Old-Fashioned Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (Soft & Chewy)

Why You’ll Love These Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

• This recipe bakes soft and chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, thanks to the buttermilk. They’re not too thin– just slightly puffy with warm, gooey chocolate chips in the center and lightly golden, perfectly crisp edges.
• They’re quick and easy to make with simple pantry ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen.
• While still a sweet treat, the oats add a little fiber and extra nutrients. Oatmeal cookies are a more wholesome dessert.
• They’re great for school sales and concession stands. Make a big batch and watch them disappear!
• They also make a great lunchbox treat or after-school snack for the kiddos, or a fun addition to your next Christmas cookie exchange!

Watch How to Make These Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies With Buttermilk:

Then keep reading for all my tips on using buttermilk to get that perfectly soft and chewy texture.

These buttermilk oatmeal cookies are super easy to make, and they use simple ingredients. This is a very beginner-friendly recipe.

• Unsalted Butter – You’ll need unsalted butter. Be sure to pull it out of the fridge the night before so that it has time to soften before making this recipe. If you’re like me and you forget to get it out, just pop it in the microwave for a few seconds to soften it up a bit.
• Light Brown Sugar – I prefer light brown sugar over dark brown sugar because it has a little bit less molasses. Due to the higher molasses percentage, dark brown sugar will make a flatter, crunchier cookie. Light brown sugar will give you a slightly puffy cookie with that perfectly crispy edge and soft, chewy middle.
• Eggs – The protein in whole eggs adds structural support to oatmeal cookies, which helps them to hold their shape. Eggs also impart a richer flavor, and they help give the cookies that nice golden color.
• Vanilla Extract – The vanilla extract is just for flavor. Personally, I really like this Mexican vanilla.
• Buttermilk – I can’t stress enough how important this ingredient is. Buttermilk makes a perfectly soft and chewy, ultra-tender cookie with just the right amount of lift in the middle. I’ll also show you how to make your own homemade buttermilk substitute with just 2 ingredients, milk and vinegar.
• Baking Soda – The baking soda in this recipe is solely responsible for giving them a great rise. If you forget to add it, you’ll wind up with flat, crunchy cookies that really don’t taste as good.
• All-Purpose Flour – Use all-purpose flour for a soft, tender texture with just a little bit of chewiness. You can also make these gluten-free oatmeal chocolate chip cookies by using gluten-free all-purpose flour.
• Ground Cinnamon – I like to add a pinch of ground cinnamon for extra flavor.
• Rolled Oats – For a classic oatmeal cookie, use old-fashioned rolled oats. You can also use quick oats, but I love how thick and chewy these cookies turn out with old-fashioned rolled oats. Baking Bites has a great article about regular vs. quick cooking oatmeal for baking, and The Kitchn has another great article explaining the difference between steel-cut, rolled, and instant oats.
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips – I love buttermilk oatmeal cookies with chocolate chips, preferably semi-sweet chocolate chips. The more the merrier! Of course, you can swap them out with raisins, or add both.

Mixing Up Buttermilk Oatmeal Cookies

1. In a large bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of an electric stand mixer, cream (or mix) together the butter, brown sugar, and cane sugar.
2. Add the eggs and vanilla extract to the butter mixture, and mix well.
3. Stir the baking soda into your buttermilk (or sour milk) and set aside.
4. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, including the flour, salt, and ground cinnamon.
5. Mix the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture, alternating with the buttermilk.
6. Fold in the oatmeal and chocolate chips, mixing them into the dough.

How to Bake Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1. Using a cookie scoop, drop dough balls onto the prepared cookie sheet. As you scoop the cookies onto the cookie sheet, press them down just a bit. You can do this with the flat bottom of a glass.
2. Bake at 350° F for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the cookies turn a nice golden brown.
3. When you remove each batch from the oven, remove the cookies from the cookie sheet and allow them to cool on a cooling rack or wire rack.

If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, don’t worry, because you can make your own! My mama taught me a handy trick to making your own homemade buttermilk substitute with milk and vinegar. It’s really easy, and you can do it in 3 simple steps.

1. First, you’ll need vinegar and whole milk. You can use either apple cider vinegar or white distilled vinegar. To make your own homemade buttermilk substitute, you’ll need about 1 tablespoon of vinegar for every 1 cup of milk in the recipe.
2. This recipe calls for 1/4 cup of buttermilk, so you’ll need to stir 3/4 teaspoon of vinegar into 1/4 cup of whole milk.
3. Set this mixture aside for a few minutes, or ’til it starts to curdle. Then you can use it in place of the buttermilk called for in these buttermilk oatmeal cookies!

If you love this oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe, you’ll love these recipes too….I’m getting hungry just thinking about fresh baked cookies.

• One of my all time favorite recipes is an old recipe my family has made for years, Grandma’s chocolate sandwich cookies.
• Another oatmeal cookie favorite that’s also full of chocolatey goodness, is this halloween-themed recipe for chewy monster cookies.
• Dinner Then Dessert has a delicious recipe for super chewy oatmeal raisin M&M cookies.
• And Lil’ Luna has an old fashioned recipe for iced oatmeal cookies.