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. These are the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!
Have you ever made my chewy chocolate chip cookies recipe? I have the recipe memorized—I make them all the time! But it’s time to add another legendary recipe to our chocolate chip cookie repertoire. Today we’re mixing big chewy oats with lots of butter, brown sugar, a touch of molasses, a dash of cinnamon, and… glorious chocolate chips.
Start preheating your ovens!
This is My Favorite Base Oatmeal Cookie Recipe
Today’s soft & chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies start from my base oatmeal cookie recipe. This base recipe has quickly developed into my favorite and makes quite a few appearances in 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 master muffin recipe. Or my favorite recipe for vanilla cupcakes which you can try many ways—peanut butter & jelly cupcakes, piñata cupcakes, pistachio cupcakes, chocolate caramel coconut cupcakes, and mimosa cupcakes all stem from the same base vanilla cupcake recipe. My peanut butter cookies have inspired quite a few spinoffs, too!
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
How to Make Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
I especially love this recipe because the process is quick & simple—minimal dough chilling!
- Whisk the dry ingredients together. Just the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt—you’ll add the oats later.
- Mix the wet ingredients together.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients.
- Add 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.
- Scoop cookie dough balls. About 3 Tablespoons of dough per cookie—yes, these are LARGE!
- Bake. The cookies are done when the edges are set and the centers still look soft.
Baker’s Tip: Use a cookie scoop. I never use a cookie scoop when making chocolate chip cookies, but I swear by using one with oatmeal cookies. Oatmeal cookie dough is super chunky and soft, and this one can get a little sticky. A cookie scoop not only prevents a mess, it also helps ensure all cookies are the same size and shape. I recommend the large cookie scoop which holds 3 Tablespoon of cookie dough. Exactly what we’re aiming for with these hearty chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. They’re BIG.
Why You’ll Love These Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Three characteristics I look for in oatmeal cookies? Slow bend, chewy goodness, and ultra soft. Check, check, and check! (This recipe is a lot like my oatmeal raisin cookies.) These oatmeal chocolate chip cookies have a slightly crisp edge with a soft center and enough chew that it won’t immediately break when you bend it. A “slow bend cookie” as I like to call them—and this is what makes a regular oatmeal cookie a really great oatmeal cookie. They’re also:
- Super soft and hearty.
- Supremely buttery and flavorful. Using more brown sugar than white helps guarantee a more flavorful base.
- Super chewy thanks to old-fashioned oats. Thick old-fashioned whole rolled oats, not quick oats, guarantee a chewier cookie. Quick oats are thinner and more powder-y; you simply don’t get the same texture.
- Loaded with extra chocolate chips! I like to use both regular size and mini chocolate chips. This guarantees more chocolate in every single bite. And for my fellow raisin lovers: try subbing in half raisins with the chocolate chips. BEST COOKIE EVER.
- Taste just like how grandma used to make them. I find the 1 Tablespoon of molasses is what makes these taste like grandma’s old fashioned oatmeal cookies. I strongly encourage you to add it.
Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 24 minutes
- Yield: 22 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. These are the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!
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 (2 sticks; 230g) 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 semi-sweet chocolate chips*
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, cinnamon, 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 on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat on medium-high speed until creamed, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, molasses, and vanilla 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 dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. With the mixer running on low speed, beat in the oats and both types of chocolate chips. Dough will be thick and sticky. Cover and chill 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 hard.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Use a large cookie scoop to scoop the cookie dough, about 3 Tablespoons of dough per cookie, and place 4 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 wire rack to cool completely. While the cookies are still warm, I like to press a few more chocolate chips into the tops—this is only for looks!
- 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 3.) 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 | Large 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!
- Chocolate Chips: I like using 1 and 1/4 cups regular size chocolate chips and 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips. Varying sizes ensure more chocolate in each bite. You can, of course, just use 1 and 3/4 cups regular size chocolate chips. You can even try 1 cup chocolate chips and 3/4 cup raisins. Yum!
OK, I must admit I jumped into this with immediate substitutions. I wanted to try making protein cookies and needed a good base recipe. I subbed oat flour for regular flour, protein oats for regular oats, and skipped the molasses. It turned out perfectly!! Next time I’ll try adding in some PB protein powder and cutting back on the sugar. Thanks for a terrific find, even if I didn’t stick to the original plan. 🙂
I also made these with substitutions. Used coconut flour instead of all purpose and skipped the molasses as well. They still came out delicious. I too want to try different additions. Good find indeed!!
These are amazing! Only made 2 adjustments….reduced some of the sugar to help with calories (not by much) and browned the butter for that rich flavor. Refrigerated them for about an hour. Made them into balls and put them back in the fridge while the oven came to temp. They stayed pretty plump. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. LOVE LOVE LOVE!
After making the batter my husband came to me and said that we were invited to some friends house this evening for dinner. He said we should bring the cookies. Not gonna lie, I was SUPER close to saying, “no way! These are just too good!” But I then just decided that I’ll bring these to the friends house and make more tomorrow 🙂
folks – this is great. follow the recipe. COOL them for a LONG time. LONG time. They are amazingly great!
My husband and I are completely addicted to these. I make a batch at least once a week. I use 1/4 cup less white sugar and a mix of semi-sweet chips and bittersweet chunks. Love how the cinnamon, molasses and chocolate compliment each other. These gorgeous cookies bake up perfectly every time. Thanks for the recipe! ❤
Hi sally! I made these cookies and they were still good, but they came out crunchy. What would you recommend?
Hi Nicole! Crunchy cookies are likely over-baked. Make sure to keep an eye on them in the oven while they’re baking. Also be careful to spoon and level your flour (instead of scooping) or measure with a scale to avoid packing too much in. Here’s more tips for baking cookies!
Wondering if I can make these as bars, using the same recipe? If so, how long should I bake them for? THANK YOU!!
Hi Beth! You can definitely use this cookie dough for cookie bars. A 9×13 inch pan would be best. I’m unsure of the exact bake time.
I am a grandmother of 13 grandchildren. Also not a good cookie baker,(I am known for burning cookies). I used this recipe with my 3 year old granddaughter , who loves to bake. We added all the dry ingredients, yes you heard me correctly, even the brown and white sugar. Then we melted the butter in the microwave added it to our dry ingredients with the two eggs. We used our hands to mix it all together. Lots of fun! No chilling in the frig. They cookies turned out great. They were soft and chewy. Everyone was taking one warm from the cooling rack. Thank you
This was my first time making oatmeal cookies. Followed instructions. Used artificial extract because it’s what I had. Didn’t use molasses. Chilled overnight. THESE ARE FANTASTIC!!!
Second time making these since everyone thought they were the best cookies ever! Love them! Thank you!
This recipe is perfect. I don’t normally follow recipes to the T but I did this time and if you actually following the timings and weigh everything exactly as Sally suggests they really do come out like the pictures and taste out of this world. I made it for my mother in law and she now thinks I’m a cooking genius
I just made these and they are sooooo good! I used quick oats and since it’s Christmas I wanted to use some cranberries so I used 1/2 cup each of dried cranberries, chocolate chips, and walnuts. Thick, chewy, and yummy! I will make again.
I followed the recipe exactly. Yes, I use a scale and that’s key. They baked for 9 minutes per my oven.
Absolutely delicious.
I just baked a batch of these and they are excellent! They came out soft and chewy with crispy edges. I used mini and regular semi sweet chips along with cinnamon chips and sprinkled them with coarse sugar when they came out of the oven. I definitely will use this recipe again.
For years I have looked for a recipe for chewy oatmeal cookies to no avail. I saw this one and decided to try it. But I didn’t have much time, so I spread all the dough into a jelly roll pan. They came out perfectly after 19 minutes! My husband and I loved them. I added in white chocolate chips and dried cranberries, because I had them left over since Thanksgiving. Yum. I will try the cookie format next time.
Hi! I love oatmeal cookies , I usually add chopped or ground almonds or walnuts. Just want to ask about the molasses as part of the ingredients for this recipe,is that liquid? Thanks !
Hi Deb! Yes, the molasses is a very thick liquid ingredient.
As usual another perfect recipe!!! 🙂
I’ve tried about a dozen recipes from Sally’s baking addiction and they’ve all come out great, which is why I keep coming back. Unfortunately, this recipe is bad. I should have read the comments before making these, as the flour ratio is definitely off. My cookies turned out flat and paper thin.
I definitely agree with Tyler..
I am a chef. I. Love that ur recipes have the conversions. I love all ur recipes and I have made quite a few. Happy Holidays
I am going to make these but I need to know if I could use quick oats instead of rolled oats. This is all I have I’d like to know if this would work before starting them. Thank you.
I will let you know how they come out once I get response about the quick oats.
Hi Connie! You can, but if you use quick oats just keep in mind that because they are are thinner and more powder-y the cookies won’t have the same texture.
Followed exactly and chilled for maybe 2 hours. They were just like the photo and tasted amazing. Definitely keeping this recipe. Thank you and happy holidays!!!
I baked these, they were great. But! I see a lot of people had spreading. Here’s what happened to me, and how I fixed the issues people are describing (nothing new, but here’s another voice saying it does work).
My only change to the recipe is that I didn’t have the chips called for, so I used some semi-sweet standard sized chips, and the majority was bigger chips of bittersweet chocolate. The dough is so sweet, it works really well, if you like chocolate like I do. I think anything else would’ve tasted too sweet for me.
Cookie spreading:
I made the dough exactly as specified. I refrigerated the dough for an hour, and then baked for 13-14ish minutes. They spread a lot — not paper-thin, but a lot. Frustrated, I thought “I’ll just finish these tomorrow” and threw the other half of the dough in the fridge overnight. I just baked them, having let the dough sit for 20 minutes while the oven came to temperature, and they look exactly as seen above in photos for the recipe. So, bottom line: chill your dough way longer than you think you need to.
Texture is too soft/difficulty with cookies falling apart on your map or paper when you try to lift them: You may be being too impatient. Wait longer for them to set up before you try to move them. I’m talking an hour. Wait! It’ll set up, and they’re easier to move and more solid.
Over all, the texture is much improved the next day (as is usually the case for cookies in my opinion). They were just ok yesterday, but they’re wonderful today!
These are the worst cookies I have ever made. They would not raisat all and stayed wet. I even added more flour. Will never make them again.
Just made them and I had the same results. Flat and hard
We can taste the baking soda and it makes them hard to eat. I think it would be better with 1/2 tsp instead of 1 tsp baking soda.
I did not have molasses, so I used honey to keep the dough soft. I also would only cook these for 12-13 mins. This is a good recipe and you can barely taste any cinnamon, just the chocolate and oats. I would make this again.
I tried these for the first time today. I used half chocolate chip and half white chips. I also used my hands to knead the dough before refrigerating it. Turned out great! I refrigerated for about 3 hours before baking. Will make them again.
Made these exactly as directed and they turned out perfectly! Great recipe, thank you so much! Will be making these again and again.
I was so sad. I weighed all the ingredients and my cookies were flat and lacy. At least they tasted good.
Hi Paulette! Thank you for giving these cookies a try. Here’s some tips to prevent cookies from spreading in the future!
these cookies are the bomb and..wonder how many calories in one of these beasts?
L Brar WestVirginia
Hi Lesley, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Actually I did figure it out. The dough needed to be v cold so I had proper spherical dough balls. Then in my oven the top gets much warmer than the bottom. I was trying to bake 3 sheets at once. So I put one in at the top, then when it was almost done I moved it to the bottom and put another on top. With three cookie sheets I always had a cool pan to use. The taste of these…..OMG!!!! So good and that was without the molasses. I can’t wait to make these again!
Delish.
I added coconut and way less sugar and it was so good.
Thanks.
So very often an oatmeal cookie recipe claims to be chewy and soft but this one is the real deal! My husband couldn’t wait for them to cool off before stealing one. I shared with my brother-in-law, sister-in-law and nephew. These were a hit! Even after three days -surprised I found one still in the jar – they were still chewy!
I’m 22 and this is the first baking recipe I’ve made and I was successful on my first try! They taste just like cafe cookies but better cause they’re homemade and super fresh! It was also a very easy and straightforward recipe to follow! Thank you so much! I’ll be checking out more of your recipes.