No boring oatmeal cookies here! These soft and chewy oatmeal cookies are flavored with maple and brown sugar and topped with brown butter maple icing. Serve alongside a cup of coffee, tea, or milk and enjoy!
Confession: I don’t really love oatmeal cookies. They’re either too dry, too heavy, or lacking flavor. I can always go for sprinkle cookies, brownie cookies, or M&M Cookies, but I just don’t crave an oatmeal cookie with the same passion. Until now!
Introducing an oatmeal cookie to get excited about. These cookies are super chewy, flavored with maple syrup, and topped with an incredible brown butter maple icing!
I also use this recipe for inspiration for our homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies. They are so good!
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Why you’ll love this recipe
Texture – Soft and chewy all throughout with a creamy icing on top.
Flavor – Brown butter, brown sugar, and maple – so good!
Ease – Although this recipe does require a food processor (more on this below) the recipe is still very easy. The dough comes together in minutes.
Recipe trick
This recipe starts by pulsing the oats in a food processor. This extra step is totally worth it (I promise!). It ensures that the oats are finely ground and makes the cookies really soft and chewy.
Ingredient spotlight: maple extract
In order to get a noticeable maple flavor this recipe uses maple extract (in addition to maple syrup). You can find maple extract in the spice aisle of the grocery store. Note: maple extract is much stronger than vanilla extract so you will use less. A little goes a long way!
Love maple? Try our Maple Snickerdoodles!
Recipe tips
- Butter should be softened but still cool to the touch.
- Line your baking sheets with parchment paper. This helps the cookies bake evenly and prevents them from spreading too much. Bonus: it also makes clean-up a breeze.
- Use a cookie scoop for evenly sized cookies. My go-to cookie scoop is 1-½ tablespoons.
- Underbake the cookies. You should remove these cookies from the oven when the edges are just set but the centers are still undercooked. They should be so soft that you cannot pick them up off the baking sheet without them falling apart. They will firm up as they cool on the baking sheet.
- Once the cookies come out the oven use the back of a spoon to gently push the edges inward to create clean edges and a perfect round shape.
- Let the cookies cool completely before adding icing.
Serving and storage
Store tightly covered at cool room temperature and serve within 3 days. Cookies can be frozen up to 3 months (with or without icing). If you plan on freezing them with icing I recommend placing the cookies in a single layer and freezing briefly (just until the icing hardens) then layering and double wrapping them for freshness.
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Recipe
Maple Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies:
- 1½ cups quick oats
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened but still cool
- ⅔ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon maple extract
- ¼ cup finely chopped pecans, optional
Icing:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ⅔ cup powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
- 1-2 tablsepoons pure maple syrup
- 1-2 tablespoons half and half, cream, or milk
- 2 drops maple extract
Instructions
Cookies:
- In a food processor, pulse the oats several times, until broken down but not powdery. Add flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt and pulse a few more times until combined.
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment., beat butter, brown sugar, and granulated until creamy and combined. Add egg, syrup, and extract and beat until combined, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary. Add the dry ingredients and pecans (if using) and beat until fully combined. Transfer the bowl to the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F with a rack in the upper third and lower third of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Following the 30 minute chill time, scoop the dough into 1½ tablespoon balls (I use a cookie scoop) and place a couple inches apart on the baking sheet. If you'd like your cookies on the thinner side you can flatten the dough balls just a bit to encourage spreading (see more in the notes).
- Bake for 9-11 minutes, until the edges are set but the center is still underdone (the cookies will still be fairly light). Place the baking sheets on wire racks and allow the cookies to cool completely, they will firm up as they cool.
Icing:
- Place the butter in a saucepan set over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned bits form on the bottom of the pan and the butter begins to turn golden and smell nutty. Immediately transfer into a bowl along with any accumulated brown bits. Cool for about 5 minutes. Whisk in powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon syrup, 1 tablespoon milk, and maple extract. Whisk vigorously, until smooth and combined. Adjust the consistency by adding more powdered sugar to thicken or more milk to thin. Drizzle or spread the icing onto the cooled cookies. Allow the icing to firm up a bit before serving.
Notes
- Underbake the cookies. You should remove these cookies from the oven when the edges are just set but the centers are still undercooked. They should be so soft that you cannot pick them up off the baking sheet without them falling apart. They will firm up as they cool on the baking sheet.
- Once the cookies come out the oven use the back of a spoon to gently push the edges inward to create clean edges and a perfect round shape.
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!Recipe updated October 2021.
Alicia Gonzalez
Okay. Okay. I might bribe my children with some sweet treats, too! These look amazing, Allison. I can’t wait to try them. I’m definitely sharing on FB and with friends. Fantastic pictures. #client
Celebrating Sweets
Thanks, Alicia. Nothing like a little bribery every once in a while. 😉
Katelyn McPhee
These look glorious! Definitely saving this recipe ^.^ Thanks for sharing!
Celebrating Sweets
Thanks!
Alli @ Tornadough Alli
These look great! I’m really into maple flavors this year. I also just recently became a cookie lover…I know weird that I haven’t always been on! Saving this recipe 🙂
Celebrating Sweets
Thanks for stopping by!
Hil
yum! you could pretend these cookies are for lactation/milk production too with the oatmeal 🙂
Celebrating Sweets
Yes! I nursed both of my kids for a year each, and I allowed myself all the oatmeal cookies I wanted during that time. 🙂
Jenn Peters
My cookies never ever look so perfect. But I think making them ahead and freezing like this might actually work in my favor. Thank you for sharing the tip!
Celebrating Sweets
You’re welcome! Thanks for stopping by!
Julie@MomFabulous
These look so good! I love all of the variation ideas. YUM.
Celebrating Sweets
Thanks!
Christine
Can I have these for breakfast? 😀
Celebrating Sweets
Oats = breakfast food. So, yes, absolutely!
Libby
These look so delicious! I have been all about baking lately and cookies have been my favorite so I may just have to make these next!!
Celebrating Sweets
Perfect! Enjoy!
Julie @ Julie's Eats & Treats
I need to get on this frozen cookie dough bandwagon so I can have a freshly baked cookie whenever I’d like, wait that could be dangerous! I also need to pick up some of those sheets at Target for holiday baking they look amazing!
Celebrating Sweets
Thanks, Julie! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve baked freezer cookie dough because I’m having “one of those days”. Ha!
Jess Beer
I do that with my dough too, but I usually use wax paper – I’ll have to try these out (and the recipe)!
Celebrating Sweets
Awesome! Enjoy!