THE BEST Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, made gluten-free. They’re perfectly chewy, full of oat-y texture, and loaded with chocolate chips. Plus, you only need one bowl to make them!
Whenever I think of my grandpa, I think of these Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. They were his recipe, and it seems like whenever he was around, so were they. He always had a batch of them on hand, because no meal was ever complete without a homemade oatmeal cookie to polish it off. And to this day, I swear I haven’t found a better recipe.
I was probably in junior high or high school when I wrote this recipe down on the small index card I’ve been referencing for the past 10+ years. It’s the last time I remember making these cookies with him, and I can still recall him sampling the chocolate chips the entire time (because we obviously had to test them repeatedly to make sure they hadn’t gone bad during the process). It’s one of my favorite memories of him, and one I think about every time I make these cookies.
I’m clearly very partial to these cookies for sentimental reasons, but I also whole-heartedly believe they’re the best of the best. They start out with a rich base of salted butter and brown sugar, to amplify the flavor of all the oats you’ll mix in. And speaking of oats – these cookies are LOADED with them. They’re soft but perfectly chewy, with just the right amount of texture thanks to all those oats. They’re also stuffed with all the chocolate chips you could possibly want, because these cookies are very much about two star ingredients: oats and chocolate chips.
Here’s How to Make the Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Use salted butter: Most baked goods call for unsalted butter, but in this recipe you absolutely want to use salted. It amplifies the flavor of the cookie dough in a way unsalted butter just can’t.
Oats > Flour: The ratio of oats to flour used in this recipe is what makes these cookies stand out. They’re *almost* more oat than cookie, but in the best way possible, with a perfectly chewy texture. (And really, if you don’t want the oats to shine, why are you making oatmeal cookies?!)
Your chocolate matters: Sometimes you can get away with using good chocolate chips in a recipe, and sometimes you need great ones. In this case, it’s the latter. Splurge on your very favorite chocolate chips, or better yet, chocolate féves, for this recipe. I’m partial to Ghirardelli’s Bittersweet Chocolate Chips – it’s how my grandpa did it, and it’s the only way that feels right to me.
Chill your cookie dough before baking: It’s not mandatory, but for the thickest possible cookies, you should chill your dough first. The best part about this? Once the dough is frozen, you can store the pre-shaped cookie dough balls in your freezer for ready-to-bake cookies STAT.
Hungry for more Chocolate Chip Cookie recipes? You might also love these:
Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies: Another oatmeal favorite, but with the addition of dried cranberries for a tangy twist!
Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies (gluten-free): Just your classic chocolate chip cookie, made gluten-free, with golden-brown edges and soft centers.
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies: The ultimate super-soft, super-chewy, heavy-on-the-chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies.
The Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies {gluten-free}
THE BEST oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, made gluten-free. They’re perfectly chewy, full of oat-y texture, and loaded with chocolate chips. Plus, you only need one bowl to make them!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes*
- Cook Time: 14-16 minutes
- Total Time: 34-36 minutes
- Yield: 18 cookies 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: baking
Ingredients
- 12 tablespoons (6 ½ ounces or 1 ⅝ sticks) salted butter, softened
- 1 cup (7 ½ ounces) brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 3 cups (9 ¾ ounces) gluten-free old-fashion rolled oats, divided**
- 1 cup, spoon and level (4 ¼ ounces) gluten-free all-purpose flour**
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 12 ounces (2 cups) good-quality bittersweet chocolate chips or féves***
Instructions
- In a the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric beater, beat together butter and brown sugar until light and creamy. Scraping down the bowl and beater as needed, beat in the egg until fully incorporated. Beat in 2 cups (6 ½ ounces) of oats, again scraping down as needed.
- Sprinkle the flour, baking soda, and salt over the wet ingredients. Drizzle the vanilla on top. Fold in with a spatula just until mostly incorporated. Add the remaining 1 cup (3 ¼ ounces) oats and the chocolate chips, and fold in just until evenly dispersed into the dough and all ingredients are fully incorporated.
- Scoop the dough into 2 ¼ ounce portions (about ¼ cup each), and roll into balls. These *can* be baked immediately (jump to step 5), preferably only if using a silicone baking mat, but are best if chilled for at least a couple hours.
- To chill or freeze before baking: Transfer cookie dough balls to a baking tray and freeze for 1 hour. Transfer to a zip-top plastic bag, seal, and store in freezer until ready to bake.
- To bake cookies: Preheat oven to 350ºF with oven racks in the top and bottom-third positions. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. While oven is preheating, arrange cookie dough balls on prepared baking sheets, no more than 9 cookies to a sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 14 minutes (or 16 minutes if frozen), switching the baking sheets on the racks halfway through. Cookies are done when puffed up and golden.
- Allow cookies to cool briefly on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. These can be stored in an airtight zip-top bag at room temperature for 1-2 days, or in the refrigerator for about 5 days, but are best served at room temperature. They can also be stored in the freezer for longer periods.
Notes
*Does not include (optional) chilling time
**You can sub regular (non gluten-free) oats and flour if gluten isn’t an issue
***I highly recommend that you splurge and use your favorite chocolate chips in this recipe. My preference for these cookies is Ghirardelli’s Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips
Keywords: gluten-free oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, gluten-free oatmeal chocolate chip cookies recipe
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Alexandra's Mom says
Poppops’ cookies were surely the best! I still go home and check Mom’s freezer to make sure she’s made them when I visit! I love them frozen. Now you know where I get that. :) Thank you so much for publishing this truly the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies recipe.
★★★★★
Laila says
im just wondering if you have to use brown sugar or can you substitute it for something else?
alexandra says
Hi Laila,
I would definitely use brown sugar. It adds flavor and moisture in a way that granulated sugar on its own can’t. If you don’t have any on hand but happen to have molasses and granulated sugar, you can use that to make your own brown sugar! My DIY Brown Sugar post has instructions. :)
Emily Malone says
I see mention of adding eggs one at a time, but the recipe only calls for one egg. Are those instructions in case you double the recipe?
alexandra says
That’s a typo and I just fixed it. 1 egg is correct. Thanks for pointing that out!
Melitta says
These really are the BEST oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! They are now my go-to cookies whenever I feel like baking something and now I even get request from friends, family, and neighbors.
★★★★★