Chewy Oatmeal Cookies

These chewy oatmeal cookies are soft, packed with texture, and have a delicious caramel flavor with a hint of cinnamon. The cookie dough comes together in under 15 minutes, and you don’t have to chill the dough. **This post was originally published December 21, 2017 and updated March 3, 2023**

Oatmeal cookies can sometimes seem a little boring. But these oatmeal cookies are so far from that. They’re chewy and soft with lots of texture thanks to the oats. Then they have a delicious caramel undertone to the flavor, a hint of cinnamon, and lots of vanilla to make them irresistible. They have enough flavor and texture that the oatmeal can really shine on its own. They might seem simple, but they are super addictive with a cup of coffee or a cold glass of milk.

So What Makes these Chewy Oatmeal Cookies so Perfect?

I’m so glad you asked! Here’s the key ingredients that make them oh so delicious:

1. Start with real butter for more flavor.
2. Brown sugar adds flavor and makes them chewier since it has more moisture than white sugar.
3. Then 1 tablespoon of honey keeps them oh so soft. Molasses works too.
4. Then last but not least – we’re using a combination of quick oats and old-fashioned oats.

I found using all quick oats was tasty, but the cookies didn’t have enough texture. When I using all large flake oats – I found the cookies didn’t hold together well enough. So the combo was juuuuust right. The quick oats make the cookies more consistent in shape, and the large flake oats make the cookies chewier.

Making the Cookies

1. Start by lining cookie sheets with parchment paper or baking mats and preheating the oven to 350F (180C). I always line my cookie sheets because it allows for the cookies to bake more evenly and helps avoid the bottoms from overbaking or burning.
2. In a large bowl, beat together ½ cup unsalted butter, ½ cup granulated sugar and ½ cup brown sugar until creamed.
3. Then beat in the 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 large egg and 1 tablespoon of honey. The honey makes the cookies extra chewy. As mentioned, molasses can be used too.
4. In a small bowl, you’ll whisk together the dry ingredients: 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon baking soda and ¼ teaspoon salt. I almost always whisk together my dry ingredients first because it helps to remove any lumps of flour and ensures that the baking soda is evenly distributed.
5. Then beat the dry ingredients into the butter mixture.
6. From there, you’ll stir in the oats. For this recipe, I use 1 cup old-fashioned oats and ½ cup quick oats. I like to use the combination because I find that the old-fashioned oats add more chew, whereas the quick oats help the cookies be a bit more uniform in shape.
7. Form the dough into balls about with about 1 to 1.5 tablespoons of dough each. The dough will be sticky, which is totally normal. I use a medium cookie scoop for this. Then place about 1.5-2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheets.
8. Then bake the cookie dough balls in the middle of the oven for about 11-13 minutes, or until the tops look set. Cool the cookies on the cookie sheet for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to continue cooling.

Baking Tips & Tricks

• If you’d like to add in chocolate chips or raisins, you could mix in ½ cup of either. However, I actually have separate recipes that adjust for the differences in spices and have enough structure to hold the mix-ins. You can find my favorite oatmeal chocolate chip cookies here and oatmeal raisin cookies here.
• What I also love about these oatmeal cookies is that it’s a no-chill recipe. However, for extra thick cookies, you can chill the dough for 15-20 minutes, but I didn’t find it necessary.
• If you only have quick oats on hand – the recipe will still work (use 1 ½ cup quick oats). But we preferred the texture when using the combo of both types of oats. I actually wrote a whole post on the different types of oats, and what they do in baking. But to summarize – do not use steel-cut oats or instant oats in baking.

These chewy oatmeal cookies are so delicious, and the perfect classic recipe to add to your baking list.

And if you love these chewy oatmeal cookies – make sure to check out these other favorites:

• Monster Cookies
• Oatmeal Fudge Bars
• Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies
• No Bake Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies
• No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies

Print Recipe

4.93 from 14 votes

Chewy Oatmeal Cookies

These chewy oatmeal cookies are soft, packed with texture, and have a delicious caramel flavor with a hint of cinnamon.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time12 minutes mins

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Chewy Oatmeal Cookies, Oatmeal Cookies

Servings: 22 cookies

Calories: 127kcal

Author: Fiona Dowling

Equipment

• Cookie Sheets

Ingredients

• ½ cup unsalted butter (112 grams) softened
• ½ cup white sugar (100 grams)
• ½ cup brown sugar (105 grams) packed
• 1 large egg
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp honey or molasses
• 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour (156 grams)
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup quick oats* (90 grams)
• ½ cup old-fashioned oats* (45 grams)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350F (180C) degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. 
• In a large bowl beat together the butter and sugars until fluffy. 
• Beat in the egg, vanilla extract and honey. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. 
• In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
• Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture and carefully beat them together, starting with the mixer on a low speed.
• Mix in the quick oats and large flake oats. 
• Form the dough into balls about 1 to 1.5 tablespoons in size and place 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheets. 
• Bake 1 cookie sheet at a time in the middle rack of your oven for about 10-13 minutes, or until the tops look just set.
• Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack and continue cooling.

Notes

1. Oats: Do not use instant oats or steel cut oats. Recipe can be made entirely with quick oats (1 ½ cups total), but will have better results using both quick oats and old fashioned oats. If you only have old-fashioned oats, you can make your own quick oats in the blend/food processor. Blend 1 cup old-fashioned oats in small, short bursts until they're more fine, but not as small as flour.
2. Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Baked and cooled cookies can be frozen in an airtight container for 2 months. Thaw in the fridge, then bring to room temperature before enjoying.
3. Freezing: To freeze cookie dough, make the dough through until step 6 (forming the dough into balls). Place the cookies dough balls on a plate, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes - 1 hour. Then place dough balls in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to bake, bake cookies from frozen for 1-2 minutes longer.
4. Nutrition: Nutrition information is based off of 1 cookie, assuming the recipe makes 22 equal sized cookies. 

Nutrition

Calories: 127kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 57mg | Potassium: 39mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 141IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 1mg