Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies with Cider-Plumped Raisins

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The oatmeal raisin cookie most people remember is dry and cakey with hard little raisin pebbles. This one fixes both problems: the raisins get steeped in hot apple cider until they're fat and jammy, the oats are toasted for a deeper, nuttier flavor, and the butter is browned so the dough tastes like butterscotch. A short chill sets up crisp edges and a bendy, underbaked-looking center that stays chewy for days.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups raisins (about 225g), dark or a mix of dark and golden
• 1/2 cup apple cider or apple juice
• 1 pinch fine sea salt

• 2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (225g)
• 12 tbsp unsalted butter (170g / 1 1/2 sticks)
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar (200g)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar (50g)
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (190g)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt

• flaky sea salt, for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Plump the raisins first so they have time to soften: put the raisins in a heatproof bowl. Heat the apple cider with a pinch of salt in the microwave or a small saucepan until steaming (about 1 minute), pour it over the raisins, and stir. Cover the bowl with a plate and let sit at least 20 minutes, stirring once. Drain well in a sieve, pressing lightly, and set aside. Save the soaking liquid — you may want a spoonful later.
2. Toast the oats: spread the rolled oats on a dry rimmed baking sheet and toast at 350°F (175°C) for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring once, until they smell like granola and are a shade darker. Slide them onto a plate to cool. Keep the oven at 350°F if you're baking soon, or turn it off and reheat later.
3. Brown the butter: melt the butter in a light-colored skillet or saucepan over medium heat. It will foam, then quiet down. Swirl and stir constantly for 4 to 6 minutes after the foaming subsides, until the milk solids on the bottom turn deep amber and the butter smells nutty. Immediately scrape everything, browned bits included, into a large mixing bowl. Let cool 10 minutes, until warm but no longer hot.
4. Whisk both sugars into the warm brown butter until the mixture looks like wet sand, about 30 seconds. Let it sit 5 minutes so the sugar can dissolve slightly, then whisk in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and keep whisking a full minute, until glossy and slightly thickened.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 3/4 tsp fine salt. Add to the wet mixture and fold with a spatula just until no dry streaks remain — do not beat it.
6. Fold in the cooled toasted oats and the drained raisins. The dough should be thick and scoopable; if it looks stiff and crumbly, add 1 tablespoon of the reserved raisin liquid.
7. Cover and chill the dough 30 minutes (up to 48 hours). This hydrates the oats and stops the cookies from spreading thin. Meanwhile, line two baking sheets with parchment and heat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
8. Scoop generous 3-tablespoon mounds (about 55g each) and space them 3 inches apart, 8 to a sheet. Don't flatten them — tall mounds bake into thick, chewy cookies. Poke any raisins that are sitting on top back down into the dough so they don't scorch.
9. Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack for 11 to 13 minutes, until the edges are set and browned but the centers still look puffed and slightly underdone. Cookies baked from cold dough may need the full 13 minutes.
10. Pull the sheet out and rap it firmly on the counter once or twice to settle the centers and create ripples. Sprinkle with flaky salt and let cool on the sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack. They finish setting as they cool — the chew comes from stopping while the middles look soft.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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