My Cookie Journey

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Spring Cookies
  • Recipe Index
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • About Me
    • Spring Cookies
    • Recipe Index
    • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    Home » Cookies

    Soft Oatmeal with Dates and Walnut Cookies

    Updated: Dec 23, 2024 · Published: Nov 13, 2021 by Barbara · This post may contain links on which I could make a small commission if an item is purchased · 2 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Oatmeal says fall to me! Add a little cinnamon and some fruit and nuts, and it is a classic fall cookie.

    Oats seem to pull all the moisture out of a cookie if you are not careful. So, to make sure my cookies are nice and soft, I added mascarpone to the recipe.

    Soft Oatmeal with dates and walnut cookies on a metal pewter plate with walnuts, whole dates and raisins.

    National Oatmeal Cookie Day

    Our next National Oatmeal Cookie day is April 30, 2022. But, unfortunately, that was just too long to wait to make and eat these delicious cookies.

    Everyone gushes over the famous chocolate chip cookie, but oatmeal cookies have quite the following also. I mean, really they have their own day for Pete's sake.

    The history is fascinating for the origin of the oat cookies. Many believe that this cookie was created during the Middle ages. They called them Scottish oatcakes since they were easy to carry and were a quick snack.

    If you would like to read more about the history Of the Oatmeal Cookie, I found a couple of sites with similar stories.

    National Today and Holidays Calendar

    Ingredients Needed for Soft Oatmeal Cookies

    Showing the ingredients needed to make Soft Oatmeal with dates and walnut cookies.
    Jump to Recipe for Amounts
    • Butter unsalted
    • Mascarpone 
    • Sugar white 
    • Sugar light brown
    • Egg
    • Vanilla extract
    • Orange juice
    • Orange zest
    • All-purpose flour
    • Baking soda
    • Baking Powder
    • Kosher salt
    • Cinnamon Plus or regular cinnamon 
    • Old fashion oats 
    • Dates pitted
    • Walnuts chopped
    • Raisins

    How to Make a Soft Oatmeal Cookie

    Zest and juice one orange. I try not to zest to the white of the skin; it tends to get bitter. Taking whole pitted dates chop them into small pieces.

    Zesting and juicing an orange.
    Cutting up pitted dates into small pieces.

    Mix the butter and mascarpone in your mixer till they are blended. Next, add the sugars and mix for 1 minute at medium speed. Then add the orange zest and juice along with the egg and vanilla extract.

    Next, mix in the dry ingredients, the cookie dough will start to thicken up with the oats incorporated.

    Cookie dough in mixer bowl for soft oatmeal with dates and walnut cookies.
    Pressing down cookie mounds to flatten the tops a little with the bottom of a water glass.

    Finally, add the dates, walnuts, and raisins and mix for about 30 seconds. Cover and chill for at least an hour. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C) and scoop onto a parchment-lined sheet pan 12 mounds. Take your hand or the bottom of a glass and press lightly on the top of each mound so that they are a bit flatter looking. Not much you don't want a pancake, lol. Bake for 12-13 minutes and enjoy!

    Finished Soft Oatmeal with dates and walnuts on a cooling rack.

    Working with Mascarpone

    What is mascarpone, and what is it doing to my cookies? It originated from Italy and is soft and entirely created from heavy cream and citric or tartaric acid.

    I often use cream cheese, mascarpone, or ricotta cheese to bring a creaminess to my cookies. Mascarpone is a little sweeter and has a heavier fat content than cream cheese. This makes creamy cookie dough, and mixed with the oats, helps create a soft oatmeal cookie.

    Mascarpone is a more delicate ingredient to work within a stand mixer. I have folded in the flour mixture at the end when working with some recipes for the gentle touch. If I use a mixer, I do not mix it for long, and I use cold mascarpone right out of the refrigerator.

    So the takeaway is to have all your ingredients ready for the mixer, cold mascarpone, and short mixing cycles. Don't forget to chill your cookie dough before baking!

    Other Oatmeal Cookies You Might Enjoy

    • Oatmeal cream filled cookies in a stack of five on a white plate.
      Oatmeal Cream Filled Cookies
    • Stack of Spiced Oatmeal Raisin cookies with a blue and white napkin behind the stack.
      Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
    • A line of oatmeal cookies on a red plate.
      Apple Caramel Oatmeal Cookies
    • Apple Raisin Walnut Oatmeal Cookies on a red dish.
      Apple Raisin Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

    Recipe

    Soft Oatmeal with dates and walnut cookies on a metal pewter plate with walnuts, whole dates and raisins.
    QR Code

    Soft Oatmeal with Dates and Walnut Cookies

    Barbara Hall
    Oatmeal cookies in the fall are the best! Add some fruits and nuts along with mascarpone for softness, and this is a perfect cookie.
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Total Bake Time 38 minutes mins
    Chill 1 hour hr
    Total Time 1 hour hr 53 minutes mins
    Course Cookies
    Cuisine American
    Servings 34 cookies
    Calories 148 kcal

    Would you like to save this recipe?

    We'll email a link of this post to you, so you can come back any time!

    Ingredients
     

    • ½ cup Butter unsalted 1 stick softened
    • 8 ounces Mascarpone softened
    • ½ cup Sugar white 99 g
    • ½ cup Sugar light brown 107 g
    • 1 Egg
    • 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
    • ½ teaspoon Orange juice
    • ½ Tablespoon Orange zest
    • 1-½ cups All-purpose flour 195 g
    • ½ teaspoon Baking soda
    • 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
    • ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
    • ½ teaspoon Cinnamon Plus or regular cinnamon Pampered Chef
    • 2 cups Old fashion oats 198 g
    • 20-25 Dates chopped whole and pitted
    • 1 cup Walnuts chopped
    • ½ cup Raisins

    Instructions
     

    • Zest and juice one orange into separate bowls. I love the sweetness of dates, and I cut up 25 pitted dates into a bowl and set it aside. Next, weigh or measure the sugars into another bowl. Finally, weigh or measure the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and run a whisk through to blend.
    • In your mixer bowl, add the butter and mascarpone and blend till incorporated. Now, add the sugars and mix for 1 minute at medium speed. Next, add the vanilla extract, orange juice, orange zest, and the egg and mix for a minute or until there is no more egg color left. Scrape down the sides and now add the flour mixture. Finally, add the dates, walnuts, and raisins and blend for 30 seconds.
    • Take the bowl and cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour. Of course, you can do longer; it will not hurt the cookie dough.
    • Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C). I use a medium cookie scoop to get even size cookies. Add twelve scoops to a half-sheet pan covered with parchment paper. Next, take a flat bottom water glass and lightly press it down on the mounds to flatten them out just a little. Bake for 12-13 minutes. Leave them on the pan for a minute before moving them to a cooling rack. Enjoy.

    Share this recipe

    Notes

    Pampered Chef's Cinnamon Plus Spice Blend 
    The Cinnamon Plus spice is one of my favorites for making cookies for the holidays. Unfortunately, it is only offered around this time of year, so follow the link if you would like to try it. I am not affiliated with Pampered Chef.

    NUTRITION DISCLAIMER

    I am not a certified Dietitian or Nutritionist. The nutrition amounts given below are provided through a program and are only a guideline.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 148kcalCarbohydrates: 17gProtein: 2gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 19mgSodium: 71mgPotassium: 93mgFiber: 1gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 186IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    More Cookies

    • Amaretto almond crescent cookies on a wooden board in front of a bakery. Feature image.
      Amaretto Almond Crescent Cookies - Sandy, Biscuit, and Lightly Boozy
    • Italian Anise Cookies - Soft, Glazed and Perfect for the Holidays sitting on a board.
      Italian Anise Cookies - Soft, Glazed, and Perfect for the Holidays
    • A group of Raspberry Cream Cheese Cookies on a wooden board.
      Raspberry Cream Cheese Thumbprint Cookies - Easy and Delicious
    • A single front view of a lemon pistachio cookie leaning against a wooden board.
      Lemon Pistachio Cookies

    Comments

      5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

      Join the Discussion Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Rate Recipe




    1. Keren says

      May 12, 2023 at 3:33 am

      5 stars
      I found this recipe and wanted to try it right away. We live pretty far from the grocery store, so I substituted cottage cheese for the mascarpone. It worked great! I've used the recipe several times, sometimes substituting chocolate chips for the dates and other times using dried apricots, macadamias, and white chocolate chips for the add-ins. All a hit with my family!

      Reply
      • Barbara says

        May 12, 2023 at 4:47 pm

        Hi Keren, WOW, cottage cheese I would not have thought of that. I am so glad you are willing to substitute what you like in cookies. I just made a White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookie that I really love. You might want to give them a try.

        Reply
    Barb the owner of my cookie journey head shot.

    Hi! My name is Barbara Hall. I am a retired IT professional who wants my next career to be fun. What better way than by sharing cookie recipes that I make in my kitchen, taking photos, and showing you the results? My goal is to provide cookie recipes you can make at home that look great and taste fantastic!

    More about me →

    Sign-up

    Yes, I want free cookie recipes...

    Spring Cookies!

    Easy lemon bars feature image on a black plate.

    What's popular...

    • Stacks of PA Dutch Sand Tarts which are round with cinnamon sugar and a pecan half on top.
      Pennsylvania Dutch Sand Tart Cookies
    • Second single closeup of a traditional Sicilian Almond Cookies.
      Traditional Sicilian (traditional Italian) Almond Cookies
    • Stack of Cardamom Orange shortbread cookies with slices of orange skin.
      Cardamom Orange Shortbread Cookies
    • Rosemary lemon with honey cookies on white dish.
      Rosemary with Lemon and Honey Shortbread Cookies
    • Cardamom Orange with Cinnamon Pizzelle
    • Plate full of apricot with almonds cookies, with plenty of white chocolate icing.
      Fresh Apricot with Almonds Cookies - Revised

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    • About Me
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Hosted By WPopt AB

    • Contact

    Copyright © 2025 My Cookie Journey

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.