Looking for an oatmeal cookie recipe? These Chewy Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Blueberries and Crystallized Ginger are as tasty as they are easy to make! (Jump directly to the recipe.)
In the food world, there are often divides with people taking firm sides and loyalties. Savory & Salty vs Sugar & Sweet. Vegetarian & Vegan vs Meat Lovers & Bacon Obsessed. Pies vs Cakes. But let me propose a new divide, one that I’ve witnessed a lot of but isn’t talked about much. Oatmeal Cookies vs Chocolate Chip. And though I want to say that the clear winner in this competition would fall to the chocolate chipper, I have to admit that once I created this Chewy Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Blueberries and Crystallized Ginger I may have been swayed to the dark side.
Of course, AJ doesn’t hold any real allegiances when it comes to cookies. As much as he loves chocolate (and boy, does he LOVE his chocolate) he’s also completely and utterly obsessed with oatmeal. Every single day he eats it for breakfast (along with a customized granola that I specifically tailor for his taste buds) so it stands to reason that he would love a great oatmeal cookie. Which explains why whenever I bake them, they pretty much disappear immediately.
The nice thing about the oatmeal cookie though, is that you can play around with them, more so than chocolate chip. Sure you can deviate from the normal chocolate chip, by adding orange zest, using brown butter or let it cure in the fridge for a few days. In fact there are whole books dedicated to the wonders of the chocolate chip cookie. But at the end of the day it’s really all about the chocolate. The oatmeal cookie though? It’s about the mix ins; from the standard raisins to dried cherries or dried apples chunks to the ones that I just whipped up with dried blueberries and ginger. A different dried fruit or spice and you have completely different creature. It’s like the blank slate of cookie dough.
These, however, these marvelous chewy and spicy cookies are worth making as is. A touch of nutmeg, a dash of ground ginger and loads of brown sugar make these cookies the sort of thing that need to be in everyone’s kitchen. Easy, simple and fast the only drawback to these cookies are that will disappear fast, which means you’re bound to have to make them again.
Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Blueberries and Crystallized Ginger
By Irvin Lin
The basic cookie dough for oatmeal cookies is a great base for any sort of dried fruit mix and any sort of ground spice that is available. But there’s something about the combination of sweet tart dried blueberry and the sugary heat of crystallized ginger that makes these cookies extra special. Most people reach for cinnamon in oatmeal cookies but the ground ginger (to add an extra layer of spice) along with the nutmeg really help compliment the earthy oats. Try to find thick cut oats if you can, because they make these cookies extra chewy good, but regular plain oats totally work as well.
Ingredients
1/2 cup (115 g or 1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup (110 g) dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (100 g) white granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups (170 g) rolled oats, thick cut preferred (see headnote above)
3/4 cup (105 g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (80 g) dried blueberries
1/4 cup (45 g) crystallized ginger, chopped into 1/4 inch chunks
1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper of silpat.
2. Place the butter, sugar, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda and salt in the bowl of stand mixer. Beat together until light, creamy and the butter starts to stick to the side of the bowl. Add both extracts and beat to incorporate. Add egg and beat to incorporate.
3. Add oats and flour and beat until just incorporated. Add blueberries and ginger and stir (or use the lowest speed) to mix in. Spoon out about 1 heaping tablespoon and roll in the palm of your hand into 1-inch round balls. Place on baking sheet about 2 inches apart and bake for 12-14 minutes or until the edges of the cookies start to turn golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet then move from the sheet to a cooling rack.
Makes 24 cookies.
If you like these oatmeal cookies, check out my oatmeal cookie other recipes:
Salted Vanilla Bean White Chocolate Multigrain Cookie
Maple Oat & Dried Cherry Shortbread Cookies (gluten free)
Rum Soaked Tropical Fruit Oatmeal Cookies
Chunky Chewy Whole Grain Toffee Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
And check out these other awesome oatmeal cookie recipes from around the web:
Averie Cooks’ Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
Bake Your Day’s Coffee and Cream Oatmeal Cookies
Around My Family Table’s Mango Spiced Oatmeal Cookies
Lauren’s Latest’s Apple Oatmeal Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting
Healthy Delicious’ Oatmeal Cookies with Whiskey Soaked Cherries
irmina says
Deliciosas…
Me gustan mucho.
Ruthy @ Omeletta says
Is it weird that I’m not in either camp when it comes to oatmeal and chocolate chip? I’m an equal-opportunity lover of cookies, period 🙂
Also, my favorite way to eat oatmeal cookies is for breakfast and pretend it’s healthy because, you know, oatmeal!
Bee says
I have crystalized ginger in my cabinet from cupcakes I made earlier this year….they are so going into some cookies STAT. This recipe looks super yummy!
Kim Beaulieu says
I walk on the wild side and pay no attention to those divides. One day it’s vegan, the next day it’s meat, I swear I’m the distracted puppy of the foodie world. Squirrel.
I love these cookies. I am a blueberry nut and it would never have occurred to me to use the ginger like that with them. You’ve opened my eyes, I have to try these.
All the photos are spectacular but the one inside the recipe notes made me fall off my chair.
Claudia says
Wow! One big reason I keep coming back is your “Wow! I never thought of that” factor. (The other is your writing.) I solve the chocolate chip v oatmeal cookie conundrum by adding chocolate chunks (and walnuts) to my oatmeal cookies. I combined elanaspantry ginger cookies with 101cookbooks triple ginger cookie recipe. I use almond flour, coconut sugar and dried, fresh and candied ginger. But ginger and blueberries? Inspired!
Aimee @ Simple Bites says
OK, where were you when I hosted my cookie swap yesterday! We needed oatmeal cookies to represent. Oh well. I’ll have to bake a batch myself!
Pat says
I am so glad to see the no-cinnamon list of ingredients since I’m tired of that flavor, over-used during Thanksgiving with all its pumpkin this-and-that. Nutmeg is one of my favorite spices and I love the balance of the add-ins. This is a good, homey recipe that will stand the test of time. Thanks!!
Kristin Nicole says
I have always loved oatmeal cookies, these pictures make me want to get in the kitchen and whip some up right now! 😉
Arthur in the Garden! says
Yum!
Annie says
Why did I never think of that? What a fabulous combination that sounds like. Must try for our solstice potluck.
Aggie says
Oh how good do these look and sound! I love oatmeal cookies, the add ins in these are fantastic!
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
Irvin thanks for linking up to my Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies and yours look wonderful! I’m a huge fan of blueberries and ginger and chewy oatmeal cookies and I know these would be right up my alley! pinned
Ray Ivey says
I adapt these with the following add-ins instead of the ginger and blueberries: candied walnuts and dried sour cherries. My friends go crazy for them.
Samantha says
These were amazing! I adore the combo of the blueberries and the ginger…definitely my new favorite oatmeal cookie!
Michelle says
Good recipe. I changed it up a bit. Used lemon juice in place of the extracts and added blanched almonds for more chew. Tasty!
CatWoman says
I just made these cookies – they are DELICIOUS!! Thanks for sharing?
Lucy Burke says
I just made these cookies but I only had fresh blueberries and stem ginger in syrup which I chopped and drained. It worked just as well in my opinion. I was a bit worried the mixture would be too soggy but it wasn’t the case. Great cookies!