These old-fashioned iced oatmeal cookies have that classic crackly icing and soft, chewy texture. With no dough chilling and less than 30 minutes, they’re perfect for quick baking and lunch boxes.
If you grew up loving those iced oatmeal cookies with the thin crackly glaze on top, this recipe brings all that nostalgic flavor home. These soft and chewy oatmeal cookies are topped with a simple icing that sets into that classic sweet coating.
There’s no dough chilling required, so you can mix, bake, and ice them with less than 30 minutes of hand-on time. The cookies are a hit with kids and adults alike, and they’re perfect for after-school treats, lunch boxes, or whenever you’re craving a childhood favorite.
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Oats: I haven’t tried using quick oats in this recipe; I’ve only used old fashioned oats.
- Butter: If using unsalted butter, increase the salt to 1/2 teaspoon.
- Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt or sea salt, use half the amount of table salt.
- Vanilla: If you want to glaze to be as white as possible, use clear vanilla.
How to make iced oatmeal cookies
Here you’ll find instructions and step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including ingredients, is given below.
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Step 2: Add oats to a food processor. Pulse just a few times until it becomes a mixture of coarse chopped oats and some oat flour.
Step 3: If the food processor bowl is large enough, remove the blade and add the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine. If the food processor isn’t large enough, you can do this in a large bowl instead.
Step 4: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Beat until light and creamy, about 3 minutes on medium speed.
Step 5: Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined, scraping down the bowl as needed.
Step 6: Add the dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.
Step 7: Drop 1 ½ tablespoons of cookie dough per cookie, about 2-inches apart, on the prepared baking sheets.
Step 8: Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet.
Step 9: Once the baked cookies have cooled, prepare the icing by adding sifted powdered sugar to a medium bowl.
Step 10: Add the vanilla and 1 ½ tablespoons milk. Whisk to combine. It should be thick, if you need more milk, add it slowly.
Step 11: Lightly dip the tops of each cookie into the icing.
Step 12: Place cookies back on the baking sheet iced side up to allow the icing to set. It may take a few hours to set until they’re stackable.
Recipe Tips!
- Stand mixer: If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can use a hand mixer. Just add about 1 minute to the mixing time.
- Food processor: If you don’t have a food processor, a blender will also work.
- Freezing: You can freeze the uniced cookies. Once the cookies have thawed, ice as directed.
Storage
Store any leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. The cookies will keep for about 3 days when properly stored.
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Iced Oatmeal Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 ¾ cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup salted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing
- 1 ½ cups sifted powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Add oats to a food processor. Pulse just a few times until it becomes a mixture of coarse chopped oats and some oat flour.1 ¾ cups old fashioned rolled oats
- If the food processor bowl is large enough, remove the blade and add the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine. (If the food processor isn’t large enough, you can do this in a mixing bowl instead)1 cup all purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Beat until light and creamy, about 3 minutes on medium speed.½ cup salted butter, 1 cup light brown sugar, ¼ cup granulated sugar
- Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined, scraping down the bowl as needed.1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.
- Drop 1 ½ tablespoons of cookie dough per cookie, about 2-inches apart, on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet.
- Once cooled, prepare the icing by adding sifted powdered sugar to a medium bowl.1 ½ cups sifted powdered sugar
- Add the vanilla and 1 ½ tablespoons milk. Whisk to combine. It should be thick, if you need more milk, add it slowly.¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons milk
- Lightly dip the tops of each cookie into the icing.
- Place cookies back on the baking sheet iced side up to allow the icing to set. It may take a few hours to set until they’re stackable.
Notes
- Oats: I haven’t tried using quick oats in this recipe.
- Butter: If using unsalted butter, increase the salt to 1/2 teaspoon.
- Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt or sea salt, use half the amount of table salt.
- Vanilla: If you want to glaze to be as white as possible, use clear vanilla.
- Nutrition values are estimates.
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
David Somerville says
Have you made this using gluten-free flour one to one?
Kate Dean says
I haven’t made this recipe with 1:1, but I’ve had good luck substituting it in other cookie recipes.