Thanks to California Olive Ranch for sponsoring this Olive Oil Oatmeal Raisin Cookie recipe, and their continued partnership this year. You’re in my kitchen every day, making food taste great in the most honest way.
Admittedly, I’m mostly a chocolate chip cookie kind of gal. But a few times a year, I get a mad craving for an oatmeal raisin cookie that hits all the high notes: moist, chewy, nutty, spiced, sweet. And definitely not crispy.
Problem was I’d never been able to make one at home that fit the bill, instead relying on the bakery to cure my hankering. And then it became impossible to find one that was gluten-free. So I decided to fix that little predicament. Over the course of about, ohhhhhhhhh 8 recipe tests in the past few weeks. Until…… BINGO.
In my mind, I really wanted the cookies to be as close to the classic in flavor and texture without you having to buy any “hard to find” flours. So I turned to almond flour for the base (along with old-fashioned oats), as I appreciate how tender it makes baked goods while still giving structure.
In doing some research on the chewiness component of cookie composition, I found suggestions for brown sugar or a liquid sweetener like honey, and oil instead of butter. {Alternatively, when you want a crispier cookie, the water content in butter helps achieve that.}
I didn’t want something like coconut oil to overpower the warm spices and nutty flavor, so I used California Olive Ranch’s Everyday Olive Oil, harvested on family farms in northern California. Not only is the flavor harmonious with the fruitiness of the raisins, but it also adds extra antioxidants (natural chemicals that help protect our cells) and vitamin E to the cookies for a heart-healthy boost. The vitamin E also helps with freshness, and adds that extra bit of moisture for softness.
Although they’re full of good for you ingredients, these taste nothing like “health biscuits”, as Brian has coined my less desirable treats. A warm blend of nutty oats and honey, studded with the perfect ratio of plump, sweet raisins. Part of the secret to these cookies (and a lot of my baked goods) is using pumpkin pie spice! It brings depth and a sense of cozy without needing six different jars of spices to achieve.
And just as good as the taste, the scent that wafts from the oven throughout the house as these Olive Oil Oatmeal Raisin Cookies bake is quite nostalgic. Enjoy, xo.
Soft Olive Oil Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup blanched almond flour
- 3/4 cup old fashioned oats
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1/4 cup California Olive Ranch extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon cashew butter (or any nut/seed butter)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup raisins
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, oats, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. In a second bowl, whisk together olive oil, honey, egg, cashew butter, and vanilla. Pour 1/2 of liquid mixture into dry and stir a few times, then pour remaining in and whisk lightly until no dry streaks remain. Fold in raisins.
Using a cookie dough scoop, scoop and put onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 11 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 6-7 minutes. Really. :) They're quite tender when warm, but will firm up. Place cookies onto cooling rack to finish cooling. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
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Haha, I love that Brian calls the healthy treats, ‘health biscuits’! Olive oil has become my favorite cookie base, as it doesn’t make EVERYTHING taste like coconuts :)
He approved these happily! :) Always my tester. And yes, the richness the olive oil brings is so lovely!
These sound so delicious Amanda!!! I just LOVE olive-oil based cookies!!! xoxo
Yes, I remember you posting some olive oil cookies too! Such a lovely ingredient.
Since I can’t eat almond flour, I wonder if another GF flour could substitute that would provide something near the texture that almond flour offers. I’m wondering what other flours you tested the recipe with.
Thanks!
THESE LOOK UH-MAZING.
cookie love!
As soon as I saw this recipe pop up in my inbox I flagged it as “to make asap.” These look and sound so good, hearty and warming! A soft + spicy oatmeal raisin cookie is such a classic American home-y treat for me, so I think this will be the perfect recipe to whip out if I get too homesick over here ;) xx
Yay! I hope you love them. Ps- they make awesome cookies for ice cream sandwiches!
Oh my gosh Amanda these look dreamy!!! I feel you with the recipe testing – I’ve been working on my single serving chocolate chip cookie and it took FOREVER to nail down. (It also uses California Olive Ranch olive oil!) I can’t wait to try these out.
ooooo… i can’t wait to see that single serve recipe! a girl always needs one of those. :) xo
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Just made them and they were sooo good, we gobbled them up right away. Just a few changes though, for some reason my dough wasn’t as runny as yours and my cookies turned out chunkier compared to the smooth ones you have. Should I add an extra egg next time or something? Also, my batch made only nine cookies:) all in all, this recipe is a keeper, and perfect for the fall weather☺️
Just baked these and they were perfect. Perfect level of sweetness, perfect level of chewiness and not oily ! Thank you for this recipe. – Amber from Singapore
Yay! So glad you liked the recipe. Thanks for letting me know!