Description
These are chewy cookies with oats and flavored with eggnog, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Sandwich them together with richly sweet and spiced eggnog buttercream. See my cookie shaping tips above before starting.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (190g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg (I recommend freshly ground)
- 2/3 cup (53g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) packed light or dark brown sugar (I recommend dark here)
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) eggnog, at room temperature
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Eggnog Buttercream Filling
- 10 Tablespoons (142g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups (240g) confectioners’ sugar
- 3 Tablespoons (45ml) eggnog, at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch each salt, ground cinnamon, and ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Make the cookies: Whisk the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, oats, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until creamed, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, eggnog, and vanilla extract and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. Dough will be very sticky.
- Cover dough tightly and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Chilling is imperative for this sticky cookie dough.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Roll chilled cookie dough into balls, about 1 heaping Tablespoon (24-25g) of dough each, and place 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. (You should get 24 cookie dough balls.)
- Bake for 11–12 minutes, or until very lightly browned around the edges. The centers will look very soft. Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. (Success Tip: If your cookies are spreading too much or unevenly, remove them from the oven and use a spoon to lightly push any wonky edges back in towards the center, to reshape into circles. You can repeat this trick again as soon as you take them out of the oven after baking.)
- Make the buttercream filling: Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat softened butter on high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat on medium speed for 1–2 minutes. Pour in eggnog and vanilla extract, and add a pinch each of cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Beat on high for 2–3 minutes until fluffy. Pipe or spread some of the cream filling on the bottom side of half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies, right side up. I used Wilton 199 tip to pipe.
- Cover and store leftover cookies at room temperature for up to 1 day. After that, store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week to keep the creamy filling fresh.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Baked cookies, cooled but not frosted/sandwiched, freeze well for up to 3 months. (For best taste and texture, eggnog buttercream filling should be fresh!) Follow recipe through step 7 before freezing. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before continuing with step 8. Unbaked cookie dough balls will freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding a minute or two to the baking time. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Food Scale | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Sheets | Cooling Rack | Small Icing Spatula (for buttercream filling) | Piping Bag (Reusable or Disposable) and Wilton 199 Tip or similar small piping tip (for buttercream filling)
- Eggnog: I recommend using store-bought pasteurized eggnog. My team and I haven’t tested this recipe with homemade eggnog, though I can imagine it would be just fine. If you’d like to make this recipe without eggnog, you can replace it with heavy cream in both the cookies and frosting; or try this recipe for classic oatmeal creme pies.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.