Vegan Raspberry Oat Cookies – Buttery, Jam-Filled & Gluten-Free

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Raspberry Oat Cookie Recipe Notes
I have to say, these gluten-free vegan raspberry jam oat cookies might just be my favourite cookie ever. They’re buttery and tender, made with oat and almond flour, and bursting with sweet raspberry jam. If you love easy vegan baking and crave a nostalgic, jammy cookie moment—keep reading, my friends.

How these cookies came to be:
At the restaurant where I work, there’s a little café directly across the path from our front door. Many of my coworkers regularly pop over for lattes and sweet treats. I’ve never actually been inside—I'm pretty frugal and prefer to make my own coffee and snacks—but I kept noticing these gluten-free raspberry thumbprint cookies showing up in the staff room, where people leave their leftovers and snacks.

Eventually, after seeing them again and again, someone bought a batch for the team. I tried one. It was a bit on the dry side and more like an oat cake—but enjoyable. And more importantly, I was inspired. I knew I wanted to recreate a soft, jammy, gluten-free version at home.

After a little pondering, I nailed the recipe almost on the first try. The real test? Taking some to work to see what the restaurant fam thought. (Spoiler: they were a hit.)

The Verdict:
Jesse said, “These are next level.”
Pidge told me, “To be honest, these are better than the café’s.”
Chef said, “Buttery, salty, perfect... raspberry jam is the only choice.”
And Kia? “The crust feels like a warm hug — I need the recipe.”
Well… you get the idea.
I’m not here to gloat — but this is what I’m good at. I love tasting something once, then going home and recreating it in a way that’s even more delicious, nourishing, and satisfying. I love sharing with friends and hearing what they think. I love writing the recipes out and offering them here, hoping someone out there might make them and love them too.
Sometimes, I daydream about having my own little café or bakery where I can dish out these creations in person. But for now, the best I can do is share them here — one recipe, one story at a time.

What These Cookies Are — and What They’re Not
These cookies are soft, delicate, and meant to be savoured. The raspberry jam seeps just enough into the base, making them a treat that absolutely deserves a serving plate. This isn’t a zip-it-up and toss-it-in-your-purse kind of cookie.

These are slow cookies.
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The kind you enjoy while curled up on the sofa with a hot cup of tea, a book in hand, or your favourite record playing in the background. A cookie to pull apart gently, piece by piece — buttery oatmeal crumble giving way to bright, jammy raspberry — enjoyed in your own sweet time.

Raspberry Oat Cookies Ingredient Notes (Vegan and Gluten Free)

Oats, Almond Flour, Vegan Butter, Brown Sugar, Salt, Baking Soda, Plant Milk, Vanilla, Cinnamon, Raspberry Jam

Oats - I buy whole rolled oats, and for this recipe I blitz them in a food processor. The  oats should still have some pieces remaining in tact, almost like a coarse flour. I have not yet tried the recipe using fully ground oat flour, whole oats, or a combination of both. I can't speak to the results if you want to try, but if I were to attempt it, I'd most likely use a combination of oat flour and whole oats. 

Almond Flour - When I set out to make this recipe, I knew I really wanted them to contain some almond flour. My only hesitation is that almond flour can be very expensive. I ended up buying a fairly large bag at Walmart for about $15, which is the cheapest I have seen it in stores around me. My other thought would be to check online. I have also had great success grinding my own blanched white almonds into a coarser flour. It gives the cookies a tiny bit more texture and crunch. Delicious.

Raspberry Jam - There are many brands out there, I always gravitate to the artisan looking ones that are more expensive, but I have also tried just grocery store brands. The flavour is great either. More recently I make my own preserves, even better. Local Berries preserved to whip up these cookies when cravings strike. Use whatever you like best, but I would suggest a jam that is more stiff as opposed to runny. I have had success using both, but the runnier ones are more likely to bubble over the cookie. 

Plant Milk - I always use either unsweetened soy or oat milk. I'm sure any plant milk would work just fine, but these are my staples. I'm not a fan of almond milk actually, I've always found the flavour sub par and it lacks body compared to the other milks, but for this recipe I don't think that would matter. 

Vegan Butter - I have tried this recipe with different brands of vegan butter and they all turned out great. I am not loyal to one particular type. I look at what is available where I am shopping, and I also will buy one over the other if there is a sale. You can check in the organic section of most grocery stores, and even sometimes you will find different brands near dairy butter. In my experience vegan products are scattered in different sections around stores so I often take a walk around looking before I settle on something. (I'm always price conscious) I have noticed that when I use a vegan butter with higher salt, I liked it better. The Becel vegan butter I tried had a higher salt content than Earth Balance brand I tried. You can always sprinkle a little salt on top if you are into that sweet and salty experience as much as I am. 

Step by Step Instructions for Raspberry Oat Cookies

1. Blitz oats in food processor. You are looking for a coarse texture, with some flour like bits.

2. Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl. Blitzed oats, almond flour, brown sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Mix to combine. 

3. Cut in cold vegan butter

4. Use your fingers to mix the butter into the dry mix. It's the same process as making my buttery biscuits. You end up with small, cold chunks of butter distributed throughout the dough. 

5. Now mix vanilla into plant milk, add to the bowl. 

6. Using your hands, mix, squeeze and press everything together until a dough forms. 

7. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and divide the dough into 16 - 18 portions, leaving 1.5 inches between each ball of dough. 

8. Now, form the cookies. Flatten them with the palm of your hand first, then begin to shape. Use your finger to press down the middle, pretend you are making a tiny tart shell vs just a thumbprint cookie. You want as much space for the jam as possible. You also want to build up a tiny ledge around the perimeter to help keep the jam in place as they bake. 

9. Fill each cookie with at least 2 tsp of raspberry jam. (provided you made the suggested number of cookies) The bigger they are the more jam they can hold. 

10. Chill the tray of cookies in the fridge or even freezer for 20 minutes while you preheat the oven to 375 F. Then Bake the cookies for 12 minutes, rotate sheet pan, and bake for another 4 minutes. (16 minutes total). Cookies will have spread, and should be golden. Let them cool and set 10-15 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. They may be delicate so use a large flat spatula if you are worried about them breaking. 

Raspberry Oat Cookies Recipe Trouble Shooting

This headline is a bit misleading, because I have made this recipe dozens of times. I have enjoyed each batch, but it's pretty interesting how they can turn out slightly different each time. This is due to using different vegan butter products, different jam products, how the cookies are shaped, and baking them more or less.

Troubleshooting Tips for Vegan Raspberry Oat Cookies

​1. My cookies are too soft or falling apart
This likely means the base was rolled too thin or not baked long enough. Try slightly increasing the bake time or shaping the cookie a bit thicker for a sturdier base. Also see my notes above in the ingredients section about making your own almond flour, I found this made for sturdier cookies. 

2. The jam overflowed and made a mess
Make sure to create a deep well in the center of the cookie (not just a small thumbprint). Also, avoid using runny jams — a thicker, pectin-rich jam works best and is less likely to bubble over.

3. My cookies taste bland
Different vegan butter brands have different salt levels. A butter with a slightly higher salt content (like Becel plant-based) can enhance flavor. Or, add a small pinch of sea salt to the dough.

4. The cookies spread too much
Chill the dough for 15–30 minutes before shaping and baking. This helps the fats firm up and prevents overspreading.
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5. The jam disappeared while baking
This can happen with very soft or low-fruit-content jams. Try using a thicker jam or add the jam halfway through baking instead of at the beginning.