Ingredients (~18 cookies)
For the Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp unsulphured molasses
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
For the Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp whole milk
- 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
Browning the Butter and Preparing the Oats
In a light-colored saucepan, add butter and place it over medium heat to melt.
Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the butter foams, then subsides, and you see browned milk solids at the bottom of the pan — it should smell nutty.
Scrape all of the butter and the browned bits into a mixing bowl and let it cool to room temperature.
If the butter is hot when you add the ingredients to the dough, your cookies will spread out too much in the oven.
While the butter is cooling, place the rolled oats in a food processor or blender and pulse until about half of the oats are ground into a fine flour; the rest of the oats should remain in smaller, whole pieces.
Making and Chilling the Dough
Once the brown butter has cooled, add both the light brown sugar and granulated sugar to the bowl and whisk vigorously for about a minute until they are well combined.
Whisk in the egg, vanilla extract, and molasses, mixing only until combined.
Using a rubber spatula, fold in the pulverized oats, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until the ingredients have just been combined.
Using a medium cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoons), form the dough into balls and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Freeze the dough balls for a minimum of 3-4 hours, or overnight for the best results.
This chilling step is essential to prevent the cookies from spreading.
Baking and Icing the Cookies
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Place the frozen cookie dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced about 2 inches apart.
Bake for approximately 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges of the cookie are golden brown, while the centers still look soft and slightly underdone.
Allow the cookies to cool completely on the cookie sheet prior to icing.
If you ice these cookies while warm, the icing will melt and slide off the cookies.
Once the cookies have cooled, make your icing by whisking together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth.
The icing should be thick but still pourable.
Quickly dip just the top of each cooled cookie into the icing, let the excess drip off, then place the cookies on a wire rack.
It should take about 1 to 2 hours at room temperature for the icing to set completely.
Iced Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp unsulphured molasses
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
For the Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp whole milk
- 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Brown butter in saucepan over medium heat until nutty and golden. Cool to room temperature.
- Pulse oats in food processor until half are finely ground.
- Whisk cooled brown butter with both sugars for 1 minute.
- Mix in egg, vanilla, and molasses.
- Fold in ground oats, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until combined.
- Scoop 2-tablespoon dough balls onto parchment-lined sheet. Freeze 4 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Arrange frozen dough balls 2 inches apart on parchment-lined sheet.
- Bake 10-12 minutes until edges are golden but centers soft.
- Cool completely on baking sheet.
- Whisk powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla for icing until pourable.
- Dip cookie tops in icing, let excess drip off.
- Place on wire rack until icing sets.
