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
I have made this recipe at least 10 times. It is just wonderful! Don’t let the stove top cooking intimidate you. It is very easy and forgiving. It makes tons of cookies. I often cut it in half. The last time I made it, I made Florentines (chocolate ganache sandwiched between 2 cookies.) Wow! Soooo good.
I bet these were delicious with the chocolate ganache. I may have to try that. Thanks, Monique.
My mom used to wrap each cookie around a handle whole hou
So delighted to see this recipe. A favorite elderly great aunt gave it to me many years ago. The recipe was lost in a move several years after she passed.
I’m so sorry you lost your recipe, Mary, and am so glad you found this one. Hope these cookies are as you remembered.
Could you use part Peanut butter?
I’m sorry, Sheri, but I have not made these with peanut butter.
Salted or unsalted butter?? Thank you.
I use salted butter, Bonnie. However, you can use either one you want.
These are absolutely wonderful and everyone loved them except for one thing.
They totally lost their crispness after I froze them. I tried defrosting them in the fridge and some on the counter and neither resulted in the crispiness. Short of freezing the dough is there any way to store and retain the crisp? Will they keep longer than a week in the fridge and keep crispy? Thank you SO much for answering this.
You can bake the cookies on a wire rack for a few minutes in a 300ºF oven to make them crispy again, Jeanette. I don’t store my cookies in the refrigerator. To store the 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. If the cookies don’t remain crisp in the container, place a piece of bread in the tin with the cookies. It will absorb any excess moisture. I hope this helps.
These are delicious and very easy to make! I made the mistake of making the cookie drops on the first tray too large, so ended up with more of a bar when they ran together. I will stick to a strict teaspoon in the future because the later trays came out perfect and lacey! Will definitely be making these again, thank you.
These cookies are literally the easiest cookies I have ever made! And, I am totally going to act like they were incredibly difficult to sell my chefy game. Thanks!
Thanks, Ginny. The cookies do look like they would be so difficult but are amazingly easy to make, aren’t they!
You can also dip them in chocolate and put another cookie back to back.
Love love love this recipe we made these for our Christmas cookie bake they were everyone’s favorite