Packed full of cozy mix-ins like toasted pecans and extra-flavorful raisins, these brown butter oatmeal raisin cookies are anything but boring. Nutty melted brown butter joins with maple syrup to ensure these easy cookies stay chewy for days. This dough can be mixed together by hand.
If someone in your crowd (maybe it's you) thumbs their nose at 'boring old' oatmeal raisin cookies, they may soon be, happily, eating their words. These ultra chewy brown butter oatmeal raisin cookies are doing the most, but the payoff is worth it.
This is major overhaul of an old recipe (we're talking from 11 years ago) that I affectionately called "loaded oatmeal cookies" due to the fact that I haphazardly threw in this-and-thats from my baking cabinet to form a tasty yet chaotic cookie. Butterscotch chips, coconut flakes, raisins...you know, just like grandma used to make. ??♀️
I suppose that name is still apt but I've gotten better at flavor cohesion through the years and took these babies back to the drawing board. Now they're loaded up with intention: browned butter, toasted pecans, cinnamon, maple syrup, and (optionally) bourbon-soaked raisins. Hello, cozy flavor smorgasbord.
What's more, I upped the chew factor tenfold. These are majorly chewy oatmeal raisin cookies, thanks to the melted browned butter, ratio of brown sugar vs. granulated, and maple syrup.
Plus browning the butter introduces toasty, caramelized notes without having to overly brown your cookies while baking, which helps keep cookies chewy. Big fan!
What You'll Need
- Butter: We're not only melting unsalted butter, we're browning it on the stovetop. Using melted butter helps produce a chewy cookie texture, while browned butter brings an incomparably toasty, toffee-like, caramelized flavor.
- Pecans: Pecan halves are my preference for toasting as their larger size makes it easier to prevent burning than pre-chopped. On that front, chop your pecan halves after they've toasted and cooled. Walnuts work, too.
- Raisins: All regular raisins are just fine (as are golden, seen above), but I prefer a mix of regular and golden raisins. Golden raisins are moister and a little sweeter.
- Bourbon (optional): Just a few tablespoons for soaking the raisins. This plumps them up and throws in a subtle complementary flavor. You can use rum if you prefer, or switch to orange juice or water.
- Oats: Old-fashioned oats (also known as rolled oats) are the way as they hold up and remain hearty and chewy through baking. More heavily processed quick or instant oats are not a good substitute.
- Sugars: A mix to balance chewiness and height (brown sugar) with crispier edges (granulated sugar).
- Maple Syrup: This helps boost sweetness and the chewy texture, and who would be mad at a slight tinge of maple flavoring with pecans, browned butter, cinnamon, etc.? It's not a strong maple flavor by any means - if you'd like one, replace up to one teaspoon of the vanilla extract with maple extract.
- Flour: A little over one cup might not seem like enough on paper, but not using too much flour is KEY in achieving chewy cookies. The high level of mix-ins here (oats, pecans, and raisins) work to hold the dough together and prevent oatmeal raisin cookies from spreading too much.
How hard is browning butter?
Making brown butter isn't hard, but it can be a little agita-inducing. You'll need to stir pretty continuously and keep a close eye for golden-brown liquid and deep golden-brown milk solids (speckly bits), as well as a close...nose for a nutty aroma. Then it's an immediate transfer to a cool bowl to stop the browning.
The good news is that these checkpoints aren't subtle - using a light-colored skillet, it's clear to see when the milk solids are browned and when the butter is golden. And the smell is delightfully strong.
If you're new to browning butter, I suggest using a slightly lower temperature and going a little slower so that burnt browned butter doesn't sneak up on you. You'll get the same output with less stress.
Making Brown Butter Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
There are two prep steps you can do ahead of time: toasting the pecans and soaking the raisins in the fridge overnight. If you don't get around to the raisins, you can quickly heat them on the stove, as seen below.
- Step 1: Gently heat bourbon on the stove over low heat, then remove and stir in the raisins and ¼-teaspoon cinnamon. Let this sit while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
- Step 2: Whisk together all dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside for now.
- Step 3: Brown the butter (detailed steps in the recipe card) then pour into a bowl.
- Step 4: Add the brown butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar to a mixing bowl and whisk well until combined and thickened.
- Step 5: Mix in the maple syrup, then egg and vanilla extract.
- Step 6: Stir the combined dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until no dry flour streaks remain.
- Step 7: Stir in the oats, pecans, and raisins. This dough is sticky, so resting it and chilling for around 30 minutes is helpful.
- Step 8: Scoop two tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. If the dough has been chilling for longer than 30 minutes, very lightly press down to flatten slightly. Bake at 350°F for 11-13 minutes, or until just lightly browned around the edges.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Make-Ahead Options - I'll often toast the pecans ahead of time and soak the raisins in the fridge overnight. That way when it's time to bake cookies, the only extra prep work I'll need to do is brown the butter. That works out because it's used in its melted form for the cookie dough.
- Reduce Sticking - This oatmeal raisin cookie dough will be sticky. Any tests I've done to reduce stickiness by adding more flour has resulted in drier, less chewy cookies. A brief chill is beneficial, but if you need extra help preventing the dough from sticking to your hands as you roll the cookies, dunk your fingers in cool water (shake off excess) and dab it on your palms.
- Efficiency, with Limits - I don't recommend toasting the pecans and browning the butter at the same time. Both are time-sensitive and can go from nice and toasty to burnt in a blink, with you needing to keep tabs on when they each start developing their delicious aromas.
- Helpful Tools - You'll want to use a heavy-bottomed, light colored pan for browning butter for even heating and for seeing when the milk solids change color. The 8-inch skillet (affiliate link) pictured above does the trick every time and always surprises me by how hefty it is for the price. I also love my huge sheet pan (affiliate link) to squeeze in extra cookies per batch!
Frequently Asked Questions
I haven't made this particular recipe with plain melted butter, but the process of browning butter reduces its final volume as the water evaporates. Besides missing that x-factor flavor that makes brown butter oatmeal raisin cookies a notch above, you risk adding too much liquid to the recipe if using the same amount of melted butter. I weighed my butter before and after browning and it lost one full ounce in weight - two tablespoons.
Of course it's personal preference, but you want to be mindful of two areas in particular if you're after super chewy oatmeal raisin cookies: both adding too much flour (I recommend weighing for precision) and baking them too long will run you at risk of drier, less chewy cookies.
Right as the tray comes out of the oven, place a round cookie cutter larger than the diameter of the cookie around one and quickly shake it in a circle (careful - the tray is hot). The cookie will become a bit smaller and taller as the edges of the cookie bounce around the inside the cookie cutter, leading to evenly round cookies. This only works immediately upon taking the cookies out of the oven, before they begin setting.
For convenience you can chill the dough longer. Let it sit out at room temperature for a few minute (a little longer if it's been in the fridge for awhile) so you don't risk breaking your cookie scoop. You may also want to press down on the round cookie dough balls to ensure they spread the correct amount and aren't too puffy. Bake a test few cookies to see.
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Brown Butter Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (85g) toasted chopped pecan halves (toast before chopping) or walnuts
- ¾ cup (120g) raisins (black, golden, or a blend)
- 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) bourbon optional, or water
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon divided
- 10 Tablespoons (141g) unsalted butter cut into 5 pieces
- ⅔ cup (148g) packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (104g) pure maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons (140g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ¾ cups (170g) old-fashioned oats
Instructions
Toast the Pecans
- Heat oven to 350°F. Place pecan halves in a single layer on a rimmed sheet pan. Toast in the oven for 8-10 minutes, removing them once fragrant and turning a slightly deeper brown. Immediately transfer them to a plate or bowl to stop the toasting and cool completely. Once cooled, chop the pecans.
Reconstitute the Raisins (Make-Ahead or Same Day)
- Overnight: Stir together raisins, bourbon (or water), and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
- Day Of: Heat bourbon (or water) in a small saucepan over low heat. Once barely bubbling, remove the pan from the heat, stir in the raisins and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. Cover the pan and let it sit while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
Brown the Butter
- Cut butter into equal, roughly 2-Tablespoon chunks and place them in a heavy-bottom, light-colored 8-inch skillet. Set the skillet over medium-low heat, swirling the butter around the pan as it melts.
- The browning process in total will take around 10-15 minutes. Stir just about continuously once the butter melts, keeping it moving around the pan. Soon the melted butter will begin to foam. Keep stirring and cooking and you'll eventually detect a fairly strong nutty, toffee-like aroma. Keep an eye out for the milk solids (little speckly bits) on the bottom of the pan. They'll start out golden, then quickly turn to golden-brown then a deeper golden-brown - this is your signal to immediately remove the pan from the heat and carefully pour the browned butter into a heat-safe medium/large mixing bowl (or other bowl if you don't have your mixing bowl handy, the important thing is to get it out of the hot pan ASAP). Make sure to scrape up and include all of those toasty milk solids.
Prepare the Cookie Dough
- Whisk together the flour, remaining 1 ¼ teaspoons cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, allspice, and nutmeg in a small/medium mixing bowl. Set aside for now.
- Pour the melted brown butter into a large mixing bowl, then add the brown sugar and granulated sugar. With either an electric mixer or by hand with a whisk, mix the butter and sugars until well-combined and thickened.
- Mix in the maple syrup fully, then mix in the egg and vanilla extract until smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix on low speed or stir until no dry flour streaks remain.
- Stir the oats, chopped pecans, and raisins into the cookie dough until evenly combined.
- Chill dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This helps the oats hydrate, reduces the stickiness, and prevents over-spreading. Near the end of the chill time, heat the oven to 350°F and line large sheet pan(s) with parchment paper.
- Scoop dough balls with a 2-Tablespoon capacity cookie scoop and roll them into a ball with your hands. Place rounded cookie dough balls at least 2 inches apart from one another onto the prepared pan(s). If the dough has been chilling for longer than 30 minutes and is quite firm you may want to lightly press down onto the tops of each dough ball to flatten them a bit (though if you're concerned about over-spreading, bake a few test cookies without pressing to see how you like them). If that's the case, aim for rounded pucks about 1-inch tall.
- Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until the edges are set and lightly golden-brown. The centers will look pale and a little underdone - that's okay, they'll set up as the cookies cool. Pulling them before the centers are totally set is key in ending up with a chewy texture.
- Let the cookies cool on the pan for 10-15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled store in an air-tight container at room temperature.
Notes
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Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.
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Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl says
These cookies look amazing! They are loaded with awesomeness! I wish I could reach through and grab a few of these!
Alyssa says
Thanks Pamela! I think I should have called them "loaded with awesomeness" oatmeal cookies. 🙂