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image of an oatmeal lace cookie being held up in the sunshine to show how perfectly caramelized it is
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4.71 from 108 rating

Chewy Oatmeal Lace Cookies Recipe

These chewy oatmeal lace cookies are super easy to make and are one of my favorite cookie recipes! They're perfectly caramelized so they have crispy golden brown edges and a chewy center.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time6 minutes
Additional Time30 minutes
Total Time46 minutes
Course: Cookies
Cuisine: American
Servings: 60
Calories: 32kcal
Author: Chelsey White

Equipment

Ingredients

Chewy Oatmeal Lace Cookies

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature 113g
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar 200g
  • 1 cup old fashioned oats 96g
  • 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp all-purpose flour 12g
  • 1/2 tsp fine salt 3g
  • 1 large egg, room temperature 56g
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 4g

Recommend Equipment

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 375ºF/ 190ºC 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 1/2 cup of butter and 1 cup of packed brown sugar in 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.
  • Stir in 1 cup of oats, 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp flour, and 1/2 tsp salt. Mix until the oats are fully covered with the brown sugar/butter mixture.
  • Then mix in 1 large egg and 1 tsp of vanilla extract. Stir until fully incorporated. The batter should be a little soupy/thin!
  • 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 just starting to brown. If you like a chewier cookie, you can pull them out before the edges have browned much. If you like crispier edges, make sure the edges are nice and golden brown before pulling them out of the oven.
  • 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.
  • 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 steps 5 & 6 until you've used all your 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.

Video

Notes

How Many Cookies Does This Recipe Make?

This recipe makes about 60 small cookies, 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 couple of minutes longer.

How to Make the Best Chewy 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.

Making These Oatmeal Lace Cookies in Advance

These cookies can be made in advance! Store them 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.
If the cookies get soft over time, you can pop the cookies back into a 300°F (150°C) oven for a few minutes, just until they dry out and crisp up again. Let them cool completely on the pan, they’ll firm up as they cool. If they’re still a little bendy, you can give them another couple of minutes.
It's super important that the cookies are completely cooled before you put them in an airtight container. You can also toss a small piece of paper towel or a silica packet (food-safe, not touching the cookies) into the container to absorb moisture. Lace cookies really hate humidity, so even airtight containers can trap enough moisture to soften them over time.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 32kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 22mg | Sugar: 3g