butter)
- 1/3 cup (70 grams) Unsweetened Apple Sauce room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 cup (65 grams) Almond Flour I use Bob's Red Mill
- 1/2 cup (55 grams) Gluten Free Oat Flour I use homemade, linked here
- 1 3/4 cups (165 grams) Old Fashioned Rolled Oats I use Bob's Red Mill
- 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon ground
- 1/2 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
Instructions
- Set oven rack to center of the oven and preheat oven to 350F (180C). Line two sheet pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, add the raisins. If the raisins are dry, pour boiling water over them until they're just covered. Allow to set, to plump up, while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Drain and press out the any remaining water before mixing the raisins into the dough.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk the maple syrup, almond butter, apple sauce, and vanilla extract until the mixture is smooth and emulsified. To the wet ingredients, add the almond flour, oat flour, rolled oats, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda. Stir for one minute, vigorously, to incorporate the ingredients. Fold in the raisins. The batter should be thick.
- Using a #50 ice cream scoop (or heaped Tablespoon), scoop the cookies and place them on the prepared sheet pans in 4x5 rows, about 1 1/2 inches apart. The cookies should hold in scoop form when placed on the sheet pan. If not, see notes**. Bake in a preheated oven for 13-15 minutes, or until golden on the bottom and top.
- Remove from oven and allow cookies to rest on the sheet pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- To Store: Store cookies at room temperature in a lidded container, stacked between sheets of parchment for up to a week (otherwise they stick together). The cookies will soften further as they set.
Notes
I recommend an oven thermometer and weighing your ingredients using a digital kitchen scale for best outcome. Use the scoop and sweep method for volume measurements if a scale is unavailable.
Gluten Free? Use Bob’s Red Mill Certified Gluten Free Old Fashioned Rolled Oats and GF Almond Flour to make these cookies gluten free. These products are processed in a dedicated gluten free facility.
*To make Healthier Chocolate Chip and Chunk Oatmeal Cookies: Omit the raisins and fold in 1/2 cup (75 grams) chopped dark chocolate (for chunks) and 1/2 cup (95 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips.
**If using runny/gloppy almond butter, the cookies won't hold their shape when scooped. To remedy this, add 2 tablespoons each of oat flour, and almond flour. Stir and scoop. Do a test scoop. If the dough ball still needs more thickening power, add up to 2 tablespoons of rolled oats!
To Freeze the Cookies: To make these oatmeal cookies ahead of when needed, scoop the cookie dough and place the scoops on a sheet pan. Pop the pan in the freezer for about an hour. When frozen, place the cookies in a storage container. Remove the cookies from the freezer, place on a parchment lined sheet pan and thaw at room temperature. Once thawed they're ready to bake. You can also freeze the cookies after baking, once cooled. Thaw at room temperature.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 90kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 3mg | Potassium: 99mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 0.6mg