These oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are made with oats, butter, and brown sugar and are the softest, chewiest oatmeal cookies to come out of my kitchen. Use this perfect oatmeal cookie as the base for other add-ins such as raisins, dried cranberries, and nuts. Cinnamon and a touch of molasses add that little something extra.
I originally published this recipe in 2017 and have since added new photos and helpful success tips.
Today we’re mixing big chewy oats with the flavors of butter, brown sugar, a touch of molasses, a dash of cinnamon, and a mountain of chocolate chips.
One reader, Kelly commented: “These are hands down the best oatmeal choco chip cookies I’ve ever made! Soft and chewy, I followed the recipe exactly except for adding 1/2 cup chopped walnuts. Perfection. ★★★★★“
And another, Valerie, commented: “More compliments than I have ever heard from my family and friends, and I bake a lot! ★★★★★“
My Favorite Base Oatmeal Cookie Recipe
These soft & chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies start from my base oatmeal cookie recipe and it makes quite a few appearances in my cookbook, Sally’s Cookie Addiction. I’m a firm believer in having a handful of base recipes from which you can develop virtually hundreds of variations. For example: my standard muffin recipe. This chocolate cookie dough and this peanut butter cookie dough have both inspired quite a few spin offs as well.
The cookies have a slightly crisp edge with a soft center and enough chew that the cookie won’t immediately break when you bend it. A “slow bend cookie” as I like to call them—and this is the key difference between a regular oatmeal cookie and a really great oatmeal cookie.
They’re also:
- Supremely soft, buttery, and flavorful. Using more brown sugar than white helps guarantee a flavorful base.
- Super chewy thanks to old-fashioned oats. Thick whole rolled oats, not quick oats, guarantee a chewier cookie. Quick oats are finer; you simply don’t get the same texture.
- Loaded with chocolate chips. Lots of chocolate in every single bite. And for my fellow raisin lovers: try subbing in half raisins. The dough is pretty similar to my oatmeal raisin cookies.
- Taste just like grandma’s. I find the 1 Tablespoon of molasses is what makes these taste like grandma’s old-fashioned oatmeal cookies. I strongly encourage adding it.
About the molasses, one reader, Hannah, commented: “These cookies are FANTASTIC! I’ll admit, I was a little skeptical about adding the molasses, but it added a depth to the cookies that I wasn’t expecting. Bookmarking to use again for sure! ★★★★★“
Key Ingredients You Need & Why:
- Baking Soda: Baking soda helps the cookies rise and spread.
- Butter: Butter is the base of any delicious cookie recipe. Make sure you are using room-temperature butter.
- Brown Sugar & Granulated Sugar: Sugar is not only used for sweetness, but also for providing structure and tenderness. I like to use more brown sugar than white sugar because (1) it has incredible flavor and (2) it contains more moisture than white, which produces a softer cookie.
- Molasses: Molasses is my secret ingredient! 1 scant Tablespoon enhances all the wonderful flavors of these buttery, cinnamon-sweet cookies.
- Vanilla Extract, Cinnamon, & Salt: Each provide flavor. You can also top the cookies with a little flaky sea salt for more flavor.
- Oats: Oats provide a chewy texture, and there is no shortage in this dough! I use and recommend old fashioned whole oats here—just like I do for flourless peanut butter oatmeal cookies and big giant monster cookies.
How to Make Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
I especially love this recipe because the process is quick & simple—with minimal dough chilling.
Whisk the dry ingredients together. Just the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt—you’ll add the oats later. Use an electric mixer for the wet ingredients, then add the dry ingredients and mix in the oats and chocolate chips.
The dough will be thick and sticky:
Chill the cookie dough. I recommend at least 45 minutes in the refrigerator, which helps prevent the cookies from overspreading.
How Large Do I Make the Cookies?
These are drop-style cookies, so scoop the dough and drop it onto the baking sheets. 1.5 Tablespoons (30g) for regular-size cookies, 2 T. (40g) for large cookies (pictured), or 3 T. (60g) for XL cookies!
Success Tip: Use a cookie scoop. Oatmeal cookie dough is super chunky and soft, and this one can get pretty sticky. A cookie scoop not only prevents a mess, it also helps ensure all cookies are the same size and shape.
The cookies are done when the edges are set and the centers still look soft. After baking, I like to lightly press a few more chocolate chips into the tops of the cookies while they’re still warm. This is optional and just for looks. I also add a light sprinkling of flaky sea salt, which, again, is optional.
Here are the 3 characteristics we should look for in oatmeal cookies: Slow bend, chewy goodness, and ultra soft. Check, check, check! Today’s cookies have it all.
And if you’re looking for a peanut butter version, try my peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies next! Or try the sweater-weather, festive-feeling cousin recipe, these big fat dark chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookies!
Print
Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 24 minutes
- Yield: 32-35 cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
With oats, butter, and mostly all brown sugar, you are guaranteed a soft and chewy oatmeal cookie. Use this perfect oatmeal cookie as the base for other add-ins such as raisins, dried cranberries, and nuts. Cinnamon and a touch of molasses add that little something extra. To prevent the cookies from over-spreading, don’t skip the brief dough refrigeration in step 4.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups (255g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats
- 1 and 3/4 cups (315g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- optional: flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed until combined and creamed, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, molasses, and vanilla and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until combined. Beat in the oats and chocolate chips. Dough will be thick and sticky.
- Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 45 minutes in the refrigerator (and up to 4 days). If chilling for longer than a few hours, allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking because the dough will be quite firm.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Use a medium cookie scoop to scoop the cookie dough, about 2 Tablespoons (40g) of dough per cookie, which is a heaping cookie scoop-ful, and place 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 13–14 minutes or until lightly browned on the sides. The centers will look very soft.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. While the cookies are still warm, I like to press a few more chocolate chips into the tops and sprinkle with flaky sea salt—both are optional!
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. See step 4. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack
- Molasses: 1 Tablespoon of molasses helps give these cookies incredible flavor. Be sure to use unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand). If you don’t have any, simply leave it out. Do not replace with anything else. Likewise, cinnamon adds flavor as well. Not necessary, but it sure is tasty!
- Different Size Cookies: Use 1.5 Tablespoons (30g) for regular-size cookies, 2 T. (40g) for large cookies (what is pictured), or 3 T. (60g) for XL cookies. The bake time will be a minute or so shorter for regular-size and a minute or so longer for XL cookies.
- Can I Add Raisins or Chopped Nuts? Yes, you can add either. I recommend 1 cup (180g) chocolate chips and 3/4 cup either raisins (110g) or chopped walnuts or pecans (100g).
Reader Comments and Reviews
I chose this recipe because your recipes have NEVER failed me. However, I made these and they spread a lot and came out really thin. I wonder if I did something wrong? I don’t know… I had high hopes but I’m pretty sure it was just user error
Hi Rebecca, we’re happy to help troubleshoot! If you wish to try them again in the future, starting with butter that’s too warm is the most common mistake here. This dough should chill for at least 45 minutes before baking, but even longer will help ensure the cookies keep their shape. These tips on how to prevent cookies from spreading will be helpful to review for next time. Thank you for making and trusting our recipes!
I baked these tonight. Turned out perfect. Used dark chocolate chips. Next time I make them. I want to add pecans. How much would I use? Also, what about using pastry flour? Or would that make them too delicate? Thank you!
Hi Mimosa, we’re so glad you enjoyed the cookies! You could definitely add pecans, keeping the total amount of add-ins to 1 and 3/4 cups. We’d recommend sticking with all-purpose flour for best results.
Great great great, i love them and so does my friends and family
Another winning recipe from Sally! I left out the cinnamon but I agree, the extra molasses is a must. I also suggest chilling for at least 2 hours because the batch I baked after chilling only 45 min spread too thin.
These cookies are FANTASTIC! I’ll admit, I was a little skeptical about adding the molasses, but it added a depth to the cookies that I wasn’t expecting. Bookmarking to use again for sure!
Just made these and they were very well-received. Soft and chewy as promised; not crumbly at all and no overspreading. I read a lot of comments about crumbling and overspreading, so I thought I’d share my process. I followed the metric measurements (it’s how I always bake), but with the rolled oats, since 255g came to just over 2 cups, I measured by volume, which was about 339g. I also replaced half the chocolate chips with chopped pecans. Refrigerated the dough for 2 days, then on bake day, used a #40 scoop to make balls that are about 1.5 Tbsp each. When the balls were a cool room temperature, I baked them for 11 minutes, turning halfway. After baking, I let them rest for 5 minutes on the pan before transferring to a cooling rack. By the way, I live in a tropical climate and it’s currently the rainy season here, so I’m not sure if that played a part, but I hope this helps anyway.
I use this recipe as bars rather than cookies, so easy and my family and friends love this recipe. The molasses makes the favor great.
I love the taste of the cookie but they don’t spread. I have tried banging the pan with not much success. Any tips?
Hi Mae, how did you measure your flour? Be sure to spoon and level (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure the flour isn’t over measured, which can dry out cookies and soak up too much of the wet ingredients, making it difficult for the cookies to spread. See this post on 5 cookie baking tips, specifically the section on “What if my cookies AREN’T spreading?”, for more troubleshooting tips. Thank you for giving these a try!
Sorry, but this is the first recipe I’ve made of yours that I won’t make again. Refrigerated for 45 minutes, used the right scoop, baked for 10 minutes only, and they spread and were extremely crispy. Still edible according to my husband, which is why I kept them. Love all your other recipes though! You’re my favorite baker Sally!
Hi Karen, we’re so sorry you didn’t enjoy these cookies. If you wish to try them again in the future, starting with butter that’s too warm is the most common mistake here. This dough should chill for at least 45 minutes before baking, but even longer will help ensure the cookies keep their shape. These tips on how to prevent cookies from spreading will be helpful to review for next time. Thank you for making and trusting our recipes!
I’ve made this recipe twice now and the first time it was absolutely stellar. However the second time it didn’t turn out, and through some investigation I discovered that it was because the first time I made it I used volume measurements and the second time I used metric, based on the conversions in the recipe. When they didn’t turn out the second time, I measured out the oats as an example, and the 255g of oats it called for only amounted to just over two cups when the recipe calls for three. This was such a massive difference in measurement that I think all the metric conversions are probably at risk of being wrong, too. So fair warning, do go by the volume measurements and not the metric conversions.
This is the best cookie recipe I’ve ever made and i always come back to it when im craving a chewy cookie. Absolute perfection.
I made these cookies for a cookout we held, and they were a hit! My friends all loved them, and many many were eaten. I made a double batch, and was left with a half-dozen leftovers. This will forever be my cookie recipe!
Please make a Sally Baking app that is subscription-based so I can use your recipes without ads. Put a survey on your site for 1-3 months to see if I’m the only person that feels this way and use the survey to figure out how to price it monthly, annual or lifetime.
Certainly a suggestion I am considering! Thanks Jennifer. I appreciate your support!
This recipe looks amazing. Will I need to do anything to adjust for high altitude?
Hi Ellen, we wish we could help, but we have no experience baking at high altitude. Some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html Hope you enjoy the cookies!
Love all your recipes, tips and videos, Sally! You’re my go-to! Why do you say to avoid blackstrap molasses in this recipe?
Hi Jenny, blackstrap molasses is very strong and can be quite bitter. However, if you don’t mind it, feel free to use it here!
I followed the ingredients exactly. I don’t have a hand mixer, stand mixer or food processor, so I mixed cold butter and sugar by hand thoroughly (although it wasn’t anywhere near creamed). I also chilled the dough overnight – I test baked two cookies after chilling the dough for 45 minutes and they spread out too much and burnt on the edges. An overnight chill was perfect.
Texture-wise, the cookies were great, chewy and lovely with a slight crisp on the edges. However, flavour-wise they were FAR too sweet. Does anyone know how much sugar I could reasonably cut without compromising the structure of the cookies? I would happily do this again if I could cut a third of the sugar.
Hi Anna, we’re glad you enjoyed the cookies! You can certainly try reducing the sugar, but keep in mind that the sugar plays an important role in the taste, texture, and spread of the cookies. Reducing the sugar will impact the overall outcome, so we’d recommend starting small and then adjusting further for future batches.
Great recipe!
Very easy to bake. Perfect for my afternoon coffee break.
Thanks for this recipe!
I love this recipe but every time I make it the cookies spread out and I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. Any ideas?
Hi Bliss, Starting with butter that’s too warm is the most common mistake. This dough should chill for at least 45 minutes before baking. These tips on how to prevent cookies from spreading will be helpful to review for next time.
This recipe turned out great! I added some chopped walnuts and they are sturdy yet soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. They turned out great!
Just tried this recipe for the first time but, like all of Sally’s other recipes that we’ve tried, it is going to be in frequent rotation!
I added a bit of desiccated coconut and a couple tablespoons of hemp hearts and they turned out so nutty and delicious. We also used sprouted oats, which are extra great for baking since they lose some of the underlying bitterness.
So glad to read this and that the additions worked so nicely in this dough!
This used to be my go to recipe and lately I cannot get them to turn out. They spread too much and are the wrong consistency. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. I make sure my butter is not too warm and that the dough is chilled. Maybe higher humidity than usual?
Hi Pam, humidity could definitely be the culprit. This post on 10 ways to prevent cookies from spreading will also be helpful for troubleshooting. We’re glad these are a favorite for you!
Loved this recipe thanksssssssss!!!
My family loves these cookies! So good!
Can you double this recipe successfully?
Hi Tara, these should be fine to double!
I made these and mine went flat as pancakes. Have not tasted yet. Followed recipe would like to know what the problem was.
Hi Connie, Starting with butter that’s too warm is the most common mistake. These tips on how to prevent cookies from spreading will be helpful to review for next time. Thank you for giving them a try!
How long to bake a smaller cookie?
Hi Donna, it will depend on the exact size of your cookie, so keep a close eye on the first batch to gage best bake time.
I make them smaller so I usually get between 42-45 cookies. I used to bake them at 11 mins but my friends and family prefer the edges to be crunchier/crispier so I still bake them at 13 mins now. Hope that helps!
The best chocolate chip oatmeal coolies ever
Made these Sunday afternoon – my husband and I love them!!!
Made these tonight for my family. We all loved them! I did omit cinnamon just because we don’t live the chocolate/cinnamon combo and used a combo of milk & semi sweet chocolate chips. Everything else was perfect. These are the closest I’ve gotten to Chick Fil A’s cookies by the way… CFA does has less oatmeal in its cookies & I think uses chocolate chunks instead of morsels. Very close otherwise! Thanks for making this excellent recipe, Sally!
This is the BEST oatmeal cookie recipe! I made it with butterscotch chips instead. My entire family count get enough! I plan on using the same recipe and using some healthy ingredients for a new twist! All your recipes I have tried are exceptional!