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Soft and chewy iced oatmeal cookies recipe made with less sugar for a delicious lunchbox treat. I make them gluten-free, but you can make them using regular flour, too!
One of my all-time favorite treats when I was growing up were old fashioned iced oatmeal cookies. My family always had a supply of these store-bought marvels, and my siblings and I would find them in our lunchboxes as little surprise treats.
Well, fast forward 87 billion years, and I’m still enamored by those magical sweet baby angels.
Because kiddos are about to go back to school, I thought it would be a hoot to make them homemade for those who want a slightly cleaner version. I make them with less sugar yet they still have that classic oat deliciousness. The perfect lunchtime pick-me-up!
I make gluten-free iced oatmeal cookies using gluten-free flour and gluten-free oats, but you can easily use regular flour and oats too.
While Mother’s iced oatmeal cookies are hard and snappy, I make soft cookies because I have a slight preference for chewy cookies versus the hard texture.
The simple ingredients list can be found at any grocery store! Let’s chat about our ingredients in detail.
Ingredient Notes:
Quick Oats: The main ingredient! Choose quick oats (or instant oats) rather than old fashioned oats for a softer texture. If you use old fashioned oats (or rolled oats), pulse the oats in a food processor first to make the pieces smaller and generate a little oat flour. ]
For a gluten-free option, be sure to use certified gluten-free oats. I use gluten-free sprouted oats.
Flour: Pick either gluten-free all-purpose flour or regular all-purpose flour to make these tasty iced oatmeal cookies. The flour acts as the glue that holds everything together and generates soft centers.
Granulated Sweetener: Pick your favorite granulated sweetener, such as regular cane sugar, brown sugar, coconut sugar, or sugar-free sweetener such as monk fruit sweetener or allulose.
I use coconut sugar, which is lower on the glycemic index than cane sugar and it has a slight caramel flavor. The cookies are only slightly sweet the way the recipe is called out so that the icing
Egg: One egg is needed to bind the ingredients together and help the cookie dough rise.
Unsalted Butter: For rich flavor and moisture, melted butter helps create a chewy center. For the softest cookies, use unsalted butter.
Ground Cinnamon: Hot take, but I believe all oatmeal cookies need a lot of cinnamon because the warm flavor compliments the oatty essence.
Pure Vanilla Extract: A little pure vanilla extract brings subtle warm flavor.
Baking Soda: The leavening agent that prevents the dough from spreading too much during the baking process and creates crispy edges.
Sea Salt: Brings out the sweetness and oat flavor of the cookies.
Icing Ingredients:
Powdered Sugar: Confectioners’ sugar is the main ingredient in the simple oatmeal cookie glaze. For a lower sugar option, use a sugar-free confectioners’ sweetener.
Milk or Water: Just a touch of milk or water hydrates the powdered sugar and gets it to the right consistency to act as the perfect glaze.
Pure Vanilla Extract (optional): Make a vanilla glaze by adding a tiny splash of vanilla extract. A little goes a long way!
How to Make Iced Oatmeal Cookies:
Transfer the oats, flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to a mixing bowl and stir well until combined.
Whisk together the melted butter and sugar in a separate bowl.
Mix in the egg and pure vanilla extract until the wet ingredients are well combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix until the dough is well combined.
Refrigerate the dough for at least 20 minutes (up to overnight).
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Use a small cookie scoop or a spoon to scoop mounds of dough onto the lined baking sheet. Leave a couple of inches of space between each dough mound to allow space for the cookies to spread.
Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 11 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown around the edges.
Allow the cookies to cool to room temperature on the cookie sheet.
Mix the powdered sugar and milk (or water) in a wide-mouth bowl until the glaze is nice and creamy.
Dip the tops of each cookie into the glaze, and allow the glaze to drip off before moving them to a plate or a wire rack to dry completely.
Storage Options:
- Room Temperature: Store cookies in a large zip lock bag or an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days.
- Refrigerator: Refrigerate cookies for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: Freeze cookies in a freezer bag or a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months.
Top Tips:
- Be sure to perform the extra step of glazing the cookies and allowing them to dry for the best results. The cookies without the glaze aren’t very sweet, as the recipe is designed to be lower in sugar overall.
- Add one tablespoon of molasses or pure maple syrup to the wet ingredients for even chewier cookies.
The next time you’re craving classic iced oatmeal cookies, whip up this homemade version! I’m willing to bet they will disappear quickly!
Looking for more delicious cookie recipes? Also try out these reader favorites.
More Cookie Recipes:
- Almond Flour Chocolate Cookies
- Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Grain-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies with Walnuts
- Pistachio Butter Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cottage Cheese Cookies
This may just become one of your new favorite cookie recipes!
Gluten-Free Iced Oatmeal Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup quick oats
- 2/3 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour or regular all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 large egg
- 8 Tbsp 1 stick, ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For the Icing:
- ¾ cup powdered sugar*
- 1.5 to 2 Tbsp water or milk
Instructions
- Transfer the oats, flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to a mixing bowl and stir well until combined.
- Whisk together the melted butter and sugar in a separate bowl. Mix in the egg and pure vanilla extract until the wet ingredients are well combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix until the dough is well combined.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 20 minutes (up to overnight).
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Use a small cookie scoop or a spoon to scoop mounds of dough onto the lined baking sheet. Leave a couple of inches of space between each dough mound to allow space for the cookies to spread.
- Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 11 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown around the edges.
- Allow the cookies to cool to room temperature on the cookie sheet.
- Mix the powdered sugar and milk (or water) in a wide-mouth bowl until the glaze is nice and creamy. Dip the tops of each cookie into the glaze, and allow the glaze to drip off before moving them to a plate or a wire rack to dry completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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