Super soft and chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies perfectly spiced and studded with chocolate chips makes for one delicious cookie!
Love these cookies? Then you’ll also want to make my Double Chocolate Chip Cookies, my Super Soft Peanut Butter Cookies, and my Cherry Garcia Cookies.
Why This Recipe Works
Easy ingredients — These chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are made with simple fridge and pantry stables you probably already have on hand. There’s nothing hard to find here — my favorite kind of dessert to make!
Make ahead — You can make these chewy chocolate chip oatmeal cookies ahead of time. This is perfect for those holiday guests you may be expecting or if you just want to have a quick cooking to bake when the mood hits. Just double the batch and freeze half the dough in for up to 3 months.
Soft and chewy — These oatmeal cookies are sooooo soft and chewy, you’ll love every single bite. The mixture of the nutty oatmeal plus the bite of the chocolate chips just makes for one delightfully tasty cookie!
Keeps on the counter — You can store these easy chocolate chip oatmeal cookies right on the counter in an airtight container for up to 5 days. That is, of course, IF they last that long!
Ingredients
Butter, softened — Any kind of butter you have is fine! But it should definitely be softened, not melted!
Brown sugar — Brown sugar adds sweetness but also a little of that caramelization you’ll taste with every bite.
Egg — An egg helps bind all the ingredients together.
Vanilla — I prefer to use real vanilla extract as it just tastes so good. But you can use whatever you have on hand.
Baking soda — Baking soda helps these cookies to rise and adds to that chewy texture. Be sure to check the expiration date before using.
Salt — Just a bit of salt really helps pull all the flavors of these oatmeal chocolate chip cookies together.
Cinnamon & nutmeg — My secret to the best chocolate chip oatmeal cookies you’ve ever had? Cinnamon and nutmeg! So heavenly, such perfect flavors — do not sleep on these two essential ingredients.
Flour — All-purpose flour is what I use in these cookies. I have not tested other flours.
Old fashioned oats — These old fashioned oats are key. Not steel cut, not quick-cook, just regular old fashioned oats are the perfect ingredient in these cookies. Semi-sweet chocolate chips — Semi-sweet are my go-to chocolate chip in most cookies but I have to say, I would think a dark chocolate chip would make these cookies absolutely amazing!
Here’s How You Make It
1. First, get out a large bowl and a hand mixer or, use the bowl of your stand mixer and beat together the softened butter and sugar until the mixture is light and smooth. (photos 1-2)
2. Scrape down the sides and then to the butter/sugar mixture, add the egg and vanilla and beat some more. Scrape again then mix in the baking soda, salt and spices. (photos 3-6)
3. Next, fold the flour into the butter/spice mixture by hand with a spatula. When this is all combined together, stir in the oats, then the chocolate chips. Stir till a uniform dough forms. (photos 7-12)
4. Cover and pop the bowl into the fridge to chill for 30 minutes. While the dough is chilling, turn the oven on to pre-heat at 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. (not pictured)
5. After 30 minutes have passed, take the dough out of the fridge and roll each cookie into a 1-tablespoon-sized ball, and place them about 1-½ inches apart on the baking sheets. (Be sure not to place them too close together as they will spread when baking.) (photo 13)
6. Bake the chocolate chip oatmeal cookies (in batches, if necessary) for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies are spread, puffed, and golden. When they are done, pull them out of the oven and, first, leave them to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely. (photo 14)
There are so many types of oats, they can get confusing! But here’s a quick breakdown:
Old Fashioned Oats (the kind used in this recipe) are oats that have been steamed, flatted, and flaked to the consistency you’ll find in the container that we are all used to. These kinds of oats are what we eat in oatmeal and baked goods or cooking and have the best texture.
Quick-Cooking Oats are made the same as old fashioned but are cut thinner to make them easier to cook. While you could substitute these kinds of oats into this recipe for the best chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, they would not be as chewy and could even be kind of mushy as the oats will more easily absorb the wet ingredients and cook too fast.
Steel-cut Oats are not rolled and cut, like old fashioned or quick-cooking, but instead are cut up into a coarse texture. They take a long time to cook and are very chewy. These, however, are not a good oatmeal substitute in this recipe because they will not cook correctly and your cookies will end up tasting like they have gravel in them instead of soft, chewy oats
If your oatmeal chocolate chip cookies turned out hard one of the reasons could be that you overmixed them. Be careful to just mix the ingredients together and then let them go and chill and roll. Another reason they could be too hard is that they were too small and got over-baked or you left them in the oven too long.
Expert Tips & Tricks
- These cookies can be kept in an air-tight container for up to 5 days on the counter.
- For even easier make-ahead cookies, ball up the cookie dough and then freeze! To keep the cookies from sticking together in the freezer, add the balled-up cookies to a sheet pan and pop in the freezer to freeze for about 45 minutes or so, then take them out and put the frozen balls into a ziplock bag for storing. To cook these easy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from frozen, simply add an extra 4-5 minutes of cooking time.
- Need an old-fashioned oatmeal cookie? Consider adding raisins instead of chocolate chips.
More Dessert Recipes You’ll Crave
- Butterscotch Blondies
- Apple Oatmeal Cookies
- Iced Oatmeal Cookies
- Oatmeal Cake with Vanilla Sauce
- Chunky Monkey Banana Cookies
Did you make this recipe? FANTASTIC. Please rate the recipe below and be sure to tag me on social when you share a photo on social – I love seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!
Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter - softened
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp nutmeg
- ¾ cup flour
- 1 ½ cups old fashioned oats
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large bowl with a hand mixer or in your stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until the mixture is smooth, and has lightened in color. Scrape down the sides with a spatula, then beat in the egg and vanilla, followed by the baking soda, salt and spices.
- Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and use the spatula to fold in the flour. Then, once it is almost combined, mix in the oats, followed by the chocolate chips, stirring until you have a uniform dough. Chill the mixture for 30 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven to 350F and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment.
- Roll the dough into 1 tbsp sized balls, and space them out at least 1 1/2 inches apart on the baking sheet (they’ll spread to about double their size). Don’t be afraid to bake off the cookies in batches if need be.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cookies are spread, puffed and golden. Leave them to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.
