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Old Fashioned Iced Oatmeal Cookies are a nostalgic cookie recipe! Perfectly textured with a combination of whole and blended oats, deliciously flavored with spices, and topped with a sweet icing glaze!

There are certain dessert recipes that bring back old memories, and this is one of them. I also remember my mom and grandma making Popcorn Balls, and especially Lemon Bars all the time when I was growing up.

Old fashioned oatmeal cookies
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old fashioned Oatmeal Cookies

Hello Lil’ Luna readers! It’s me Natalie, from Life Made Simple.

Today I’m sharing these old fashioned iced oatmeal cookies. They taste a lot like my mother’s classic oatmeal cookies, only 100x better! Growing up my mom always made us oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, so naturally I love any cookie with a good amount of oatmeal in them.

A few months ago I even went a little crazy and made some oatmeal cookies with rice krispies in them (which were awesome by the way)! However, I’ve always loved those iced oatmeal cookies, so I decided to try making them myself.

I couldn’t believe how easy it was and how incredibly yummy they were! This recipe is definitely a keeper, one you’re going to want to make time and time again!

How to make old fashioned oatmeal cookies

How to Make iced oatmeal cookies

There’s only one small catch to this cookie recipe. Don’t worry, it’s just a small step in the process that makes the oats the PERFECT texture.

PULSE OATS. You’re going to need a food processor or blender to grind up some old-fashioned oats. It’s almost like we’re making a combo of oat flour and rolled oats. Just pour them in and pulse or grind 10-12 times. That’s it!

DOUGH. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugars and vanilla extract together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes on high speed. With mixing speed on low, add the egg and mix until incorporated. Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined.

Note: When you have your dough mixed up it’ll be pretty soft and sticky. You might want to let it rest in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes or so, that way your hands don’t get messy and the oats have a little time to absorb some moisture.

BAKE. Use a standard size cookie scoop to place them on lined sheets and bake them anywhere from 10-15 minutes. If you like softer oatmeal cookies stick to 10-11 minutes, if you’re like me and like crispy ones, go 14-15 minutes!

GLAZE. Mix the icing ingredients together while the cookies are cooling. Once they’re cooled, dip each cookie top down into the glaze and let it harden.

Once the glaze hardens they’re ready to be devoured… and trust me, they will be!

Iced oatmeal cookies recipe

Tips for Making and Storing

Can you just use oat flour? Using purely oat flour with no variety in texture won’t allow the cookies to bake properly. The powdery texture of just oat flour doesn’t give the cookies the bite or correct texture it needs.

Why do you dip the cookie in icing instead of frost? When you dip them in the glaze, you allow it to get into the little nooks and crannies of the cookies. So overall, it just gives it more of the old fashioned look.

You can store these on the counter in an air-tight container. Separate the layers with parchment or wax paper. 

If you want to freeze the dough, make sure to portion and roll them into balls before freezing. Line them on a baking sheet and freeze until solid. Once frozen, transfer them to a freezer safe container. 

Iced Oatmeal Cookies

For more oatmeal cookies, try:

4.88 from 47 votes

Iced Oatmeal Cookies Recipe

By: Lil’ Luna
Perfectly textured with a combination of whole and blended oats, deliciously flavored with spices, and topped with a sweet icing glaze—they're amazing!
Servings: 16
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Total: 20 minutes

Ingredients 

Cookie

Glaze

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or baking mats.
  • Pour oats into a food processor and pulse about 10-12 times (you want it to be an even mix of ground and whole oats). In a medium size bowl, combine the oats, flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg, whisk together.
  • In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugars and vanilla extract together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes on high speed. With mixing speed on low, add the egg and mix until incorporated. Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. The dough is fairly soft so I prefer refrigerating it for 20-30 minutes before rolling, that way my hands aren’t a mess and it gives it time to rest.
  • Using a standard size cookie scoop, place balls of dough onto each sheet. Place in the oven and bake for 10-14 minutes. I prefer crisp iced oatmeal cookies so I leave mine in for the full 14.
  • Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the sheets for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Once the cookies are cool, whisk together all of the ingredients for the glaze in a small mixing bowl. Dip the tops of the cookies in and swirl to remove any excess. Allow to set for 30 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 172kcal, Carbohydrates: 27g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 25mg, Sodium: 114mg, Potassium: 77mg, Sugar: 17g, Vitamin A: 190IU, Calcium: 33mg, Iron: 0.7mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

 

About Natalie

I'm the food photographer and blogger behind Life Made Simple. I'm passionate about creating from scratch family-friendly recipes ranging from healthy to decadent.

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4.88 from 47 votes (23 ratings without comment)

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83 Comments

  1. Candice says:

    Can these be made dAiry free?

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      I personally have not, but I am sure they could.

  2. Olivia says:

    5 stars
    These remind me of the cookies you buy in the store but much better. If you like oatmeal cookies you need to give these a try.

  3. kristina says:

    5 stars
    Normally I only eat soft cookies, but these begged to be on the crisp side. The oatmeal crunch paired with the sweet glaze was perfect.

  4. Joy says:

    5 stars
    I need to make these for my dad, he loves them!! I like that these are soft & chewy.

  5. Natalie says:

    5 stars
    SO much better than store bought! These a classic, favorite! Oatmeal cookies are one of my favorites!

  6. Amy L Huntley says:

    5 stars
    I have made these over and over and they turn out every single time! SO GOOD!

  7. Sonya says:

    Just wondering, is it a typo or did y lea it out of the ingredients list? In the instructions when mixed the dry stuff together, “cornstarch” is listed. Is it supposed to be in the recipe?

  8. Kristi says:

    How did you get the cookies so flat?

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      These cookies are from a contributor, but usually they just go flat on their own. Scoop onto cookie sheet & that’s it 🙂

    2. Ashton says:

      I used a cookie scoop and my cookies turned out pretty rounded too. Next time I guess I’ll flatten them a little before cooking. It could also be because I didn’t refrigerate the dough before scooping.

  9. Cindy M-Fisher says:

    4 stars
    I loved this recipe‼️ I gave 4 stars only bEcause of 2 mistakes… cornstarch not listed & vanilla extRact listed twice.
    I used??; 1/4 Tsp cornstarch
    1/4 tsp vanilla extract
    Worked out gReat??
    Thanks for the recipe‼️

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      Oops..have to fix that! Thank you for sharing what you did 🙂

  10. Carolyn Herrera says:

    Can I freeze these cookies then ice them later? I’m baking them now for christmas. Normall I bake all my cookies, freeze them, then take out a few hours before serving and gthey taste super fresh. Just wonedering if you’ve Done this with this recipe

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      I have not tried, but it should be ok 🙂 Enjoy!