Soft, chewy iced oatmeal cookies deliver pure nostalgia in every bite. Made with old-fashioned rolled oats and finished with a simple vanilla icing, these classic cookies are perfect when you want a comforting, homemade treat. The dough comes together in under 30 minutes with no chilling required, and this recipe yields about 40 cookies.
These cookies have chewy edges, soft centers, and a warm spice profile that pairs beautifully with a glossy vanilla glaze. They evoke the familiar comfort of homemade baking and freeze very well for future snacking.
Ingredient Notes
Old-fashioned rolled oats are the foundation of the ideal chewy texture. Briefly pulsing the oats to a coarse consistency helps the cookies hold together while still providing that oat-forward bite. Ground cinnamon and a touch of nutmeg add warm, familiar spice; for a seasonal variation, substitute pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice.
How to Make Iced Oatmeal Cookies
Start by pulsing the rolled oats in a food processor until coarsely ground, about 20 seconds. If you don’t have a food processor, pulse in a blender or place oats in a sealed bag and crush them lightly with a rolling pin.
Whisk the pulsed oats with all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, beat room-temperature butter with dark brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, then beat in vanilla.
Reduce mixer speed and gradually add the dry mixture, beating only until combined. The dough will be thick—scrape down the bowl with a spatula as needed. Scoop 1½-inch dough balls (about 30 grams each) and place them two inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.
Bake at 350°F for 12 to 13 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, until the edges are golden and set. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. If desired, use a slightly larger round cutter while cookies are warm to neaten their shape.
Vanilla Icing
Whisk powdered sugar with 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 5 tablespoons heavy cream until the icing is smooth and thick. If needed, add the remaining heavy cream gradually until the icing reaches a thick, ribbon-like consistency. Lightly dip the tops of cooled cookies into the icing, lift straight up to let excess drip off, and set the iced cookies in a single layer on a wire rack until the icing firms.
Ingredients
Cookies
- 3 cups (240 g) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 1/2 cups (210 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 3/4 tsp (5 g) salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) dark brown sugar
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs (about 100 g)
- 1 1/2 tsp (6 g) vanilla extract
Vanilla Icing
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar
- 1 tsp (4 g) vanilla extract
- 5 to 7 Tbsp (75 to 105 g) heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Pulse the oats to a coarse consistency in a food processor (about 20 seconds).
- In a bowl, whisk together the pulsed oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, beat butter and both sugars until creamy, add eggs one at a time, then beat in vanilla. Reduce mixer speed and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. The dough will be thick.
- Scoop 1½-inch balls of dough and place them two inches apart on the prepared sheets.
- Bake 12 to 13 minutes, rotating pans halfway through, until edges are set and golden. Cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
- For the icing, whisk powdered sugar, vanilla, and 5 tablespoons heavy cream until thick and smooth. Add more cream a little at a time if needed to reach a thick, ribbon-like consistency.
- Test one cookie with the icing, then dip the tops of the cookies and allow excess to drip back into the bowl. Place iced cookies on a wire rack to set.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate up to 1 week.
Notes
Oats: Use old-fashioned rolled oats and pulse them for about 20 seconds to reach a coarse texture.
Make ahead: Roll dough into balls and freeze on a baking sheet for 1 hour, then transfer to an airtight container for up to 2 months. Bake frozen dough balls, adding 1–2 minutes to the bake time.
Freeze iced cookies: Arrange iced cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze for 1 hour, then transfer to a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 2 months.
