Classic Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
This recipe for classic oatmeal chocolate chip cookies is simply the best. Soft and chewy, it is a tried-and-true favorite!
There is truly nothing better any given day than a warm oatmeal chocolate chip cookie.
The hearty chewiness of this classic cookie makes regular chocolate chip cookies look, well, positively wimpy.
A Tried-and-True Recipe
After over a decade, these are still one of the cookie recipes I make the most (I almost always have them baked and ready to go in the freezer).
They really are the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies ever. Soft and chewy, loaded with chocolate chips (i.e. no raisins in sight…nope, not for me!), and perfectly puffy.
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
The dough for these cookie is super straightforward (and kind of irresistible):
- butter
- brown sugar + granulated sugar
- eggs + vanilla
- basic dry ingredients (oatmeal, flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt)
- chocolate chips
You can use either old-fashioned rolled oats or quick oats for the cookies.
Pro Tip: for the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookie texture, use both old-fashioned rolled oats AND quick oats!
Freezable Cookies
I almost always have these cookie waiting in the freezer for just the right craving or moment.
The cookies can be baked, cooled and frozen.
OR, you can freeze the cookie dough balls and bake from frozen.
To bake from frozen, place the cookie dough balls a couple inches apart on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 12-13 minutes (adding time as needed).
Rave Reviews
I’m not the only one completely head over heels for these cookies.
Kat writes: Mel. These cookies are perfection. Perfection! One bite, and I threw away my family favorite recipe. Seriously. No regrets. They are soft and delicious even the next day. Did I mention they are perfect? This is now the standard, and I doubt it will ever be topped. I can’t think of anything I’d change to make it better. Texture, flavor, saltiness, sweetness, chocolate to cookie ratio, you absolutely nailed it! Thank you Mel!!
Katie B. commented: I have made these several times over the last few months and I absolutely love them!! A perfect cookie in my opinion! Thanks for a great go-to recipe everyone loves!
Leia says: I loved the texture of these cookies and of course the flavor was amazing, even a few days later!
Classic Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 g) butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (212 g) packed light brown sugar (see note)
- 1 cup (212 g) granulated sugar (see note)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups (284 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ cups (250 g) old-fashioned rolled oats (see note)
- 2 cups (340 g) chocolate chips or chocolate chunks (butterscotch chips are delicious, too)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, silicone liners or lightly grease with cooking spray.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until creamy and well-combined, 1-2 minutes. Add baking soda, baking powder, salt and mix well. Add flour, oatmeal and chocolate chips. Mix until no dry streaks remain (don’t go crazy; just mix until evenly combined).
- Scoop the cookies into balls (about 2 tablespoons each) and place a couple inches apart on the baking sheets.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Recipe originally posted August 2009; updated with new photos, recipe notes, commentary.
277 Comments on “Classic Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies”
My grandson and I made these! They are wonderful! We used milk chocolate chips. Taste so good!!
These are the best cookies I have ever made and believe me – I’ve made lots of them!
Can these be made into bars instead of cookies?
Yes, they should work well as a bar cookie.
Hands down fav cookie. I three some toffee in for kicks a while back and It’s a definite game changer. Hadn’t even considered PB. Pretty stoked to try that
These are a family favorite. I make them all the time now.
Loved this recipe!
My grandkids loved them for a surprise after school treat!
Im looking for a good oatmeal craisin cookie. Could I use this base and just use craisins instead of Choc chips. Are they soft and chewy enough?
Yes, this cookie would work great for that.
I made these and and they spread way out so I added more flour and still not what I like. Too much oatmeal. So not sure I will make again. I had to keep adding minutes to the cooking time as well
As long as you do the recipe accordingly it’s a fabulous cookie!
Whatever you do, do NOT microwave the butter you will ruin the recipe!
These cookies are delicious. I’ve added 1/4 cup each of craisins (dried cranberries), pecans or almonds, and 1/2 cup of coconut and they are SO GOOD.
5 stars on the recipe alone but 6 stars for the fact that you only dirty 4 (maybe 5) dishes while making these cookies — this is a big deal when you don’t have a dishwasher
Yas
Yummy, used adjusted sugar measurements like Mel suggested in the notes. Went over big in the harvest field tonight.
Probably the best oatmeal cookies out there, and just say probably because i think I’ll never try any other since these are so good. I always change the sugar to the measurements added in the Notes section and my family loves them ♡♡
My oatmeal chocolate chip cookies always fall flat. These turned out so well! I reduced the sugars as per the note. They were perfectly sweet. Sprinkled with flakes sea salt just before baking-delicious!
These are wonderful!! Cookies never turn out for me but I have made these twice and they’ve both been perfect! No refrigeration needed.
Let me start by saying, I love Mel’s recipes! They’re easy fool proof recipes that leave a little wiggle room for one to tweak to their liking if needed. I love the peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe! Often times when I’m busy with my kiddos I throw it all in a 9×13 parchment lined Pyrex for cookie bars. This recipe is no different for me to do the same. We had a busy weekend, so I made this dough the night before, threw it all in a parchment lined 9×13 Pyrex at 350 for 25-30 minutes. We like our cookie bars thick so I didn’t divide the recipe. I did take her advice and try cutting the sugar to 3/4 c for each brown and white. I always add extra vanilla in my cookie and cake recipes but that’s just my preference. Next time I would do 1 c brown sugar and 1/2 c white sugar. I like my cookies to have a little more depth in color. I feel the brown sugar will also help to add a smidge more moisture since cutting back on the sugar as Mel suggests she does sometimes. Thanks Mel!
do you grind up the oatmeal before adding it in? I though I read somewhere that you did that but don’t see it in the recipe. Also, do you measure the oats before grinding or after if you do grind up the oatmeal.
I have been using this recipe for a few years now to make oatmeal raisin cookies (my husband’s favorite). I add about a tsp of cinnamon and honestly don’t always measure the raisins (aim for the amount of chocolate chips), and they turn out great. Last time I made them, I did half the dough with raisins and half with chips and they were both awesome.
These cookies are SO GOOD! I think next time I might want to lower the sugar amount, just to make myself feel better about how much sugar and butter I’m consuming. Instead of 2 cups of chocolate chips, I added 1 cup chopped up ALDI chocolate bar and 1 cup pecans. Delicious.
These cookies are so amazing! It was a little tricky to find the balance at first of how long to cook them without them getting dry (typical for any cookie with oats in my experience), but once I perfected that these are SO yummy! This is my go-to cookie recipe for sure. Thanks Mel!
This recipe is a keeper. My family loved them! I did the 3/4 c of each sugar like the note suggested and they tasted great!