Oatmeal Lace Cookies are crisp, delicate, buttery and delicious! This lace cookies recipe is a family favorite and makes a large quantity of cookies!
Oatmeal Lace Cookies have always been one of my husband’s favorite cookies. I’ve known that but quickly forget from time to time as they aren’t a cookie I have regularly made. So, the other night I asked him, “what’s a favorite special cookie that you’d like for me to make for you?”
His immediate reply, “Lace cookies.”
His Mama has always made them, especially at Christmas. And they are amazing!
Oatmeal Lace Cookies
Which isn’t hard to believe, because let me just tell you, I have never, ever, ever tasted one thing that my mother-in-law cooked that was not absolutely out of this world scrumptious.
You know, I have truly been blessed to be surrounded by phenomenal cooks in my life with my Grandmothers, Mama, and aunts. I count myself even more blessed to be able to learn even a little bit about recipes, cooking, entertaining large crowds, and many other life lessons from my mother-in-law. What an honor to learn from all these wonderful ladies!
So, back to these oatmeal lace cookies. Lace cookies get their name because as they bake, they spread and bubble and bubble and bubble and form little holes in the cookies.
There are so many recipes for lace cookies, but my mother-in-law’s recipe actually originated from a local restaurant where special parties and luncheons were often held. They’ve since closed, but thankfully shared this recipe with her before they did so.
This oatmeal lace cookie recipe makes a LOT of cookies. I mean a whole lot of cookies, close to six dozen. That’s what makes this lace cookie recipe so perfect for Christmas cookies, luncheons, showers, parties and more! There are plenty to share and still have a few to enjoy!
Come to think of it, maybe that’s why my mother-in-law makes them each year for her huge family.
Here’s the Oatmeal Lace Cookie recipe my family loves. One warning though, they are buttery and oh so addictive.
Oatmeal Lace Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 g) butter
- 2 1/4 cups (479 g) light brown sugar, packed
- 2 1/4 cups (200 g) rolled oats
- 3 tablespoons (23 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (3 g) kosher salt
- 1 large (50 g) egg, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375º F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicon baking mats. Set aside.
- Heat butter and brown sugar in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently with a wooden or silicon spoon, until butter has melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in oats, flour, salt, egg, and vanilla.
- Drop cookie batter by the teaspoon onto prepared baking sheets, leaving at least 2 inches between each cookie to allow them to spread.
- Bake for 5 -7 minutes, watching closely to prevent them from over-baking. The lace cookies should be golden brown.
- Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 30 seconds and remove onto racks to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container.
Notes
You can prepare the dough and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days. When you are ready to bake, drop the dough by teaspoons onto parchment lined baking sheets 2 inches apart and follow the recipe baking instructions. Freezing Oatmeal Lace Cookie dough: Drop dough by teaspoons onto a parchment covered baking sheet. Cover and place in the freezer for 1 hour or until the dough is frozen. Remove from the freezer and place the cookie mounds into airtight containers or freezer bags. Label the bag with the date and name of the cookies. When you are ready to bake the cookies, remove the container from the freezer. Remove the number of cookies from the container that you wish to bake and place them at least 2 inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. You will not need to thaw the dough before baking. Bake as directed in your recipe but you will probably need to add a couple of extra minutes to the baking time. Storing baked cookies: Cool the baked cookies thoroughly. Layer cookies between pieces of parchment of waxed paper and place into an airtight container. These cookies should keep up to 1 week.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Made this recipe. Followed directions, could not get 1cookie off the pan. Horrible, have tried other oatmeal lace cookies before and they turned out perfect. This recipe does not work.
Hi Lindsay,
Sorry you had problems with the recipe. It has been used repeatedly in my family for years, so yes, the recipe does work.
Hi Robyn ! I was really excited when i found your recipe. It’s in my son’s top of the list for favorite cookies. i’ve been looking for this for ages! however, I’m trying out your recipe right now and they’re not coming out like lace cookies but like regular oatmeal cookies instead. Should the cookie batter be hot when putting it on the cookie sheet? Can you please be more detailed in procedure , I might be doing something that’s not right 🙁 did everyone get the thin lacey effect? Thank you.
Hey Mic,
Yes, the cookie batter will be warm when you are dropping it onto the lined cookie sheet. That will give you more of a lace effect.
Robyn, will I have problems if the batter turns to room temp when I drop them on the cookie sheet? Will I still get the Lacey effect ? I plan to try this again sometime soon before I give up 🙂
You’ll just want to work as quickly as possible while the batter is warm. I hope that helps! This is one of my family’s all time favorite cookie recipes.
It’s 20 below in Chicago with the wind chill. My daughter and I thought we’d heat up the kitchen.
These were awesome! We experimented with the second and third pan adding raisins, walnut’s and mini chocolate chips. Now for the glass of milk and viola!!! Thank’s for sharing.
B
Thank you for the recipe! I just made a few batches and they are great. I’ll be sharing these along with some other cookies with the neighbors for Christmas. They are really good!, and even the guys in the house are stealing them! Thanks again!
I bake a lot and must say these are scrumptious! !!! Thank you so very much for sharing.
Bobbi McNeil
Anchorage Alaska
Oh my goodness… these are wonderful! I made a 1/2 batch just to see if we’d like them… and they are gone. Making a second batch now! Thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad you loved them, Melissa. They disappear rather quickly around here, too!!! xo
Oh gosh these look amazing. They remind me of a cookie/crisp I bought at the Kings Hawaiian restaurant. They had what seemed like corn flake cereal and crumpled macadamia nuts. If I took this recipe and replaced the oats with corn flakes do you think it will come out ok?
I’ve never tried that, Sara, but I see no reason why it wouldn’t be delicious. Do let me know how they turn out for you. I want to try them now!!! xo
Love this recipe! I’ve made it twice, but I’m not sure I’m making the right size cookies. Question: When you say “Serves 60” is that 60 people or 60 cookies?
Hi Robert,
Sorry about any confusion. It makes about 60 large cookies.
Should we be using salted or unsalted butter?
You can use either. I normally just use salted butter, but either will work fine.
I made these tonight, and they are delicious! I had the most luck with removing the cookies successfully by taking the parchment off of the baking sheet immediately–cookies and all. Then, I let them cool almost completely. They peeled right off, and I didn’t have to fuss with a spatula. I found parchment paper to work better than a Silpat. They tended to be too soft and stick on the silicone, even with lots of cooling time. Also, since I am using these as gifts, I wanted them to be round and even. I had an easy time using a butter knife to smooth out the rough edges when they were still very hot. Thanks for sharing!
Your tips are all good Kaitlin,and I would add to that, when you remove them from cookie sheet parchment paper and all , that you still place the parchment sheet cookies on a cooling rack as well,this will allow for quicker cooling and prevent any sogginess on bottom of cookie from trapped steam between cookie and surface you are cooling on.If you want a chewier cookie then I would think just leaving them on surface without cooling rack would be fine.