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(Kind of like) Mom’s Brown Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. Homemade chocolate chip cookies made with browned butter, sweet brown sugar, and oats. A classic cookie made better with the addition of brown butter and, of course, plenty of melty chocolate. These cookies can be lightly sprinkled with sea salt for a salty-sweet cookie bite. Sometimes you just need to bite into the classic oatmeal chocolate chip cookie we all know and love.
I have so many memories of baking my mom’s oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. She’d make them once a week and even became a little famous for them. She certainly knew the recipe by heart! Oats, flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, canola oil, and a ton of chocolate chips.
Her recipe called for canola oil, which I prefer not to use. So basically what I’ve done with these cookies is replace the canola oil with browned butter.
I mean, brown butter? Canola oil? I’m going to pick brown butter 100% of the time!!
The details are simple
As with a lot of my cookie recipes, start with browning the butter.
I like to use a medium skillet and brown both sticks of butter over medium heat. Then simply let the butter cook until it bubbles up and foams on top. This is when I turn the heat off and continue to allow the butter to cook in the pan.
Little brown bits will form on the bottom of the pan. Those are the nutty little bits that will make your recipes extra delicious. Especially with the oats. I found the pairing to be really special.
When the butter has browned, the rest goes pretty much as you would think. I don’t use a mixer for these, just a good old-fashioned spatula will do the trick. Mix the butter with brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla. The only difference from my mom’s recipe is that I nixed the granulated sugar completely.
I don’t think it’s needed for sweetness and I love the flavor brown sugar adds over granulated sugar. I will say that if you love a traditional really sweet cookie, you might want to add 1/2 cup of granulated sugar. It’s up to you, but we think the cookies are sweet enough as written!
So after you’ve got your wet ingredients (+ brown sugar) together, then add the dry. Flour, oats, baking soda, and a small pinch of salt.
Mix in the chocolate chips. Or do it like me and mix chocolate chunks with chocolate chips. I usually use 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chunks and 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Either way, it will be delish!
We love a flatter cookie, so I gently press the dough balls down, then bake.
While the cookies bake, you’ll smell the wonderful scents of rich butter and vanilla. All the scents we love most. I highly recommend enjoying a cookie straight off the pan with a sprinkle of sea salt.
Holy freaking yummm! So simple, so delicious, and the classics never go out of style!
Looking for back-to-school recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Cookies n’ Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies
Vegan Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Healthier Homemade Nutter Butter Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Brown Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Brown Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Servings: 24 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 279 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter
- 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups chocolate chunks or chips
- flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. Add the butter to a skillet set over medium heat. Cook until the butter begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a heatproof bowl. Let cool 5 minutes or so.3. To the brown butter, mix in the brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla, mixing until smooth. Add the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Gently fold in the chocolate. 4. Roll the dough into rounded tablespoon size balls and place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Gently flatten the dough down. Bake 8 minutes. Remove from the oven, rotate and tap the baking sheet on the counter 1-2 times to flatten. Bake another 2-3 minutes or until the cookies are just beginning to set on the edges.5. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet. They will continue to cook slightly as they sit on the baking sheet. Sprinkle with flaky salt (if desired). Eat warm (highly recommended) or let cool and store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
FANTASTIC, YUMMY, ALL THE GOOD FEELINGS☺️☺️☺️
Thank you so so much! xT
These are delicious!!! I used dark brown sugar and added 1/3 cup of granulated sugar. I think less chocolate chips next time but they were amazing!
Thanks for giving the recipe a try! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! xT
I have a constant batch of these in my freezer! They are my family’s fav! Love this recipe!
Thank you so so much Lindsay! xT
My husband loves oatmeal cookies. Not as sweet as other oatmeal cookies we have tried. The dough mixed well and the cookies came out nicely.
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! So happy to hear it was enjoyed! Have an awesome week! xT
These are the best cookies I have ever made! And that’s saying something, as I do a lot of baking. I especially appreciated the baking instructions for the perfectly done cookie.
Wow thank you so much! xT
Amazing! Made these tonight – sans salt and of course, extra chocolate! New favorite cookie!
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! So happy to hear it was enjoyed! Have an awesome week! xT
At a tablespoon size scoop it makes way more cookies! This recipe is missing something…I don’t eat a lot of salt, but I knew it would need more salt than it called for, used 1 tsp. Still not that good
Hey Tammy! I’m so sorry about that! Thanks for trying out the recipe, I’m so glad it didn’t turn out for you! xT
You wrote “I’m so glad it didn’t turn out for you”, rather than “I’m so sorry it didn’t turn out for you”.
Oh gosh I’m sorry! My mistake, meant to say I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you!
My first batch from scratch and in love! Added a few raisins for a few. Didn’t have parchment paper, but lightly greased baking sheets and they did just fine! Thank you for sharing. I can’t wait to make these for more friends and family.
Hey Justine! So happy to hear you enjoyed these cookies! xT
FANTASTIC, YUMMY, ALL THE GOOD FEELINGS☺️☺️☺️
Thank you Sandra! xT
I have been making cookies for 13+ years and this batch of cookies is hands down the most amazing I’ve ever made. As soon as they cooled off, I packed a few boxes up to share with my family. I am so excited about this recipe and looking forward to trying more! 🍪🍪🍪🍪🥛
Wow!! That is SUCH a compliment! Thank you so so much! xT
Made these this morning with whole wheat pastry flour (that’s all I had other than gluten-free flour). Excellent!!
Glad the whole wheat pastry flour worked well for you! xT
Made these this afternoon. Just had two with a glass of milk for dessert. Out of this world!! The chopped chocolate added such wonderful texture with the smaller bits melted through out the batter and big gooey, melty chucks in the middle. I added in some toasted walnuts for a little crunch. Definitely adding these into my potluck rotation!
Hey Danielle! So awesome to hear you enjoyed these cookies! xT
I used whole-wheat pastry flour, which was all I had. I wanted to make them this morning. They were excellent.
Thank you so so much for trying out the recipe! I’m so happy you enjoyed it! xT
I loved this cookie but wondered if you would specify the brand of Kosher salt that you use. I understand that brands have different sodium levels. You can’t easily add more salt to a baked good 😉 like you can a savory dish.
Hi Mary,
So glad to hear you enjoyed these cookies! I like Morton brand:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Here is why I believe you need to specify a brand in your recipes:
Kosher Salt sodium levels by brand, per 1/4 tsp:
Diamond 280 (Ina Garten specifies this in all her recipes)
Alessi 310
Morton 480
I really enjoyed thesee cookies. FWIW, you may add the salt flakes before baking. They will not dissolve, and will likely adhere better to the cookie by doing this instead of waiting till after baking.
Hi Mary,
Wonderful!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Have a great weekend:)
These didn’t turn out perfectly for me despite being a somewhat experienced baker and following the recipe to a T, but I think I know why – maybe I shouldn’t have used European butter? These tasted fantastic but were bone dry. I made them a couple weeks ago and I just remembered typical American butter and European butter have different fat:water ratios, as in European has a higher butterfat content, and of course while browning you lose a tiny bit more moisture. If anyone more experienced than me can more or less confirm that this is where I went wrong, I’d love to give them another go!
Hi Kels,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, sorry to hear the cookies were dry! I use European butter all the time, so I don’t think that was your issue here. Is it possible they were slightly over-baked? Was there anything else you may have adjusted in the recipe? Let me know! xx
Do you need to chill the dough (or could you) before baking? I’ve heard chilling dough works well with brown butter, but want to know your thoughts!
Hi Briana,
Sure, you could definitely chill the dough:) Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope it turns out well for you! xT
I did try these (and chilled the dough overnight for saving time) and they were an absolute hit! I did use dark chocolate chips as that’s all I had, and I feel like it could have used a bit of extra sugar like you mentioned. Definitely making again and will use the regular chocolate chips!!
Hi Briana,
Fantastic!! I love to hear that this dish turned out well for you and appreciate you making it:) xT
This was my first HBH dessert recipe to try (have made a ton of dinner recipes) and boy did it deliver. My husband said it was the best cookie he had ever eaten. The brown butter and oatmeal combination is TO DIE FOR. We kept these in an air tight container, and they still tasted delicious two weeks later. I made one batch with milk chocolate and one with white chocolate – both were delicious. The oatmeal base of the cookie is so good, I think you could mix any type of chocolate or candy bar and it would be delicious. We are going to try caramel chips or heath bars next! And the best part was that they were not difficult to throw together. I simply followed the recipe, including slamming the tray on the counter lol, and they were perfect. Cannot recommend enough!
Hey Christy,
Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it and your comment! Have a great Wednesday! xx