It’s frustrating how most vegan oatmeal cookie recipes have been “healthified.” Sometimes I just want a classic, soft, chewy, and big vegan oatmeal cookie, like the kind you would get in a bakery. But most versions on the internet shoot for breakfast-worthy and taste more like granola bars than dessert. Fortunately, I can always count on Hannah to satisfy cravings for sweets. She whipped up this recipe for big dairy-free, egg-free oatmeal cookies that are intended for pure indulgence. Okay, they happen to be relatively low fat, but that’s purely a happy accident.
These Big Vegan Oatmeal Cookies are Bakery-Style Treats
Hannah has written numerous vegan cookbooks, many of them focused on dessert! So we can definitely trust that she knows how to make the best bakery-style, big vegan oatmeal cookies. But I do have some ingredient tips and options to add.
Ingredient Notes & Options
- Oats: You can substitute half rolled oats and half instant oats, or simply use quick oats in place of the processed rolled oats. But the texture won’t be quite the same.
- Flour: We have not tested this specific recipe without gluten. It should work with an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend, like King Arthur Measure for Measure. Make sure the cookie dough is on the thick side (press down as they won’t spread much) to avoid overly crumbly cookies. Do not substitute almond flour or coconut flour for the all-purpose flour. These are not suitable 1:1 substitutes for wheat flour.
- Raisins: See options in the recipe notes if you aren’t a raisin fan!
- Nuts: Sliced almonds or chopped cashews would also be delicious in these big vegan oatmeal cookies. If you have nut-free needs, you can omit the nuts, or substitute sunflower seeds, more dried fruit, dairy-free chocolate chips, or crispy rice cereal. We love the combination of raisins and chocolate chips in soft and chewy oatmeal cookies.
- Cinnamon: For a different twist, use pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice for part or all of the cinnamon. Either will go well in these vegan oatmeal raisin cookies.
- Date Syrup: Date syrup is dates cooked down to create a liquid sweetener. If you opt to use molasses, choose a regular baking brand, like Grandma’s. Blackstrap can be a bit too strong. Maple syrup is a great alternative, but brown rice syrup or agave nectar should also work.
- Brown Sugar: Dark brown sugar is sold in most grocery stores next to the light brown sugar. In a pinch, you can substitute light brown sugar. It just won’t offer quite as much depth in flavor.
- Buttery Sticks: 1/2 cup is typically 1 buttery stick. I often use Country Crock Plant Butter (contains soy) for cookies as it’s the most affordable brand in my area, is on the salty side (which I like in cookies), and performs well. But most brands of dairy-free buttery sticks should work well. In a pinch, you can substitute dairy-free buttery spread. However, I don’t recommend substituting coconut oil without testing.
Special Diet Notes: Big Vegan Oatmeal Cookies
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, peanut-free, optionally soy-free, vegan, and vegetarian. Just be sure to choose the butter alternative that suits your dietary needs.
Big Vegan Oatmeal Cookies (Bakery-Style)
These cookies may be dairy-free and egg-free, but they're a sweet, soft, and chewy dessert that will rival your local bakery.
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF and line a few baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the oats in your food processor or blender, and pulse until they’re somewhat broken down. They should look a bit like instant oats, but should still have slightly more texture and some whole oats remaining.
- Transfer the oats to a large bowl, and add the flour, raisins, chopped nuts, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Stir until well combined, and util the raisins are coated with flour.
- In a large mixing bowl, blend the liquid sweetener, brown sugar, melted vegan butter, and vanilla with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and mix until you have a nice thick batter with no dry patches remaining.
- Scoop a scant ¼ cup of cookie dough for each cookie, and place them a few inches apart on your prepared baking sheets. Lightly press down the tops.
- Bake the cookies for just 10 to 12 cookies. Be careful not to over brown them, as you want soft and chewy cookies.
- Slide the parchment paper with the big vegan oatmeal cookies off the hot baking sheets as soon as you remove them from the oven. Let the cookies cool completely. They will firm up more as they cool.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week. Or you can pack them in freezer bags and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Notes
Options: You can substitute dried cranberries, dried blueberries, chopped dried cherries, or dairy-free chocolate chips for the raisins.
Tip: Use a regular ice cream scoop or a large cookie scoop for even, bakery-style cookies.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Also Try these Vegan Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies!
4 Comments
These oatmeal cookies are incredibly delicious and really look like the ones sold in our grocery store bakery. So easy and fast to make. We baked ours for 11 minutes at 350ºF. This recipe is now a family fave!
That’s wonderful! Thank you for sharing feedback Rita.
Can this be made into a cookie cake?
It’s really hard to say without testing. Cookie cakes are tricky. But since it is low in fat, I think it’s got a good shot at working. The main problem with vegan cookie cakes (and brownies) is the oil / fat separates. But a lower ratio of fat can fix that.