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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.
Hi Tieghan! Just curious how long you think this dough would be good in the fridge? All ingredients used are fresh/not close to expiration, but just curious. Please let me know, thank you!!
Hey Claire,
I would say 3-4 days:) I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
Thanks so much!!
Second time making these today, and oh my goodness! Lots of “yummy” sounds around my house today! Thanks, Tieghan!
Hey Teresa,
Happy Sunday!🌾🌽 I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it and sharing your feedback! xx
Brilliant recipe Tieghan made for husband on a Friday night after a long week and absolutely delicious! Thank you for making such delicious recipes available as you do. Simone xxx
Hey Simone,
Happy Friday!!❄️ Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xx
Can I use coconut oil in place of brown butter?
Hey Mel,
For best results using coconut oil, I would use this recipe:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/moms-simple-oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies-best-oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies-around/
Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Im really excited to try these! I only have unsalted butter, do you think they will come out ok?
Hey Cindy,
Yes, that will be just fine for you to use! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xT
Yes! I also used unsalted butter but just added a little extra salt to the recipe.
Yummy! Chewy. Lots of flavor but not too sweet! Perfect. They took quite a bit longer than the 12 minutes but probably because I baked all 30 🍪 at the same time. Took about 24 minutes. Will make again soon! Perfect chilly Sunday baking.
Hey Court,
Awesome!! 🍂 I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for trying it out! xx
I never thought I would say this, but this recipe calls for way too many chocolate chips. 1 cup is enough.
Hi there,
Thanks for sharing your feedback, sorry about the chocolate chips! xx
10/10 cookies!! So easy to make and they are so delicious. Would definitely make them again. I cut down on the sugar and they were still great.
Hey Jessica,
Amazing!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review:)
SUPER DECADENT!
I whipped up this recipe just as described above. It was a cinch to put together and made A TON of cookies! The flavors of the browned butter with the salt and chocolate really balance out well. And the oatmeal! Well that part is my favorite.
The measurements, cook temp, and time all did well for me.
I will be boxing these up and handing them to family friends tomorrow. 🙂
Thanks for another fabulous recipe! <3
Hey Katherine,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xT
i completely agree! i have a boyfriend with, respectfully, a toddler’s palette. he’s just a picky eater, even with cookies! he LOVED these cookies so much he’s requested them three times – we made them in october. 🙂 new favorite cookie!
Thanks so much Corinne:)
Amazing cookies, as are all of HBH recipes! Next time will leave chocolate chips out and put HBH’s maple brown butter glaze on top.
Hey Bailey,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback and giving this recipe a try, I am so glad it turned out well for you! Have a great weekend:)
Good morning from Glasgow, Scotland. Wow what a scrumptious website. Love it. Want to ask what size scoop are you using to shape your dough ? Thank you for all the tips ,love , attention to detail on this amazing website. Yours ever grateful a passionate foodie friend
Thanks so much for your kind message Effie! I used a 1 tablespoon scoop for this recipe! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi Tieghan,
Can you freeze the cookie dough in balls/scoops to make a small batch whenever craving them? Love your recipes! Thanks!
Hey Karla,
Thanks so much for your kind message! Sure, that would work well for you! Hope you’re having a great day! xT
Hi! If you freeze it, how long do you bake it?
Hi Therese,
I would keep an eye on them, but maybe just add a few minutes! I hope you love the recipe! xx
Made exactly as stated. Dough was too wet to roll into ball and had to add a little more flour. Then the dough was too dry. Not my favorite recipe. However, loved the browned butter taste.
Hi Melissa,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try, so sorry to hear you had some issues. Did you mix by hand or with a mixer? I’m wondering if the dough was possibly over mixed. Let me know if I can help in any other way! xx
I used to have this same issue with her similar recipe with canola oil. It would work well some places I lived, but would definitely not others (which typically were at sea level and very humid so I chalked it up to altitude/climate). I solved it by adding 3/4 of the oil and then slowly incorporating whatever else was needed to bind them together. I know that’s not how baking is supposed to work but the cookies still tasted good.
My family and I LOVED this recipe! The brown butter really distinguishes this recipe from other oatmeal chocolate chip recipes. I used 1 cup of chocolate chips rather than 2 cups, and chilled my dough for 45 minutes in the refrigerator. And accidentally used salted butter AND salt… whoops! But it still turned out great. I really enjoyed the chunkiness and chewiness of the cookie, and the light brown butter flavor. Thank you for sharing this recipe, will use again!
Hey Katie,
Wonderful!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and truly appreciate you making it! Have a great weekend! 🍁🍂
Delish! I subbed the chocolate for chopped up heath bar and it was amazing! I did feel like the dough could use a touch more salt for balance. The sea salt sprinkle is a nice touch but doesn’t provide a uniform flavor balance.
Hey Meghan,
Happy Sunday!!🎃 I truly appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed!