This week I had a request from a local customer who wanted to purchase vegan oatmeal cookies. He said that he has been looking for a vegan oatmeal cookie that would obtain the approval of his children.
The only specification was that they could not have chocolate chips which is normally how his kids prefer oatmeal raisin cookies.
Not wanting to crush his dreams and tell him I actually didn’t have a vegan oatmeal cookie recipe in my ‘baking holster’, I smiled and said, ‘Of course I can make you some oatmeal raisins cookies. No problem!’
I knew I had some work to do. *gulp.
Batch #1 was an excellent attempt, but not quite there yet.
Batch #2 had me hook, line, and sinker.
That wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.
The Ultimate Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookie
Inspired by Salt Kissed Chunky PB Chocolate Chip Cookies & Vegetarian Times.
Ingredients:
- 1 & 3/4 cups walnuts, toasted
- 2 cups regular oats, divided
- 3/4 cup white Kamut flour (other flours probably work!)
- 1/2 cup Sucanat (or brown sugar)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp almond milk
- 3.5 tbsp coconut oil
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup raisins
Directions: Preheat oven to 350F and grease a baking sheet. Place 1.75 cups of walnuts on the baking sheet. Toast walnuts in oven for about 10-12 minutes, until golden in colour. Watch carefully so as not to burn. When walnuts are toasted remove from oven and cool for a few minutes. Dump walnuts into food processor and process until just finely ground, no more. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, 1 cup oats, cinnamon, and Sucanat (or brown sugar). Now add the dry ingredients to the food processor and process for about 20-30 seconds until mixed. In a small bowl add the coconut oil and microwave for 20 seconds to soften (if necessary). In the same bowl, stir in the maple syrup, almond milk, and vanilla, and pour into food processor. Process until the mixture is thoroughly combined. Remove bowl from processor and dump contents into a large bowl. Mix in the remaining 1 cup of oats by stirring or with hands. Fold in the 2/3 cup of raisins. Take about 2 tbsp of dough, make a ball, and then flatten with fingers. Place on cookie sheet. Repeat. Bake for 10 minutes at 350F and no longer. Remove from oven and let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes before placing onto a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes. Makes about 16 large cookies.
This was my first time baking with Kamut flour!
Kamut (pronounced ka-moot) is an ancient whole grain cultivated by the Egyptians in 8,000 B.C.
Like spelt, it may be a healthy alternative for people who are sensitive to wheat products. The benefit of Kamut over spelt flour is that Kamut is much lighter than spelt and won’t weigh the baked goods down. I have been excited to try it out ever since my friend Heather told me about it!
I bought some white Kamut flour and some whole grain Kamut flour. I started with the white Kamut flour first to ‘test the waters’.
After grinding the toasted walnuts and then processing with the dry ingredients…
Next, I processed in the wet ingredients and then folded in the oats and raisins…
=> the most delicious & rich & buttery cookie dough in the world.
Baking for just 10 minutes (not a second longer!) at 350F.
Damn.
The result was the most delicious oatmeal raisin cookie I think I have ever tasted. The toasted walnuts were magnificent and I am so glad I toasted them. The recipe is slightly ‘fussy’ but well worth the effort and it still didn’t take longer than about 35-40 minutes or so.
I have a feeling my customer’s kids will love these cookies.
Eric was silent for a while as he ate one and his eyes went into a far off daze. After snapping him out of it, he said, ‘These are incredible…mmmm…..’ and then he went back into a daze as he ate them.
He hasn’t been the same since.
I’m going to give my customer this batch on the house so he can test them out and see how they all like them.
I also made some mini cookies- just 1 inch in diameter (but they look much bigger in this deceiving picture!)
Mini cookies are fun for lunches when you want just a little something sweet.
Or you can go big or go home. ;)
Food for thought: If you could have one recipe made healthier and/or vegan what would it be?
I just made these for a Trader Joe’s work party later today. I found ants in my raisins, so I used dried cranberries and dark chocolate chips instead. This is a truly great recipe…so chewy, hearty and rich from the sucanat and maple syrup. Everything an oatmeal cookie should be. :)
TO answer your food for thought q, i’d LOVE to find a delicious vegan bread pudding recipe! Got one for me? =)
I made these last night and everyone LOVED them!! I used cranberries and chocolate chips and they were so yummy!
THESE BISCUITS CHANGED MY LIFE. I’m not even kidding, I made these yesterday and they were absolutely incredible. Restored my faith in my ability to cook and they were by far the tastiest vegan food I’ve ever made. Thank you Angela!!!
I just made these cookies now and they are EPIC. Seriously, what an amazing recipe you’ve created!
Even with a few minor changes based on what ingredients I happened to have on hand, they are still the most amazing oatmeal raisin cookies I’ve EVER tasted…and I’m not even vegan! I’ve never made anything vegan before either…thank you thank you thank you :) Can’t wait to make these for parties!
Those cookies look yummy! The only way I eat raisins is in a oatmeal cookie. I plan on making this recipe later, but maybe with dried blueberries, almonds, and with whole wheat flour. My dad has been looking for a healthy oatmeal cookie recipe and he loves blue berries so i’m going to replace them with raisins. :) Can’t wait!
Just made these cookies and they are incredible!
I made these, here: http://www.piperillustration.com/blog/one-of-those-really-really-good-days/
….except with chocolate chips instead of raisins, and they turned out so great!
Thanks for sharing the great recipe!!
Can I sub butter or applesauce for the coconut oil??
im sure you could but im not sure exactly how they will turn out. if you try it, please let me know! Also, you can try reading the comments to see if anyone made this sub. Goodluck!
Ok these were really good and I am not vegan. Even hubby who makes fun of vegan baked goods loved them. The recipe was very forgiving to substitutions for what I had on hand too. Making these again even tho I am back on dairy.
These were delicious! My husband said that these were good by any standards – not just vegan, and that’s saying a lot for him :) I used whole wheat flour, raw sugar, and pumpkin purée in place of the oil. Wonderful! Can’t say enough!
Just made these and they’re awesome! The husband and I ate two each as soon as they were cool enough. Angela, you never disappoint.
Thanks for your feedback Kristina, I’m happy to hear you both enjoyed the cookies! I usually can’t wait until they’ve cooled and I burn my tongue…haha
Ijust made these cookies and they are absolute heaven! They’re chewy yet crunchy and taste like the very unhealthy cookies you could pick up from the bakery. The only problem I have with these cookies is that they are falling apart! Most of them, when cooled, arent holding together as a cookie. Any ideas for the next batch?
Hey Sonya, I’m glad you enjoy them but sorry to hear they are crumbly! Did you make any modifications to the recipe at all? I will have to revisit this recipe and test it out again. Thanks for letting me know!
Ignore me! I guess they spread out a little more than I would have liked in the oven, creating a thinner cookie.I was too excited so I had to try them while they were still warm and that’s when they would fall apart. However, After letting them cool completely, they were fine! Your recipe is wonderful and I will be making them again! :)
Man…I forgot the brown sugar this time. Not too bad though! I always seem to forget one ingredient…ha!
I’d love a tried and true, delicious, vegan recipe for pineapple upside-down cake
So, I’m transitioning to veganism, and was a little weary of getting rid of eggs and dairy. This cookie is AMAZING. I stayed up at 2am this morning making it (I tweaked it a bit, used soy instead of almond milk, honey instead of maple syrup, and toasted almonds instead of walnuts — working off of what I had in the kitchen). But this is SO good. :)
Hey Nikki, Im happy you enjoy it!
Just made em…they’re phenomenal.
These turned out great, I haven’t baked in a long time but you inspired me to try.
Love your site!
I have never heard of ‘kumut flour’ before. I’m going to have to explore that! Thanks for sharing. Looks super yummy!
My husband had a heart attack a few months ago and since then we have been looking for tasty things to eat that are good for his heart. He is not eating dairy or oils. So this recipe I think will be a great thing that we can try. I will use applesauce instead of the oil so I hope it turns out well. It worked great in the stuffed mushrooms I made. Absolutely delicious.
Thanks for the great recipe.
Norma