Chewy Oatmeal Lace Cookies

After revamping my millionaire bars a couple of weeks back, I decided to start looking through more of my old recipes. I originally shared this recipe for chewy oatmeal lace cookies back in 2013.

The recipe is absolutely delicious and didn’t need to be updated, but it did need some new photos and a proper recipe card.

I also didn’t mind having an excuse to whip up a batch of these. They’re a super unique cookie and are in a league of their own. I’ve never had another cookie like this!

Why These Oatmeal Lace Cookies Are So Incredible

What makes these cookies so incredible? It’s hard to put into words, but I’ll do my best.

I think so much of it comes down to the texture. The brown sugar and butter perfectly coat each bit of oat and allow it to bake into a beautiful web of caramelized oat goodness.

It’s one of the only cookie recipes I know of that essentially has liquid cookie dough.

The viscosity of the batter allows the cookies to spread a ton as they bake. This allows the edges of the cookies to develop a web of crispy, golden-brown crust that gives them an amazing texture and flavor.

As you bite into it, you get the crunch from the edges of the cookie, combined with the soft, chewy center.

It’s everything you could want in a cookie and more.

How to Make These Oatmeal Lace Cookies

To make sure this oatmeal lace cookie recipe turns out as amazing as possible, let’s walk through each step together. I’ve also shared a video below showing how these cookies are made.

Below is a list of equipment I used to make these, but feel free to improvise if you don’t have all of these on hand.

Recommended Tools and Equipment

• Large Frying Pan
• 4 Large, Flat Baking Sheets
• Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper
• Teaspoon measure

Step 1: Preheat the Oven and Melt Down the Brown Sugar

Preheat the oven to 375º F / 190º F and line 4 large baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Set aside. If you don’t have that many baking sheets, line however many you have.

Add the butter and brown sugar to a large frying pan and heat over medium heat. Stir frequently until the butter has fully melted and the mixture is smooth and no clumps of brown sugar remain.

It’s ok if the butter and brown sugar aren’t fully combined. The mixture will come together once we mix in the remaining ingredients. Remove from heat.

Step 2: Mix in the Remaining Ingredients

Carefully stir in the oats, flour, and salt. Mix until the oats are fully covered with the brown sugar/butter mixture.

Then mix in the egg and vanilla extract. Stir until fully incorporated. The batter should be a little soupy/thin!

Step 3: Drop the Batter onto the Lined Baking Sheets

Drop 1 tsp of cookie batter onto the prepared baking sheets to make each cookie. Leave at least 2 inches between each cookie to allow them to spread.

Bake two trays at a time for 5-7 minutes (the sweet spot in my oven is 6 1/2 minutes, but it will vary from oven to oven), until the edges are golden brown.

As soon as the two trays are done, pop in the next round.

Keep a close eye on these, as the bake time can also vary based on how much batter you use to make each cookie and how warm the batter is when the cookies are baked.

If the cookies come out of the oven and aren’t as circular as you’d like, use a large circle cutter or a large glass to scoot the sides of the cookies and reshape them into a circle while they’re still warm.

Step 4: Let the Cookies Cool and Repeat

Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 15 minutes, then move to wire racks to cool completely.

Drop more cookie batter onto the cleared cookie sheets and repeat until you’ve used all the batter.

If you don’t plan to eat these cookies immediately, keep them out at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Baked cookies can also be frozen in an airtight container or freezer ziplock bag for up to a month.

Substitutions and Swaps

While I love this recipe just the way it is, I know you might not have all these ingredients on hand! Or you might have food restrictions or allergies.

Below are some swaps and variations that can be made in this recipe.

• Unsalted Butter – If you only have salted butter, you can use it and omit the salt that this recipe calls for. You can also use vegan butter.
• Light Brown Sugar – I like using light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar will work too.
• Old Fashioned Oats – I like this recipe best when it’s made with old-fashioned or rolled oats, but it will work with quick oats too.
• All-Purpose Flour – You can use a gluten-free flour blend if needed in place of the AP flour in this recipe.

Using the Drop Cookie Technique

Like I mentioned above, this cookie dough is super thin!! This means there’s no rolling out cookie dough balls or chilling the cookie dough.

Instead, you drop tiny spoonfuls of batter onto a cookie sheet and bake them right up.

This is truly the definition of a drop cookie. I like to use a small spoon to carefully drop teaspoons of batter around the pan.

These chewy oatmeal lace cookies bake at a relatively high temperature (375 F / 190 C), which helps them spread and bake quickly and crisp up.

They end up being about 2 times their original size. This is why you must leave ample space between them.

Otherwise, you’ll end up with one giant sheet of oatmeal lace!! Am I speaking from personal experience? Yes.

How Many Cookies Does This Recipe Make?

This recipe makes about 60 small cookies if you use 1 tsp of batter per cookie, but the yield will vary based on how much batter you use per cookie.

If you want to make larger cookies, I recommend using 2 tsp of batter per cookie and making sure the cookies are at least 3 inches apart on the baking sheet before being baked. Bake time will be a minute or two longer.

Tips to Make the Best Oatmeal Lace Cookies

• Leave about 2 inches between each cookie as you spoon out the batter. They spread out quite a bit while they bake.
• Use a rounded teaspoon of batter to make each cookie. This will help you make chewy cookies with golden brown, caramelized edges.
• Make sure the cookie mixture isn’t too hot when you add in the egg. You don’t want the heat from the dough to scramble the egg!
• If the cookies come out of the oven and aren’t as circular as you’d like, use a large circle cutter or a large glass to scoot the sides of the cookies and reshape them into a circle.
• Let the cookies cool for at least 15 minutes on the pan before you try to move them to a wire rack.

Let Me Know What You Think

If you make these chewy oatmeal lace cookies, I’d love to hear what you think! Please leave a rating and let me know your thoughts by sharing a comment.

Or if you share your creations on social media, be sure to tag me @chelsweets and use #chelsweets!

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Below are photos from my original blog post on these oatmeal lace cookies. Sometimes it’s nice to look back on old photos and remember where it all began 🙂