• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Real Food Real Deals
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
Real Food Real Deals

Real Food Real Deals

Healthy food on a budget

  • Recipe Index
  • Saving Money
  • Travel
  • Video Services
    • Recipe Video Equipment

Steel Cut Oats Cookies

December 4, 2018 Breakfast, Desserts, Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free, Recipes, Snacks, Vegetarian

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

3.7Kshares
  • Share169
  • Tweet
  • Pin3.6K
Jump to Recipe Print
These steel cut oats cookies are such a delicious snack. They’re also healthy enough to eat for breakfast!

These steel cut oats cookies are such a delicious snack. They’re also healthy enough to eat for breakfast! Who can resist oatmeal in a cookie?

These steel cut oats cookies are such a delicious snack. They’re also healthy enough to eat for breakfast!

Oatmeal cookies are a classic healthier dessert. Oats are a whole grain, which is a rare feature in cookies.

I usually use rolled oats to make oatmeal cookies, but I recently found myself wondering, “Can I use steel cut oats in cookies?”

We were out of rolled oats, but we had steel cut oats in our cabinet. This led to some research and several experimental batches. I discovered that yes, not only can you make cookies with steel cut oats, but they’re arguably more delicious than the rolled oat version.

These steel cut oatmeal cookies are so easy to make!

Steel Cut Oatmeal Cookie Tips

When making cookies with steel cut oats, you have two options. You can use traditional Irish oats, or you can use the quick-cooking variety.

For an easy batch of cookies, use raw “instant” or “quick-cooking” steel cut oats. These are broken down into smaller pieces than traditional Irish oats, so they give the cookies a nice texture.

Steel cut oats cookies, with and without cooked oats
Cooked traditional oats are in the cookie on the left, and raw quick cooking oats are in the cookie on the right.

If you’re using traditional steel cut oats, you’ll want to cook them first, just like when you’re making oatmeal. They’re a bit too hard when baked into a cookie in their raw form, which leads to a lot of extra chewing. To use cooked oats, simply substitute one cup of cooked oatmeal for the instant raw oats listed in this recipe, and add an extra half cup of flour (or more as needed to achieve a non-runny dough consistency).

For the chocolate chips, I like Enjoy Life allergy-friendly chocolate. These chips come in a variety of sizes.

Whether you make them with quick-cooking or traditional oats, these cookies have a delicious flavor and texture. Watch this video to see the simple process behind these steel cut oats cookies:

These steel cut oats cookies are such a delicious snack. They’re also healthy enough to eat for breakfast!

Steel Cut Oats Cookies

These steel cut oats cookies are such a delicious snack. ($.27 per cookie)
4.69 from 29 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Cookies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 40
Calories: 155kcal
Author: Annemarie Rossi

Ingredients

  • 2 cups gluten free flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 2/3 cup melted coconut oil
  • 1 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/4 cups instant steel cut oats* (uncooked)
  • 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup diced walnuts optional

Equipment

  • Cookie scoop
  • Baking sheet

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Add the flour mixture, and mix to combine. Then stir in the quick cooking oats, chocolate chips, and walnuts.
  • Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to portion out the dough onto a cookie sheet (9 cookies per sheet). Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies are set and they're beginning to turn brown.
  • Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days, or freeze for later.

Notes

If you’re using traditional steel cut oats (not quick cooking), you’ll want to cook them first, just like when you’re making oatmeal. To use cooked oats, simply substitute one cup of cooked oatmeal for the instant raw oats listed in the recipe, and add an extra half cup of flour (or more as needed to achieve a non-runny dough consistency).

Nutrition Estimate

Calories: 155kcal
Tried this recipe?Mention @realfoodrecipes or tag #realfoodrealdeals!

Steel Cut Oats Cookies Price Breakdown

This recipe costs a total of $10.95 to make, or $.27 per cookie. Try these steel cut oatmeal cookies for a delicious, healthy treat.

In case you only have rolled oats on hand, here’s a more traditional oatmeal cookie recipe.

3.7Kshares
  • Share169
  • Tweet
  • Pin3.6K

59 Comments

Subscribe

Send me your newsletter!

Privacy Policy

Copyright

© The recipes, opinions, photos, and other content expressed on this website are those of the author/owner unless otherwise noted. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material, including photos, without written permission from the author/owner is strictly prohibited. In cases where permission is granted, full and clear credit must be given to Real Food Real Deals with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Disclosure

The FTC has regulations about what bloggers disclose when recommending or advertising products. This information is outlined in my disclosure policy.
Previous Post: « Gluten Free Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Next Post: Healthy Crockpot Chili »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. Jessica says

    April 9, 2022 at 3:44 pm

    4 stars
    Yummers! Copied the recipe exactly except used regular flour instead of gluten-free. Only reason it’s a 4 star is because the oats were still a tad crunchy after baking, but I think that might happen regardless of the recipe. Thank you for this recipe!!

    Reply
  2. Elizabeth says

    February 14, 2022 at 1:24 pm

    4 stars
    I used the quick steel oats and that worked well. What didn’t work as well was switching out dried cranberries for chocolate chips because we prefer them over the chips in oatmeal cookies. The cookies were very bland so after the first batch, I added 1 tsp cinnamon and then the cookies were very good. I will make again as I have a box of instant steel cut oats to use up (husband bought instant by mistake & I hate instant oats of all types). I also decreased the maple syrup to 1C. The batter was softer than I’m used to but the cookies baked up well. My cookies were not as brown as the photos so perhaps I should have cooked a bit longer.

    Reply
  3. Bridget says

    February 7, 2022 at 2:03 pm

    Mine turned out well. Changes listed below. I did use the cooked steel oats and it needed more flour as you mentioned. I did dried cherries, walnuts, nutmeg and orange peel. I also added a scoop of vanilla protein powder and a scoop of collagen powder. Sneaking stuff in on kids and hubby! LOL They are cakey but have nice flavor. I may leave out baking powder next time as in the recipe. Thanks for your site. I will try other things too!!! Let’s all feed our kids better use natural sweeteners!

    2.5 cups total flour (1 cup AP wheat, 1/2 cup tigernut, 1/2 cup buckwheat, + 1/2 cup AP added at end to make less runny.)
    1 tsp Baking soda 1 tsp Baking powder 1 tsp salt 3 tsp nutmeg 1 tsp ground orange peel
    2 eggs
    1/3 cup melted coconut oil and 1/3 cup olive oil (it was what I had)
    3/4 cup maple syrup (used less because my vanilla protein powder is sweet)
    3/4 cup chopped dried cherries
    3/4 cup chopped walnuts

    Reply
  4. Moon says

    January 16, 2022 at 5:37 pm

    We have a coconut allergy so I used ghee. Cooked the steel cut oats and made as directed. They tasted terrible and in my opinion a waste of very expensive pure maple syrup, couverture chocolate, ghee and other ingredients. They came out cakey and did not flatten out like most cookies do. The came out the same shape of the scoop I used. I would have given them to my dogs except for the chocolate. No one liked them so they immediately hit the compost heap.
    What a bummer. I was so looking forward to some yummy cookies!

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      January 16, 2022 at 6:41 pm

      I’m sorry to hear that your adaptation of the recipe didn’t work. They’re delicious with coconut oil.

      Reply
  5. Syl says

    December 6, 2021 at 4:53 pm

    4 stars
    I made a batch using steel cut oaks and grinned them into flour, but I made them oil free and egg free so I had to make several adjustments but that is because I eat plant based , but they did not disappoint . Bonus is they have a lot less fat and calories while still turning out great. I just wanted to leave a comment saying you can definitely bake with steel cut oats just grind them first.

    Reply
  6. Susan says

    July 17, 2021 at 4:47 pm

    My first attempt at using quick cook steel cut oats. Really disappointed that the oats did not seem to cook or soften, almost like eating the oats right out of the package, which is sad because otherwise the flavor is great. For the he choc chips I substituted dried cranberries and raisins and threw in a handful of candied ginger because I love ginger in all my baked items. Sorry, this recipe did not work for me.

    Reply
  7. Stargazer says

    May 14, 2021 at 6:56 am

    If you grind regular steel cut oats in a food processor rather than cook them before proceeding with the recipe will this work? I would like to sub white whole wheat flour and unsalted butter for GF flour and coconut oil. Would the proportion amounts be the same? Many thanks.

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      May 14, 2021 at 7:44 am

      Substituting white whole wheat flour and butter will work. I haven’t tried this recipe with ground oats. Grinding the oats will make them more like a flour, so I would cut back a bit on the white whole wheat flour quantity. You’ll have to take a look at the texture and adjust the amount as needed. Please let me know if you try it.

      Reply
  8. Alana says

    March 19, 2021 at 1:45 pm

    Wondering how I would adjust if I wanted to add two rope bananas? 🙂

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      March 19, 2021 at 2:59 pm

      I haven’t tried that substitution, so I’m not sure. You could try cutting out some of the coconut oil and some of the pure maple syrup. Let me know how it goes if you try it.

      Reply
  9. Melinda says

    March 15, 2021 at 7:54 pm

    5 stars
    The cookies turned out great. I didn’t have gluten free flour nor organic maple syrup so I just used log cabin syrup and they turned out fabulous.

    Reply
  10. Adrienne says

    February 12, 2021 at 10:53 am

    Hi I was wondering if I could make this recipe with white flour instead of gluten free and also if I could leave out the walnuts. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      February 12, 2021 at 2:14 pm

      Yes, both of those adaptations would work fine. Enjoy!

      Reply
  11. Pam h says

    October 10, 2020 at 6:49 pm

    3 stars
    Made them exactly as instructed. Extremely sweet, but otherwise not much flavor. Also thought they would have more texture- the oats are basically not noticable

    Reply
  12. Andrea says

    September 7, 2020 at 1:37 pm

    4 stars
    I adjusted with the following changes to the ingredients: 1c flour, 1c almond flour, 1c maple syrup, 1/2 c softened butter (less sweet & butter because of the almond flour), 1 flax egg (with 1 real egg) and dark chocolate chips. Kept everything else the same. Dough wasn’t exactly as thick as cookie dough but I went for it. Took my oven about 18 min to get them brownish and I ended up with about 36 cookies (I have a heavy scoop ?). They are a little chewy but delicious and a great way to use up some of my bulk-sized quick cooking steel cut oats!

    Reply
  13. Muskan says

    July 5, 2020 at 5:25 pm

    Wow!! Wonderful cookies out of grains!! Love the concept!!

    Reply
  14. Susan says

    June 3, 2020 at 3:31 pm

    5 stars
    I can’t stop making these!

    Reply
  15. Peggy says

    May 18, 2020 at 2:20 pm

    4 stars
    I’m just baking these now. I had to make a couple of changes, but they kind of taste like muffin and not a cookie. I used half the maple syrup (all I had left), used regular flour, and cooked steel cut oats oatmeal since I don’t but “quick”. I make my oatmeal with nutmeg, cinnamon and Maple syrup, so I thought the cookie recipe would be fine as is… But the batter tasted bland, so added chopped dried cherries, a little cinnamon, dark chocolate and walnuts. Maybe it’s too much egg? But the texture is like a quick bread and has less flavor. Its not a “cookie”, but more like a muffin top. I’m sure we will eat them up. I’m not sure if I had used the correct amount of maple syrup or other kinds of flour would have made these more delicious. Maybe butter instead of coconut oil? Its worth trying, but I do suggest more vanilla and spice… Maybe half butter, half coconut oil?

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      May 18, 2020 at 4:18 pm

      Making those changes (especially cutting the maple syrup in half) will definitely change the texture and flavor of these cookies quite a bit. Hopefully you enjoyed this adapted version once they came out of the oven.

      Reply
  16. Madlen Wadsworth says

    May 4, 2020 at 9:46 pm

    5 stars
    Fantastic recipe!!!
    Made it many times.
    Thank you so much.
    Regards Madlen

    Reply
  17. Stacey says

    May 3, 2020 at 11:24 pm

    4 stars
    Made this evening with leftover steel cut oats but I had this morning. They were exactly as described and a healthy option for breakfast. Thank you for sharing ?

    Reply
  18. Ellen says

    April 4, 2020 at 9:04 pm

    Does the coconut oil give it any coconut flavor? I’m not a huge fan of coconut. What other varieties of oils could I use as a substitute?

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      April 5, 2020 at 8:59 am

      I don’t notice a coconut flavor in these. If you want, you could use softened butter (or vegan butter substitute) instead.

      Reply
  19. Lisa P says

    March 28, 2020 at 6:10 pm

    5 stars
    Great recipe! I had to substitute a few of the ingredients, but they still turned out great. I added an extra 1/2 cup of flour and really liked the texture of them when they were done. Mine had more of a cakey texture than cookie texture, but my family loved them. I will definitely be making these again.

    Reply
  20. Tina says

    February 5, 2020 at 2:08 pm

    The batter is looking VERY runny even after adding the extra 1/2 cup of flour.
    Should I go ahead and make them as is?

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      February 5, 2020 at 2:12 pm

      Can you form the dough into cookie shapes? If not, add more flour a tablespoon at a time until you can shape the cookies. You could also refrigerate the dough for a bit to help it get firm. Let me know how it goes.

      Reply
  21. ShawnDell says

    January 26, 2020 at 3:53 pm

    5 stars
    These were absolutely amazing cookies! I was looking for a healthy grab and go breakfast alternative to poptarts. (Yes, I’m still a kid at heart) I followed the recipe as it was except I toasted the walnuts (my personal choice…love toasted nuts) and toasted coconut in addition to both dark chocolate chips and semi sweet chocolate chips. I subbed Honey for the maple syrup because that’s what I had on hand. They were super easy and so yummy! Thanks for sharing. (Even the batch I forgot to set the timer for turned out delicious. Definitely will be making these again.

    Reply
  22. Amanda says

    October 12, 2019 at 10:25 am

    Just found this recipe looking for a use for leftover steel cut oats and it looks great. Any suggestions for what to use instead of coconut oil? I’m allergic to coconut.

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      October 12, 2019 at 10:32 am

      Amanda, softened butter would be a good substitute.

      Reply
  23. sam says

    August 6, 2019 at 8:14 pm

    what a healthy recipe. I am vegan and will try flax eggs and sugar-free lakanto maple syrup. Question: after cooking traditional steel cut oats – do you discard residual liquid? I need to add 4 cups water to 1 cup oats and usually after cooking there is a gel-like or watery liquid with the cooked oats.

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      August 7, 2019 at 7:56 am

      There’s no need to discard the liquid with the cooked oats. Just stir the liquid into the oats, then measure them for the recipe. Enjoy!

      Reply
  24. Betty High says

    June 9, 2019 at 1:48 pm

    What can I use as a substitute for the maple syrup?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      June 9, 2019 at 6:55 pm

      You can substitute honey for the pure maple syrup, or else you could try regular sugar.

      Reply
  25. Babs says

    May 22, 2019 at 8:06 pm

    Can you use regular unbleached all purpose flour instead of gluten free.— same amount?

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      May 22, 2019 at 8:31 pm

      Yes, that will work. You can use the same amount of all purpose flour.

      Reply
  26. Tamara says

    May 17, 2019 at 6:09 pm

    5 stars
    Just made this recipe and I’m really impressed! I used white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate morsels and raisins, as well as gluten-free cassava flour in place of wheat flour. I cooked Quaker steel-cut oats before adding to the batter. It took mine about 12-13 minutes to bake. They came out just like the pictures with a cake-like texture in the middle. Very yummy!

    Reply
  27. Diana says

    May 8, 2019 at 8:11 am

    4 stars
    I guess I’m confused, how much cooked steel cuts vs uncooked you add in, as just reading off the recipe and wading through the text, I wasn’t sure?

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      May 8, 2019 at 8:53 am

      If you’re using uncooked instant steel cut oats, use 1 1/4 cups as stated in the recipe card. If you want to substitute cooked oats, use 1 cup of cooked oats, and add an extra 1/2 cup of flour to get the right cookie dough consistency. Please let me know if that clarifies it for you.

      Reply
  28. JoAnn says

    February 6, 2019 at 5:38 pm

    I accidentally mixed the batter before I read the recipe notes….is there any saving the batter if I didn’t cook the traditional steel cut oats?

    Reply
    • Annemarie says

      February 6, 2019 at 7:11 pm

      You can definitely still bake them. They’ll just be extra crunchy. Let me know how they turn out.

      Reply
  29. Kari - Get Inspired Everyday! says

    December 23, 2018 at 5:32 pm

    5 stars
    The texture on these cookies looks absolutely amazing!

    Reply
  30. anne says

    December 23, 2018 at 3:59 pm

    5 stars
    Great idea! I love steel cut oats , but would have never thought to make cookies with them. I am going to give this a try real soon!

    Reply
  31. STACEY CRAWFORD says

    December 23, 2018 at 12:22 pm

    5 stars
    My son and hubby would love these!

    Reply
  32. Lindsey Dietz says

    December 22, 2018 at 10:27 am

    5 stars
    Any excuse to have cookies for breakfast, right??! I’ve never seen a cookie recipe made with steel cut oats! So original and yummy!

    Reply
  33. CHIHYU says

    December 21, 2018 at 10:17 am

    5 stars
    What a lovely recipe. These cookies look so moist and healthy delicious!

    Reply
  34. Tina says

    December 19, 2018 at 7:24 am

    5 stars
    Yum! I really love oatmeal cookies, and these look great. Thanks for doing all the tests on using the oats 🙂

    Reply
  35. Kathryn says

    December 18, 2018 at 11:18 pm

    5 stars
    I love oatmeal cookies and these look perfect! I also appreciate you listing the price of your recipes. That’s such a helpful tool when choosing which recipes to make!

    Reply
  36. Kelly says

    December 18, 2018 at 10:20 pm

    I think Santa would be pretty happy with these cookies – and me too!

    Reply
  37. Hope says

    December 18, 2018 at 6:34 pm

    5 stars
    I love oats in cookies! There is something so satisfying about them. Can’t wait to give these a go!

    Reply
  38. Megan Stevens says

    December 18, 2018 at 11:09 am

    5 stars
    I love that I can cook the oats first because then I can soak them, too, which our bodies/bellies prefer (with ACV the night before). These cookies look so good!!

    Reply
    • Mary Ann says

      September 16, 2019 at 9:11 pm

      Please tell me what (like just AVC or AVC and water) and how long you soak the oats with

      Reply
      • Annemarie says

        September 17, 2019 at 8:40 am

        I don’t soak the oats for this recipe.

  39. Raia Todd says

    December 18, 2018 at 10:23 am

    5 stars
    My kids are going to love these!

    Reply
  40. Jean says

    December 18, 2018 at 12:08 am

    5 stars
    The texture of these cookies look so perfect! Definitely need to try out that gluten free flour.

    Reply
  41. Meredith says

    December 17, 2018 at 8:54 pm

    5 stars
    Such a brilliant idea for leftover steel cut oats. And who doesn’t love an oatmeal cookie!?! Pinning to make soon…

    Reply
  42. Joni Gomes says

    December 17, 2018 at 12:55 pm

    5 stars
    These cookies are so up my alley! Saving the pin to make for later 🙂

    Reply
  43. Catherine BaezCatherine Sholl says

    December 17, 2018 at 12:30 pm

    5 stars
    Oatmeal cookies have always been my favorite. Want to try with steel cut oats nnow. Great recipe!

    Reply
  44. Renee D Kohley says

    December 10, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    5 stars
    Super fun and so easy! Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

Welcome!

Annemarie Rossi

I’m Annemarie, a regular mom who got tired of feeding my family processed food. Read more. . .

NEVER MISS A POST

Privacy Policy
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Search by Category

Never miss a recipe

Subscribe below to receive the email newsletter

  • Privacy Policy
  • Permissions Policy
  • Disclosure Policy