Quaker Oats has the most perfect recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies.  I used to make it regularly for parties, gifts, picnics, or just when my sweet tooth was craving it.  The thing is, it requires two sticks of butter and a cup and a half of sugar.  On newer packaging of Quaker Oats, they even updated the recipe to use less sugar and only half the butter (it’s not as good).

Original recipe:

Today’s recipe:

At some point last year, I held off on making the cookies until I was able to find an alternative to all the butter and sugar.  What ended up happening was me just choosing other cookies and pastries to bake because I knew that no sweetener or butter substitute would produce the perfection of Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.

Just this past weekend, my two good friends got engaged.  I wanted to bake them some treats as an engagement gift.  They had never had these oatmeal raisin cookies, so guilt aside, I baked them for this special occasion.  I still would like to try a healthier version without compromising the taste, but until then, I must share this classic recipe with all of you with some of my adjustments (marked with asterisks *).

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 lb. butter (2 sticks), softened & sliced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups Old-Fashioned Quaker Oats
1 cup golden raisins*
1/2 cup walnuts* (optional)

Yields about 3 dozen*

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees

2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.  Set aside.

3. Beat together butter and sugars until creamy.

4. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.

5. Gradually incorporate dry ingredients until just mixed.  Do not overmix.

6. In the empty bowl that held the dry ingredients, mix together the oats, raisins, and walnuts.

7. Fold oats, raisins, and walnuts into the dough, being careful not to overmix.

 

8. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes to an hour.*

9. With an ice-cream scoop or two teaspoons, scoop balls of dough (about 1 tbsp.) on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper (no need to grease pan). 

10. Bake for 11-13 minutes.  Cool for 1-2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack for 3 minutes.

Tips:
– Try to remove the cookies from the oven before the edges start to brown.  Even if the center still looks doughy, they will continue to cook during the cooling process.

Congratulations to my dear friends, Gino & Whitney, on their engagement!!!  Cheers!