Chewy and with a crisp edge, these one-bowl oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are the best of both worlds! With mostly brown sugar, they have a deep caramel flavour, and plenty of chocolate. A large batch means more cookies for you, or at least some to have in the freezer! This is a great recipe for holidays and things like bake sales.
For similar chewy cookies, try our chewy chocolate chunk cookies, double chocolate marshmallow cookies, or slightly fancy white chocolate macadamia nut cookies.
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Ingredients
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Rolled oats: quick oats don't work well here, but extra thick rolled oats (like the ones from Bob's Red Mill) are good. Steel cut oats can't be used.
- Chocolate chips: use chocolate chunks if you prefer, or a mix of chips and chunks. Milk chocolate or a mix of different types can be used, but they'll make the cookies very sweet.
- Brown sugar: light and dark brown sugar can be used interchangeably for this recipe. Dark brown sugar will add a deeper caramel flavour from the added molasses.
- Butter: if your butter is unsalted, increase the added salt amount to 1 teaspoon.
- Make it dairy-free: use a good vegan butter. We don't recommend trying these with oil.
Method
Step 1: beat the butter and sugars together, then mix in the eggs one at a time.
Step 2: beat in the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Fold in the oats and chocolate.
Step 3: scoop cookies onto a lined baking sheet.
Step 4: bake for about 10 minutes, or until golden.
Top Tips
- Reduce the amount: this makes a large batch of about 26 cookies. If you want less, simply halve everything and bake a baker's dozen.
- Warm if needed: if chilling for longer than a couple of hours, take the dough out of the fridge for ten minutes before scooping and baking so it can warm up a bit.
- Don't skip refrigeration: the oats need time to soak up some of the moisture in the cookie dough, or else the texture will be wrong after baking. Chill for at least an hour for good cookies.
Recipe Notes
For a harder, crisper cookie, bake for the full eleven minutes. For a very chewy middle, do nine minutes. This will vary slightly based on the actual temperature of your oven (we use thermometers) so keep an eye on the cookies.
If you reduce the sugar, the cookies won't spread enough, and will be tough and mounded.
Depending on the size of your baking sheets, you may need to bake six cookies at a time rather than eight. If using the fan setting, two sheets can be baked simultaneously.
The oats are folded in rather than mixed with the electric mixer because the dough gets too thick to mix easily. If using the paddle attachment on a standing mixer, there's no need to switch to a spatula. Just do everything with the same attachment, on low speed for the oats and chocolate.
How to Store
Storage: keep the cookies in a sealed container at room temperature for up to a week.
Freezing: to freeze the dough, scoop into individual cookies, then freeze directly on the (lined) baking sheet. Remove and freeze in an airtight container, and then bake directly from frozen, adding another minute or two to the baking time. Baked cookies can be frozen too, for up to three months in an airtight container.
FAQ
Is it better to bake with salted or unsalted butter?
The amount of salt added to salted butter isn't standardized, so the saltiness of your treats will vary when using salted butter. That being said, it usually won't change the end result that much, so unless a recipe specifies unsalted butter, you can probably use either.
Is light or dark brown sugar better for cookies?
It depends on what you're making, and most decent recipes will specify which you'll need. Dark brown sugar contains more molasses, so it makes for a moister cookie with a stronger caramel flavour.
Can I use margarine instead of butter?
Margarine can usually be substituted for butter, but note that it will probably make cookies spread more, because it contains oils with a different melting point than butter (this is especially true for spreadable margarine).
If you make this Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie recipe or any other cookie recipes on the Baked Collective, please take a moment to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It’s such a help to others who want to try the recipe. For more baking, follow along on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Stand or hand mixer
- Spatula
- Ice cream scoop
- Towel
- Parchment paper
- Wire rack
- Measuring cups and spoons or a digital kitchen scale
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose white flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Add the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar to a large mixing bowl (or bowl of your standing mixer).
- Use an electric mixer to beat on high speed until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment for the full recipe (don't switch to a spatula later).
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition to incorporate. Mix in the vanilla extract.
- Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt to the bowl. Beat on low speed until fully incorporated.
- Fold the rolled oats into the cookie dough with a spatula. The dough will be thick.
- Add the chocolate chips and fold in to evenly incorporate.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least one hour, or up to 24 hours.
- Once the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Scoop the dough onto the sheet using an ice cream scoop, about 2 tablespoons per cookie. Space at least 5cm (2 in.) apart from each other to allow for spread during baking.
- Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes, or until golden with edges that are just hard to the touch. The middles will still be soft.
- Cool for about 10 minutes on the sheet before removing and cooling fully on a wire rack. Repeat until all of the dough has been used.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for at least a week, or freeze up to 6 months.
Notes
- This makes a large batch of about 26 cookies. If you want less, simply halve everything and bake a baker’s dozen.
- If chilling for longer than a couple of hours, take the dough out of the fridge for ten minutes before scooping and baking so it can warm up a bit.