Sourdough Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Sourdough oatmeal raisin cookies are a delicious variation of the classic cookie. These cookies are hearty, flavorful, and have a punch of sweetness with every bite from the raisins. A few special spices make these sourdough cookies extra delicious. The subtle tang from the sourdough starter enhances the juicy raisins and creates a more complex flavor profile.
This is a great recipe you can whip up quickly and easily with only a few ingredients. They make a great treat during the holiday season because of their rich spice-infused flavor. I hope you love these sourdough discard oatmeal cookies. They have become one of my personal favorite cookie recipes.

Ingredients
Flour: Use regular all-purpose flour for this recipe. These cookies are already quite hearty from the oats. I would not try substituting whole wheat flour in these cookies or they will come out dry.
Fat: This recipe uses unsalted butter. You can substitute regular salted butter in this recipe, but reduce the salt by 1/4 teaspoon.
Sourdough Starter: You can use both active starter and unfed sourdough starter discard for this recipe. The resting time for this dough is very short and is not enough time to allow the dough to rise from an active starter. Sourdough discard that has been in the fridge for a few days will have more of that sour, tangy taste due to the fermentation.
Rolled Oats: This recipe uses regular old fashioned rolled oats. I don’t recommend substituting these cookie for other types of oatmeal such as instant oats or steel cut oats. The texture will be off if you use these other types of oats.
Raisins: I am normally partial to golden raisins, however in this recipe, I really like to use regular raisins. The purple color really stands out beautifully against the golden cookies and makes them instantly recognizable as the classic oatmeal raisin cookie.
Spices: These cookies contain a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg. These spices enhance the flavors in this recipe and make the cookies taste even better after the first day as the spices infuse into the cookies.
Sugar: We use both brown sugar and granulated sugar (aka white sugar). The brown sugar works especially well here at creating a deeper flavor and producing cookies that are moist and chewy. The granulated sugar contains less moisture and helps to balance the extra moisture added from the sourdough discard.

Other Ingredients
- Salt
- Baking Soda
- Eggs
- Pure vanilla extract
To Make Vegan
If you are vegan or dairy-free, you can substitute a vegan butter such as Earth Balance and use an egg replacer. My two favorite egg replacers are the Ener-G Egg Replacer, or a flax egg. One flax egg is approximately equivalent to one large egg and can be used as a 1:1 substitution.
To make a flax egg, mix 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds with 3 tablespoons warm water. Then, let the mixture set for 5 minutes (or until you are ready to add it to the cookie dough). Flax seeds naturally create a thick, somewhat gelatinous texture when mixed with water, making it a great substitute for eggs.
How to Make Sourdough Discard Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Prepare the Cookie Dough
Step 1: Start by mixing all the dry ingredients in a small bowl so they are ready to be added.
Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to cream together the sugars and butter. Add the egg, vanilla and sourdough starter and mix til smooth. If you do not have a stand mixer, you can mix the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. You can either do this by hand or with a hand mixer in a large bowl.


Step 3: Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
Step 4: Pour in the oats and raisins and mix on low speed until just mixed in. Sometimes the oats need a little extra help to get fully mixed in. If you notice they have pooled on the bottom of your stand mixer, use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to give your cookie dough another good stir until they are just mixed in.

Chill the Dough
Chill the dough for at least one hour. This helps the cookies hold their shape better when baking and prevent spreading. Chilling the dough can also enhance the tangy flavor from the sourdough starter, so if you want cookies that taste sour, you should chill it even longer.
If you want to ferment these cookies for longer, you can refrigerate them overnight. They will take on a more tangy flavor.
Bake the Cookies
Roll out the cookie dough balls with a spoon or cookie scoop and place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You don’t have to use parchment paper, but it does help keep your cookie sheet clean.

We bake these cookies at 375 F. This helps these larger cookies bake faster and take on that beautiful golden brown color.
Allow the cookies to cool. Wait at least 5 minutes before enjoying these cookies so you don’t eat them when they are too hot. After they have cooled off a bit, enjoy!

Easy Substitutions
These chewy oatmeal raisin cookies are so good on their own but there are several variations you can make to suit your preferences:
- Replace the raisins with chocolate chips, butterscotch chips.
- Skip the raisins and replace with 1 cup of dried cranberries and 1 cup of white chocolate chips.
- Substitute coconut sugar for the white sugar.
- Add 2 tbsp of maple syrup for a maple flavor.
- Add 1/2 cup chopped pecans
How to Store Sourdough Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
To keep these chewy cookies from drying out, store them in an airtight container or on a plate covered with plastic wrap. You can store these cookies at room temperature but I do recommend eating them within 3-4 days for best results. If your cookies start to dry out, you can place them in an airtight container with a slice of sandwich bread for about 12 hours. They should become soft again and you can then remove the piece of bread.
Can You Freeze These Oatmeal Raisin Cookies?
You can bake these sourdough discard cookies ahead of time and store them in the freezer in a gallon size bag. You can also freeze the individual cookie dough balls and bake them fresh when you are ready to use them. To preserve the flavor, I recommend consuming them within 3 months of freezing.
If you loved these easy sourdough oatmeal cookie recipe, check out these other sourdough discard recipes:
Pumpkin Blondies with Sourdough Discard
My Favorite Chewy Sourdough Brownies
More Sourdough Discard Cookie Recipes:
My Favorite Vegan Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies
Easy Pumpkin Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sourdough Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Equipment
- 1 Small mixing bowl
- 1 Stand Mixer Or hand mixer. You can also mix these by hand.
- Measuring cups and spoons
- baking sheets
- Parchment Paper
- cooling rack
- whisk or fork
- Rubber Spatula
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups All-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter 2 sticks
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup sourdough discard, unfed
Mix-Ins
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 1½ cups raisins
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla extract and eggs and continue to beat the mixture until smooth.
- Add the sourdough starter and mix until smooth.
- On low speed, slowly pour in the flour mixture. Continue to mix until the flour is fully mixed in, but do not over-mix.
- Slowly, add in the oats and raisins and mix until just combined.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and store in the fridge to chill for at least one hour and up to 24 hours.
When Ready to Bake
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- Remove the bowl from the refrigerator and scoop the dough into 1-1/2 inch round balls.
- Place on a large baking sheet lined with baking sheet. You should be able to fit six dough balls on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes until slightly golden.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
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