Simple and delicious, these oatmeal raisin carrot cookies are reminiscent of old fashioned oatmeal cookies. They’re perfectly chewy and studded with oats, shredded carrots, raisins, and mini chocolate chips, giving you a lot of variety in texture and flavor in each bite. This recipe is great for Easter, entertaining, and whenever you need a quick sweet treat that’s a little more wholesome than typical desserts!
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Lizzie’s Notes
Oatmeal raisin cookies are uniquely satisfying, thanks to their tendency to stay chewier and softer for longer than most other cookies. I love the mix of textures and flavors they provide, and I just knew they’d taste even better with some carrots!
These oatmeal raisin carrot cookies were born out of my love for creating riffs on my favorite sweet treats so they’re a little more colorful and a little more wholesome but still easy and delicious. They’re a great option to serve to guests, bring to someone who just had a baby or experienced a loss, or just enjoy after dinner with your family. Oh! And they make a perfect Easter dessert too.
Main Ingredients and Substitutions
- Oats: Use old fashioned oats, also known as rolled oats. I often use Bob’s Red Mill or One Degree Organic old fashioned sprouted oats. I do not recommend quick or steel cut oats.
- Flour: I recommend all purpose flour. I have not tried making these with other flours, but I suspect that a gluten-free 1:1 flour would work well.
- Carrots: For best results, grate/shred carrots yourself using a hand or box grater with small holes. You want the shredded carrots to almost melt into the cookie dough. If you’re in a pinch and only have bagged pre-shredded carrots, give them a try! I think they’d work just fine.
- Raisins: In my experience, oatmeal raisin carrot cookies turn out best if you use new raisins (from a freshly opened package) compared to raisins that have been opened for a while/have started to dry out. Obviously, this may not always be feasible. If you don’t have a new package of raisins to open, you can rehydrate them by letting them sit in the butter, coconut sugar, eggs, and vanilla mixture for 15 to 20 minutes while you gather the rest of the ingredients.
- Mini chocolate chips: Use regular chocolate chips if that’s what you have. You could also try cacao nibs or just omit the chocolate if you don’t want it.
- Butter: Use unsalted. The butter adds a lot of flavor and helps the bottoms of the cookies get slightly crispy while baking. Coconut oil or vegan butter would be the best substitute if you need one.
- Coconut sugar: Coconut sugar has a slightly lower glycemic index than table sugar and may not have as much of an impact on blood sugar levels. However, it’s still an added sugar and not a health food. I like to experiment with it in my recipes, but if you don’t have coconut sugar, substitute an equal amount of light brown sugar. This may result in very slight differences in texture but it won’t be that noticeable.
- Eggs: I have not tried it, but I suspect flax or chia “eggs” would work. Mix 2 tablespoons milled flaxseed or chia seeds with 6 tablespoons water. Let it sit for a few minutes to thicken, then add to the cookie dough.
Instructions
The full recipe card for oatmeal raisin carrot cookies is at the bottom of the post. Here’s a preview of the steps with photos to guide you.
Cream the butter and coconut sugar. Mix in the eggs and vanilla.
Stir in the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon) and stir until just combined.
Fold in the oats and shredded carrots.
Fold in the mini chocolate chips and raisins.
Scoop about 2 tablespoons of dough out of the bowl. Roll into a ball and place on a lined baking sheet. Repeat these steps, placing the balls about 2 inches from each other.
Bake for 11 to 14 minutes at 350 degrees F/177 degrees C until lightly browned and slightly undercooked in the centers.
Storage and Freezing
Oatmeal raisin carrot cookies will keep in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days. You can store them on a counter away from direct sunlight or in the refrigerator. I find that they have a longer shelf life if you store them in the fridge.
Already baked cookies can also be frozen, in layers separated by parchment paper in a freezer-safe container or bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.
If you want to freeze the dough to bake at a later time, roll it into balls, then freeze them in a single layer in a bag or container. If there is more than one layer, use parchment paper in between to prevent sticking. Bake straight from frozen on a lined baking sheet, about 12 to 15 minutes at 350 degrees F/177 degrees C.
More Cookie Recipes
If you love these easy carrot cookies, check out these recipes while you’re here:
📖 Recipe
Easy Oatmeal Raisin Carrot Cookies
Equipment
- hand mixer
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter - at room temp
- ¾ cup coconut sugar - sub light brown sugar if needed
- 2 eggs - at room temp
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 cups old fashioned oats - also known as rolled oats
- 1 cup shredded carrots - works best if you use a hand or box grater with small holes to grate 2 large carrots
- ¾ cup raisins
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉/177℃. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. You will need to bake a few batches of cookies if you only use one baking sheet. If you want to bake more than one at a time, prepare more baking sheets.
- If you didn't have time to get the butter to room temp, microwave it in 15-second intervals until soft but not melted. In a large mixing bowl, use an electric hand mixer to cream the butter with the coconut sugar. Then, mix in the eggs and vanilla.Note: these cookies taste best if you use fresh raisins that you open for this recipe. If you only have a package of raisins that has already been opened and are harder/more dried out than fresh ones, you can pour the raisins into the bowl with the wet ingredients at this point. Let them sit in the mixture for 15 to 20 minutes while you gather the rest of the ingredients. If you are using fresh raisins, just add them later when indicated.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add this to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to mix everything until just combined.
- Pour the old fashioned oats and shredded carrots into the bowl and gently fold them into the dough with a rubber spatula.
- Finally, add the raisins (if you didn't do so already) and mini chocolate chips. Stir gently to fold them into the dough.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 20 minutes. If you're short on time, you can skip this step. However, it does help the cookies get extra chewy.
- Scoop out about 2 tablespoons of dough and roll it into a ball about 1.5 inches in diameter. Use slightly damp hands to prevent sticking if needed. Repeat until you have enough dough balls to be placed on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches from each other. I usually put 8 balls on a baking sheet so that I can keep 2 inches between them.
- Bake for 11 to 14 minutes until lightly browned around the edges and very slightly underbaked in the center. If you are baking multiple sheets at once, rotate them halfway through the baking time. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to complete cooling. Enjoy!
- Leave a rating or review by tapping the stars on this recipe card (above) or in the comments section (at the end of the post)!
Notes
- Keep cookies in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days either on a counter away from direct sunlight or, for better results and to extend shelf life, in the refrigerator.
- To freeze baked cookies, place them in a container or bag in layers separated by parchment paper. Seal tightly and freeze for up to 3 months.
- To freeze unbaked cookies/dough, roll the dough into balls as specified. Place the balls in a container or lay them flat in a bag. Separate layers with parchment paper if needed. Seal tightly. Bake directly from frozen on a lined baking sheet for about 12 to 15 minutes in a 350 degrees F/177 degrees C oven. The balls will last for up to 3 months but are probably best if used within 1 month.
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