These oatmeal chocolate chip cookies truly are the best I’ve tried! They’re soft in the middle and chewy around the edges. Absolutely addicting!

The Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Growing up there was pretty much just a handful of cookies that we (as in the royal ‘we’ that would pretty much just be ‘me’) would make at home to satisfy the old sweet tooth. No-Bake Cookies, Sugar Cookies and Snickerdoodles were all part of the arsenal. But none got as much action as this oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe did in my teenage cookie craving days.
I’m pretty surprised it’s taken me this long to pull these oatmeal choc chip cookies out of the proverbial hat and post on the blog. But in reality, I’ve been giving this recipe the cold shoulder while I’ve been on the search for the ‘perfect’ chocolate chip cookie. You know, the one that makes me weak in the knees, the one that has me reaching for a glass of the coldest mug of dunkable milk.
After making these babies again for the first time in several years, I’m convinced I was looking in all the wrong places, and that like so many things in life, I had the ‘perfect’ formula in front of me all along.

This oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe came from my mom’s friend Annette and was the only chocolate chip cookie I made until the age of about 26 since it was the only chocolate chip cookie recipe I could fathom to exist. Until the afore-mentioned quest led me astray. Until I FINALLY experienced for myself that the grass is not always greener.
Oh jeez. Such vivid memories of me in my mom’s kitchen, packing the brown sugar into a measuring cup straight from the old blue tupperware container with a slice of bread atop to keep the sugar soft. The old, browned cookie sheets that I recently discovered my mom STILL has (I’m pretty sure she still has the blue tupperware too) and the old yellow Oster hand mixer that would barely churn through the dough once the oatmeal was added so that I always ended up mixing with the wooden spoon at the end instead.
The unique thing about this recipe, so far as I can tell, is the instruction to dissolve the baking soda in water before adding it to the mix. I’ve seen a lot of recipes for cookies (thank you, Maria) and this is one technique I haven’t seen before. But I always did it because the recipe said so. I think now it must help get a head start on activating the soda. If anyone has insight, please share so I can sleep at night.
My favorite part of the recipe? How chewy and soft these honey childs are thanks to the 4 cups of oatmeal and the crunch of pecans. These oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are almost more like what healthified granola bars only wish they could become when they grown up.

What’s in These Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies?
You don’t need any special ingredients to make the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Here’s what I’ve been putting into these cookies for years:
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Dark brown sugar
- Eggs
- Hot water
- Baking soda
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Kosher salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Chopped pecans
- Quick oats

How to Make Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
This is a pretty classic oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe. Cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, then add in the eggs and vanilla.
Sift the dry ingredients together in a bowl, then add to the mixing bowl along with the baking soda that’s been dissolved in hot water. The chocolate chips, oats, and pecans go in last.
Drop heaping tablespoons of cookie dough onto parchment paper-lined baking trays and bake these babies until golden around the edges.
Can I Freeze Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies?
Yes, you can freeze the baked cookies once they’ve completely cooled. When you’re ready to eat the frozen cookies, either reheat them in the oven or microwave, or set them on the counter to thaw.
Can I Omit the Pecans?
If you have a nut allergy, you’re welcome to omit the pecans. Otherwise, I highly recommend adding them in since the slight crunch they add to these oatmeal choc chip cookies is unbeatable.

Tips for the Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Note that this oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe calls for quick oats and not old-fashioned oats. If you don’t have quick oats on hand, you can achieve a similar consistency by blending regular old-fashioned oats in a blender until finely chopped (almost powdery).
This recipe is fairly flexible when it comes to the mix-ins. You could use chopped walnuts or macadamia nuts instead of pecans, and the semi-sweet chocolate chips could easily be replaced with milk or dark chocolate chips.
Be sure to take the cookies out of the oven as soon as they turn slightly golden around the edges. If you leave the cookies in for much longer, you’ll over bake them.
More Easy Cookie Recipes You’ll Love
- Cranberry White Chocolate Chip and Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Flourless Chewy Cinnamon Sugar Peanut Butter Cookies
- Milk Bar’s Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- The Best No-Bake Cookies with Coconut
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #foodiecrusheats.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsalted butter
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups dark brown sugar
- 4 eggs
- 3 tablespoons hot water
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 ½ cups chopped pecans
- 4 cups quick oats
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Cream the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer set to medium-high until creamy, light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing well in between additions. Add in the vanilla extract.
- In a separate bowl, sift the flour and salt together.
- In a ramekin or small bowl dissolve the baking soda in the hot water and add ⅓ of mixture to creamed mix, alternating with 1 cup of dry ingredients and repeat until.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the chocolate chips, pecans and quick oats and mix until just combined.
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and drop a heaping tablespoon of dough onto the cookie sheet about 2 inches apart from each other. Bake one sheet of cookies at a time for 10 minutes or until just golden.
- Remove from oven and let cool on the cookie sheet for 3-4 minutes then move to a wire cooling rack until completely cooled.
Nutrition
More Classic Dessert Recipes to Master
- Confetti Cake with Buttercream Frosting
- My Favorite Pumpkin Roll Recipe
- Key Lime Pie
- German Chocolate Cake
- Caramel Apple Pie
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Joanna
I would make cupcakes! I love a good cupcake with some yummy frosting.
Laura N.
Cookies!! My family loves all kinds of cookies. Can’t wait to try these oatmeal ones.
Debbie Bishop
I would be making chocolate chip cookies. Or maybe the recipe you shared here.
wendy r.
I would make an egg-less cookie dough and eat it straight from the bowl!
Christine
I would make these oatmeal cookies – they look great!
Jenny S
I was just looking for an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe today!
Jean
Now that I’ve seen this recipe, oatmeal chocolate chip cookies would be the first thing I would make!
Emily B
Definitely cookies. Probably my hubby’s fave, chocolate chip!!
Erin
Cookies!!! :)
Jodi-dough
Can’t wait to try your recipe – haven’t found THE great oatmeal chocolate chip recipe.
Brandy
Almost healthy when you add the oatmeal!
Natasha O
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies of course!!!!!! Those look perfect and I have been truly struggling with the oatmeal cookie! Thank you for the recipe & giveaway!!
Aska
I would make chocolate chip cookies or try out your oatmeal cookies :)!
Katie
I would make cookies! I love to make cookies and I hear these mixers are amazing at creaming the sugar and butter!
Susan
We love to make cookies at our house. My teenage daughter has study groups and her friends always love the cookies we share in the study group! One of our favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe has cream of tartar in the cookie. They are delicious. We call it “the” chocolate chip cookie recipe! We are going to try your oatmal chocolate chip recipe tomorrow though!
Kimberli Bean
I would make these cookies!! :) I’ve been on the hunt for the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookie, so I’m definitely anxious to try your recipe!!
KatieK
buttercream frosting! so much buttercream! :-)
Sienna
I’d make vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting!
Judy Stilwell
I would love to make the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies first.
Alexandra Smith
The first thing I would make would be cinnamon rolls!!!! :)
Allison
These look delicious
Casey
YUM! I was on the hunt for some delicious oatmeal cookies and so glad I stopped by – I’d definitely try this recipe first.
Carrie K
Im not gonna lie…i would make these oatmeal cookies ASAP :)
Sarah K. @ The Pajama Chef
several of my grandma’s recipes for quick breads have you dissolve the baking soda in hot water. i’ve done some research and apparently baking soda used to be single acting but now it’s double acting (when mixed w/ wet ingredients & when baking). so i think the head-start thing is right on, at least back in the day. another response i’ve found has been to fully incorporate it in the dough (esp. when mixing by hand) or that baking soda used to be more clumpy… interesting stuff!
jennyfv
NY Times chocolate chip cookies!