Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
The perfect combination of sweet, salty, soft and chewy, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies are simply the best! Easy to make at home and perfect for sharing, these homemade cookies are comforting, gooey and utterly scrumptious. Makes 38 cookies.
Love cookies with chocolate chips? You’ll adore Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies, Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies and Peanut Butter Chocolate White Chocolate Chip Cookies!
It’s my BIRTHDAY WEEK! In celebration of that, I want to share a long-time favorite cookie recipe that I’ve never shared here before. 🙂
While these aren’t the treat I thought I’d be bringing to my (family-only) birthday party, here we are.
2020 requires cookies—lots of ‘em—and these are simply the best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.
In fact, they are my husband’s most-requested recipe. He loves the combination of bittersweet chocolate with oats, as well as the texture. He and I both like them a little underbaked so they’re nice and gooey in the center.
Why I love this recipe:
I’m a sucker for chocolate chip cookies. And these ones have rolled oats in ‘em, adding extra texture and deliciousness for all.
Here are a few reasons why I love this cookie recipe so much:
- Simple, pantry ingredients. We keep these ingredients in our house at all times, so we can always bake a batch of cookies.
- No chill dough. You read that right! All you gotta do for these easy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies is make the batter and bake ’em up immediately.
- Wonderful texture. These cookies straddle the line between chewy and crispy. The middles are chewy and the exterior crisps up as they bake, and they’re simply perfection.
My entire family loves these because they’re a little different than the usual cookies we make around these parts. Obviously, I highly recommend you trying them, too.
More celebratory dessert recipes: Funfetti Sugar Cookie Bars | Mini Stacked Ice Cream Birthday Cakes | Funfetti Cookies | Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting | Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt | Kitchen Sink Cookies
Looking for specific type of cookie? Check out my Cookie Recipe Index for inspiration.
What you’ll need to make this recipe
The Speckled Palate participates in affiliate programs. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases. Please refer to my disclosure page for more information about these affiliate programs.
- Stand mixer (or a hand mixer and mixing bowl)
- Sheet pan
- Nonstick baking mat or parchment paper
- 1 tablespoon cookie scoop or a larger scoop. (However, if you use a larger scoop, know that this recipe will make less cookies.)
In addition to these tools, you’ll need some ingredients, too. Scroll on to the recipe card to get the exact amounts and specific instructions for how to bake these cookies perfectly every time.
- Unsalted butter—yes, the salt content matters because otherwise, these cookies are going to be too salty
- Dark brown sugar—I love the caramel undertones the dark brown sugar adds to this recipe. If you don’t have that at home, you can use light brown sugar, too.
- Granulated sugar—this is sometimes called white sugar, and there is no substitute.
- Unsweetened applesauce—yes, unsweetened. Read the label because most applesauces, which have added sugar, will make these cookies sweeter than they need to be.
- All purpose flour—we keep the unbleached AP flour at our house, but the regular kind works. I have not tried to make these into gluten free cookies, so I cannot speak to GF substitutes for this ingredient.
- Rolled oats or old fashioned oats—not the instant variety. Instant oats are more powdery and won’t lead to as good texture and chewiness.
- Your favorite kind of chocolate chips—preferably bittersweet or dark chocolate. In my opinion, the cookies become too sweet with semisweet or milk chocolate chips.
Easy Substitutions for this cookie recipe
Please keep in mind that some of these substitutions will change cookies flavor and look… but they’ll still be tasty!
- No applesauce? Use the same amount of unsalted butter in its place.
- No applesauce or eggs? Use half of a ripe banana. You can also use a combination of 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1 tablespoon of white or apple cider vinegar.
- If you don’t have unsalted butter, use the same amount of room temperature coconut oil OR vegetable shortening.
- Chocolate choices: I love less sweet chocolate, so I use dark chocolate or bittersweet chocolate in this oatmeal cookie recipe. If you don’t have it on hand and eat milk or semisweet chocolate, you can use those. I say only use ½ a cup of the chocolate, though, because the cookies will become very sweet.
How to make Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Preheat the oven, and line a baking sheet with a nonstick baking mat or parchment paper. Set aside for later.
Cream the butter and sugar together. This means, measure the softened butter into a large bowl with the granulated and brown sugars. Use your stand mixer or hand mixer to whip the ingredients. You’ll do this for 2-3 minutes, until the butter is a nice light yellow and the sugars are incorporated.
This step is important because creaming the sugars and butter makes for a fluffy, light cookie. The creaming process adds air the batter and creates air pockets so the dough can rise as it bakes.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and then add in the applesauce, egg and vanilla. Mix them until combined. These are considered your wet ingredients.
Measure in the dry ingredients (flour, rolled oats, baking soda and salt), and mix until combined. Be sure to turn on the stand mixer at a super low speed so you don’t get covered in flour.
Measure out the chocolate chips, and stir in using a rubber spatula.
Scoop the cookies onto the prepared baking sheet. I like a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop for these cookies, but you can use a larger one if you like.
When all the cookies have been scooped onto the baking sheet, bake until golden brown and gooey.
Enjoy warm or slightly cooled with a glass of milk (or your favorite cookie beverage.)
Frequently Asked Questions
No. In fact, I don’t like these cookies when they’ve been chilled because the oats can become a little soggy.
So if you’re looking for a quick Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe, this one is for you! If you work quickly, you can have these beauties baked and on the table in 30 minutes!
This is something I started doing a long time ago to add less fat recipes. The beauty in it is the applesauce keeps moisture in the cookies or baked good. And I really like what it brings to this cookie recipe, so I’ve kept it in.
If you don’t keep applesauce on hand, you can replace it with the same amount of unsalted, softened butter or an unflavored oil.
We like to let ours cool completely before stacking on a plate and covering with plastic wrap. You can easily store these in a food safe storage container on the countertop, too. They do not need to be refrigerated.
Since this batter makes 38 cookies, you can easily freeze them if you don’t want to bake them all. (In fact, I’ve written a whole post about how to freeze cookie dough, so check it out.) Place the cookie dough balls onto a baking sheet, and pop them in the freezer for 3-4 hours. When they’re frozen solid, transfer from the baking sheet to a storage baggie. They’ll be good in here for a few months, assuming they last that long.
When you’re ready to bake them, preheat the oven, and place the cookies on the baking sheet. Expect to bake the cookies 2-3 more minutes than the original time, but keep an eye on them!
Quick tips for making these cookies
- Make them dairy free cookies by substituting equal parts coconut oil and applesauce for the butter. This will make for a softer cookie, but they’re still delicious. We’ve made them this way tons of times.
- Store cookies on a plate covered in plastic wrap at room temperature or place them in a food storage container.
- If you don’t like bittersweet or dark chocolate chips, feel free to use milk chocolate chips or semisweet chocolate chips. Keep in mind that those will make these bars a little sweeter, so aim to use ½ cup.
More cookie recipes you’ll love:
- Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Bourbon and Walnuts
- Toasted Almond Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons applesauce unsweetened or unflavored oil, like avocado oil
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ¼ cups rolled oats not the instant kind
- ¾ cup bittersweet or dark chocolate chips
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a sheet pan with a nonstick baking mat or parchment paper, and set aside.
- In a the bowl of a stand mixer using the flat beater attachment, cream the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until the butter is light yellow and the sugars are well incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides.
- Add in the applesauce, egg and vanilla extract, beating until combined. Scrape down the sides using the rubber spatula, ensuring all ingredients are getting mixed.
- Measure the flour, salt and soda into the mixing bowl before turning on the mixer at a low speed. Continue mixing until the batter has come together and is nice and sticky.
- Measure in the rolled oats and chocolate chips. Gently fold them into the batter using a rubber spatula.
- Scoop the cookie dough into individual cookies onto the prepared baking sheet. Leave 1½” inches of space between each scoop to ensure the cookies don’t spread and run into each other as they bake.
- Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until golden brown and delicious.
- Let cool completely on a wire cooling rack, then enjoy with a glass of your favorite kind of milk!
Notes
- No applesauce? Use the same amount of unsalted butter or an unflavored oil in its place.
- No applesauce or eggs? Use half of a ripe banana. You can also use a combination of 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1 tablespoon of white or apple cider vinegar.
- If you don’t have unsalted butter, use the same amount of room temperature coconut oil OR vegetable shortening.
- Chocolate choices: Obviously, I love less sweet chocolate, so I use dark chocolate or bittersweet chocolate in this oatmeal cookie recipe. If you don’t have it on hand and eat milk or semisweet chocolate, you can use those. I say only use 1/2-3/4 a cup of these chocolate choices because the cookies will become very sweet.
Nutrition
About the Author:
Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her…
Yum, these look so good!