Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Do not make these vegan oatmeal raisin cookies when you’re alone in the house and the next opportunity to bring the leftovers to work is two days away. You have been warned. I’ve been thinking of putting together a post talking about what I’ve been eating during these extremely busy past few weeks, but this past weekend that consisted of a rather embarrassing proportion of oatmeal raisin cookies. (If I find the time I still plan to write that post eventually… :))

Who else is a fan of chewy cookies? I’ve been known to enjoy a cakier cookie from time to time, but the hard truth is that I am always on a quest to make the chewiest vegan cookies possible. That quest led to the creation of a favorite recipe on this site, coconut butter chocolate chip cookies, which I continue to make frequently.

Normally I try to spread out my dessert recipes a little bit, especially since this one uses a couple of similar ingredients to the brownie batter fudge. But apparently May 17th was National Walnut Day here and these cookies employ one of my favorite uses of walnuts to date. Walnuts are toasted to perfection and then ground into crumbs to replace part of the flour infuse the whole cookie with a subtle nuttiness and a lovely rustic texture.

Beyond that, these vegan oatmeal raisin cookies are made with whole wheat flour, less refined sweeteners, and just a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil to bring everything together. If it’s not yet too hot where you are to turn the oven on, I hope you’ll give them a try! I know my own time with the oven is running out. We’ve already hit temps exceeding 90F (32C) a couple of times here. I’m prepared for my hair to be frizzy for the next few months and I am SO excited for all of the great local produce that is coming to harvest. Hopefully it’ll be a good summer!

Yield: 20-24 cookies

Chewy and delicious vegan oatmeal raisin cookies made with heart-healthy walnuts, oats, and unrefined sweeteners.

Ingredients

• 1 and 1/4 c. raw walnuts (or buy toasted walnuts and skip the step where you toast them)
• 1/2 c. hulled hemp seeds
• 2 c. rolled oats, divided
• 3/4 c. whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 c. coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/3 tsp. salt
• heaping 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 c. maple syrup
• 2 tb. plain nondairy milk (preferably room temperature; I used soy)
• 3 tb. coconut oil, softened (I use refined)
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• (optional) 1 tsp. molasses (omit if using brown sugar)
• 2/3 c. raisins

Instructions

1. In a dry skillet, toast the walnuts over medium heat, stirring or tossing them frequently. Toast for 4-5 minutes or until they start to turn golden brown and become fragrant. Remove the walnuts from the pan immediately and transfer them into a food processor.
2. Add the hemp seeds to the food processor and pulse just until the walnuts form a fine crumb.
3. In a mixing bowl, sift together 1 cup of the oats, the flour, coconut sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Transfer the dry mixture to the food processor and pulse to combine.
4. Add the nondairy milk, softened coconut oil, vanilla extract, and molasses if using, and process until the mixture is very well combined.
5. Transfer the dough back to a mixing bowl and stir in the other 1 cup of rolled oats. You should expect the dough to be a little sticky, but if it's too sticky to handle add another tablespoon of flour. Finally, fold in the raisins.
6. Set the dough in the fridge to chill for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly grease two baking sheets (I line and then grease them for easier cleanup).
7. Take about 1.5 tb. of dough at a time (or whatever size you like your cookies to be!) and roll it into a ball, then flatten it slightly and place it on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough.
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are just starting to turn golden. If using two baking sheets, switch their positions halfway through baking.
9. Let the cookies cool for a couple of minutes before carefully removing them and transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

I expect that a gluten-free flour would work in place of the whole wheat pastry flour, but I haven't yet tried it.

If you don't have hemp seeds, you should be able to successfully substitute an additional slightly heaping 1/2 cup of walnuts.

Adapted from Oh She Glows. And as another aside please take my apologies for my slowness in responding to comments and emails. I expect in the near future to be able to reply quickly to recipe questions, but not to general requests or notes.

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