If you like soft, cakey cookies that taste wonderful and are actually good for you, get your box grater out! It's time to make these Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies with chocolate covered raisins.
If you have a vegetable garden and grow zucchini (like we do), you're constantly looking for ways to use the versatile green vegetable that grows like wildfire during summer.
Adding shredded zucchini to a basic oatmeal cookie recipe is an excellent way to use garden zucchini, and you'll agree once you try these cookies.
Table of Contents Found Here
- The ingredient list:
- Ingredient Information:
- Kitchen tools and equipment needed:
- Ingredient additions or substitutions:
- How to remove excess moisture from zucchini:
- Top tip for success:
- How long to bake these cookies?
- Can Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies be frozen?
- Why this recipe works:
- Additional Zucchini Recipes:
- Printable Recipe Card
- Please comment if you've made this recipe.
The ingredient list:
*Please note that the exact measurements along with a "shop the recipe" feature from Instacart and Walmart is available inside the printable recipe card.
Ingredient Information:
Shredded zucchini: This recipe requires approximately 2 cups of shredded zucchini. You can use less, but I wanted these cookies to be chockful of zucchini. You can use a box grater (as I did) to shred the zucchini or a food processor.
Quick cooking oats: This is what I used. You can also use Old-Fashioned rolled oats if that's what you have.
ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR - I use unbleached all-purpose flour, but bleached all-purpose flour will also work.
Baking soda: There is only a little baking soda in this recipe, but it's the ingredient that gives the cookies a tiny bit of rise.
Kosher salt - I always use kosher salt in my cooking and baking.
Ground Cinnamon - I added two teaspoons to this recipe, but feel free to scale back to 1 teaspoon if you prefer.
Grated (or ground) nutmeg: This ingredient is optional, but I like the warm and spicy background note it provides. You can use ground nutmeg if that's what you have, or grind or grate the pods fresh (like you'll see in the video), and you'll be amazed at the difference in flavor.
Butter - I always use salted butter in my baking. I go against the norm on this. Unless you use European butter (which has more sodium), American butter isn't highly salted, so the scant amount of extra salt does not make baked goods overly salted!
Brown sugar: Light or dark brown sugar will both work here. Dark brown sugar has more molasses and a richer flavor than light brown sugar.
Egg - This is the ingredient that binds the elements together. An egg at room temperature is easier to incorporate into baking ingredients.
Pure vanilla extract: You may also use vanilla paste. Either will work fine. Just make sure always to use a pure vanilla extract instead of imitation.
Chocolate-covered raisins - I wanted a hint of chocolate in these cookies, so I opted for the chocolate-covered raisins. This ingredient is optional, as noted in the additions and substitutions section below.
Kitchen tools and equipment needed:
- box grater or food processor
- hand mixer or stand mixer (with the paddle attachment)
- mixing bowls
- measuring cups and spoons
- kitchen scale (optional)
- baking sheets
- parchment paper
- spatula
- cookie scoop (optional)
- kitchen timer (optional)
- cooling rack
- paper towels
Ingredient additions or substitutions:
Nuts? Yes! Use your favorites. If you like, chop them first, and toast them for more flavor. To toast them heat them in a dry skillet over medium heat until lightly fragrant.
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Toasting nuts only takes a few minutes. Watch them closely so they don't burn and add the nuts to the batter at the same time as the chocolate raisins.
Adding additional dried fruit would be lovely. Dried pineapple, cranberries, cherries, blueberries, or even figs would all be delicious. Add as many or a few as you like.
Leave the raisins out altogether if you're not a fan. Not everyone loves them (even when covered in chocolate), so leaving them out is perfectly fine.
Add chocolate chips (white, semi-sweet, or milk chocolate) to the cookie batter before baking. Seriously, who wouldn't be happy with that addition?
How to remove excess moisture from zucchini:
Top tip for success:
Make sure to remove as much excess moisture as you can from the zucchini. Blotting is fine, but squeezing is better. Remember that additional moisture will change the consistency of the batter, therefore changing the final product's texture.
Oddly enough, you'll find that these cookies don't spread (much) during baking. I pressed them down ever so gently before they went in the oven to bake so they were more "cookie-shaped" and not so much "meatball-shaped." The choice is yours whether you'd like to press your cookies gently or not.
How long to bake these cookies?
The recipe is written to bake for about 18 minutes giving you soft, cake-like cookies. However, if you like cookies a bit crisper, I suggest you leave them in the oven for between 20 and 22 minutes.
Can Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies be frozen?
Yes, they can. Cool them completely before adding them to an airtight freezer container or bag. These cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Why this recipe works:
If you're a fan of cookies that aren't overly sweet, then these are for you.
The cinnamon flavor is what really stands out, plus the soft chew and fiber (thanks to the oatmeal) make these the kind of cookies you can eat any time of day...even for breakfast as you're running out the door!
Additional Zucchini Recipes:
Zucchini Corn Gratin is one of the cheesiest and easiest vegetable side dishes you'll ever have. It's the perfect accompaniment to almost anything, and it only takes about 30 minutes from start to finish!
Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Zucchini is a deliciously moist and flavorful cake. It's a wonderful cake to serve any time of year, not just the holidays.
Pepperoni Pizza Hasselback Zucchini is a great way to get the kids to eat their veggies. This stuffed zucchini recipe is a sure-fire family winner.
Eggplant Zucchini Bread is so moist and flavorful, AND it's a great way to bump up the nutrition level of your next zucchini quick bread without anyone being the wiser.
When you make today's recipe (and I hope that you will), I'd appreciate it if you'd take the time to come back and give it a star rating along with a comment on why you rated as you did.
Search engines such as Google appreciate comments and ratings and, in turn, will show my recipes to more people. Please look for the pink star rating box within the printable recipe card. Thank you!!
Printable Recipe Card
Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies with Chocolate Covered Raisins
Equipment
- hand mixer optional
- stand mixer optional
- box grater optional (for shredding the zucchini)
- food processor optional (for shredding the zucchini)
- flour sack towels optional (for drying the zucchini)
- paper towels optional (for drying the zucchini)
- kitchen scale optional
- kitchen timer optional
Ingredients
- 1½ cups shredded zucchini blotted (or squeezed) dry
- 2 cups quick cooking oats
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup packed brown sugar light or dark
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups chocolate covered raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius)
- Prepare the zucchini by shredding it on a box grater (or food processor) and blot dry removing as much excess water as possible. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together the oatmeal, all-purpose flour, baking soda, kosher salt, ground cinnamon, and grated nutmeg. Set aside.
- In a large bowl blend the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes on high). Add the egg and vanilla extract and blend again until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in increments (⅓ at a time) and blend after each addition).
- Add the prepared shredded zucchini to the batter along with the chocolate covered raisins and blend again until combined (scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula if needed).
- Use the cookie scoop (or two tablespoons) to drop the batter (approximately 1 tablespoon of batter) onto parchment paper lined baking sheets and gently press the cookies lightly to flatten before baking.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 18-22 minutes depending on your desired doneness. 18 minutes for cakier cookies and 22 minutes for a crispier cookie.
- Remove to a wire rack for cooling.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
I sincerely hope you've enjoyed today's sweet zucchini oatmeal cookie as much as I've enjoyed bringing it to you.
Should you have any questions or comments regarding anything you've seen on my site, please don't hesitate to reach out to contact me. It is always my distinct pleasure to get back with you just as soon as I possibly can!
Thank you so much for visiting me today in my Kudos Kitchen. I hope you found something you'll love and that you will come back and visit me often. Please know that there is always room for you around my kitchen table!
Until we eat again, I hope you have a delicious day!
Renée says
The flavor of these cookies are out-of-this-world!!