Brown Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies
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Soft & chewy oatmeal cookies made with brown butter then sandwiched with cream cheese frosting. They take sandwich cookies to a whole new level!
There’s really something magical about sandwich cookies. Not only do you get to eat 2 cookies at once – but you also get to have delicious frosting with your cookies. Which are obvious pluses in my book.
Now, I know for a lot of people oatmeal cookies are kind of the wallflower of the cookie world. They don’t scream “Pick Me” or “Take a Bite” next to chocolate chip, peanut butter or sugar cookies. But let me just say that these oatmeal sandwich cookies are a whole different story. They’re taking oatmeal out of the corner. They’re being picked first at kickball. They’re winning the popularity contest.
What makes these cookies so special is that they’re packed with flavour and oh so chewy. Then, to top it off they’re made into a delicious sandwich with cream cheese frosting (aka the best frosting ever).
One of the key ingredients of these cookies is the brown butter. Brown butter gives a rich nutty caramel flavour which takes the cookies from delicious to off the hook. To brown the butter, you’ll melt it in a heavy-bottom sauce pan over medium heat. Then, after it melts continue to cook while whisking. It will bubble and pop, and then you’ll see dark milk solids begin to form. Once you see the colour turn brown and get a nutty aroma, remove the pan from the heat and stop whisking. But be careful – brown too much and you’ll end up with burnt butter.
As far as the oatmeal, I actually use a combination of old-fashioned rolled oats and quick oats. I know this seems fussy, but after trying with both the combo is best because the old-fashioned oats give the cookies texture and the quick-oats keep the cookies soft (which is necessary for sandwich making). If you’re like me and don’t keep quick oats on hand, you can process your old-fashioned oats in a blender or food processor for about 10 seconds. And ta-da! You have quick oats.
It’s also very important that you chill your cookie dough! If not, your cookies will spread too much and lose their chewiness. I used my trusty 2 tablespoon cookie scoop to get uniform balls, and then chilled the dough for about 2 hours. (You can chill your dough in the fridge covered for up to 3 days).
For your filling, your going to want to wait til the cookies are completely cooled. I decided to go with a cream cheese frosting for these, which is unlike some traditional oatmeal sandwich cookies. But I must say that the cream cheese really compliments the cookies in a sort of “2 halves are greater than a whole” type of way.
After you eat these cookies, you’re going to see oatmeal in a whole different way. I’m in love with them. With brown butter, tons of chewiness and creamy cream-cheese frosting – you’ll be converted!
Brown Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup packed brown sugar (light or dark, I used dark)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup quick oats, or 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats processed in the food processor 4-5 times
- 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 cup cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2-3 cups powdered sugar, sifted, confectioners'
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
For the Cookies
- In a heavy-bottom sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Continue heating & whisking until the butter turns browns. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt for about 20 seconds. Set aside.
- In a large bowl or the the stand of your electric mixer, beat the brown butter & sugars on medium speed until combined. Then add in the vanilla & eggs and continue mixing for about 30 seconds.
- Scrape down the sides of your bowl. Slowly add in the flour mixture beating low speed until almost combined. Turn off your mixer, scrape down the sides of your bowl, and gently fold in your oats. The batter will be thick, so you may want to finish mixing by hand with a wooden spoon.
- Form dough into 2 tablespoon balls. You should get about 40 cookies. Cover with clingfilm, and chill dough in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour (or up to 3 days).
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Remove dough from the fridge and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes (mine took exactly 8 minutes), until cookies are slightly browned on the edges. Leave to cool on the tray for about 3-5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
For the Filling
- In a large bowl or the stand of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter together on medium speed until light and fluffy with no lumps remaining (about 3-4 minutes). Reduce to low-medium speed and slowly add in the powdered sugar, cinnamon & vanilla. The frosting should be spreadable, about the consistency of peanut butter.
- Spread about 1.5 tablespoons of frosting on the bottom side of half of the cookies, then top with the additional cookies right side up. You should get about 20 sandwiches.
- Cookies are best if stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5.
Nutrition
Fiona, these cookies were amazing, I passed the recipe that you have here to my wife in hopes that she will get into the habit of making me some. I have been informed that you are making some cookies tonight! I hope he doesn’t eat any on the way to work… my tummy loves great home baking, thank you!
Thanks Bryan! I’m glad you enjoyed them – let me know how the cookies turn out if your wife bakes them!