Preheat your oven to 180°C (fan 160°C) and line a large baking tray with baking parchment. While the oven heats, grate your apples — you'll notice the flesh turning slightly brown, which is perfectly fine and adds to the rustic look.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and brown sugar. Whisk vigorously until the mixture looks pale and creamy, and you can smell the vanilla rising from the bowl. The sugar should be mostly dissolved, with no gritty feel when you rub a tiny bit between your fingers.

Add the grated apple and raisins to the wet mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until the apple is evenly distributed. You'll see the raisins plumping up slightly as they absorb the moisture, and the whole bowl will smell sweet and fruity.

In a separate small bowl, mix the rolled oats, wholemeal flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Stir these dry ingredients together until the cinnamon turns the flour a warm, tan colour. Then, tip the dry mix into the wet mixture and fold gently. Stop stirring as soon as you can no longer see streaks of flour — the dough will look thick, sticky, and slightly shaggy, which is exactly what you want.

Scoop heaped tablespoons of the dough onto your prepared baking tray, leaving about 5cm between each one. Use the back of the spoon to flatten each cookie slightly, as they won't spread much on their own. You should have 12 to 14 rough rounds.

Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through. The cookies are done when the edges turn a deep golden brown and the tops look set, not wet. If you gently press the centre of a cookie, it should spring back. The kitchen will smell like a cosy autumn morning.

Leave the cookies on the tray for 5 minutes to firm up — they will be very soft straight from the oven. After that, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. You'll hear a faint crackle as the bottoms crisp up slightly on the rack.