Chocolate Caramel Oatmeal Cookies
I have never been a fan of your typical oatmeal cookies. It’s just not the cookie I’m ever going to reach out for cause they are usually made with raisins and I really prefer my cookies without raisins. I have always wanted to try to make my version with chocolate instead of raisins and this is how these came about. I saw a really delicious recipe from The FeedFeed and it inspired these absolutey delicious cookies - just the way I like them - crisp edges, soft centers and puddles of molten chocolate and caramel and some flaky sea salt never hurts either!!
I have used spelt flour in a few things recently and I have to say I do love the texture it adds to baked goods. It’s got a mild flavor that is nutty and slightly sweet, not to mention it is also easily digestible and gives these cookies or anything baked with it a bit of a healthier spin on them. In these cookies it adds a heartiness to the texture that I love and works really well with the oats. I used Bob’s Red Mill Organic Old-fashioned Rolled Oats and Bob’s Red Mill Organic Whole Grain Spelt flour, but if you don’t have the spelt - Bob’s Red Mill Organic All Purpose flour will do the trick as well. Spelt flour can easily be replaced with AP flour. Bob’s Red Mill offers the largest lines of organic, whole grain foods in the country. All of their products are certified Kosher and made with ingredients grown from non-GMO including the ones I used in this recipe.
What can make a chocolate chunk spelt oatmeal cookie even better? You guessed it - puddles of caramel and some nuts as well. I chose pecans because I just love the flavour of them in baked goods and they add a bit of extra texture and crunch to these cookies. The original recipe did not call for chilling the dough beforehand and it’s fine. The cookies do spread out a bit but I didn’t mind it and they maintained their delicious chew factor. If you like a chewy thicker cookie that doesn’t spread out as much I recommend chilling the dough for 30 minutes. Whether you are the patient type or not when it comes to baking cookies, be assured that these are delicious with or without the chill time. Grab your coffee, tea or milk and enjoy one or two of these guys. You will thank me later!! I have partnered up with Bob’s Red Mill to bring you this fabulous recipe, but all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting Olive & Mango.
Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature (1 cup)
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats, divided
- 2 cups all purpose flour or spelt flour
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup chocolate chunks, divided
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- 16 wrapped caramels, chopped into 4 pieces each, divided
- Flaky sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
Directions
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour, oats, salt, baking soda and cinnamon.
- Place butter and sugars in a separate large bowl and cream together using a mixer (stand or hand) until light and fluffy, 3 minutes.
- With mixer running, add eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, followed by the vanilla and mix until incorporated.
- Gradually add in the flour oat mixture while mixing on low speed until just combined.
- Add ¾ of chocolate, all the pecans and ¾ of the caramels, then fold them in using a spatula until everything is well incorporated. Feel free to use your hands to gently knead or fold dough if needed.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill dough for 30-60 mins.
- Pre-heat oven to 350°F
- Place remaining 1 cup of oats into a wide bowl, and set aside.
- Remove dough from fridge. Scoop out balls of dough using large cookie scoop approx 1.5 oz or 3 tablespoons of dough each, roll them in the oats to lightly coat, and arrange 2-3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets because these will spread out. I usually do 6 cookies per sheet pan. Press a piece of remaining caramel and chocolate onto the tops of the cookies. (Return remaining dough to fridge in between baking to keep it chilled)
- Transfer baking sheets to preheated oven and bake until golden brown and set, rotating halfway through if needed, about 15 minutes. Once out of the oven, garnish with flaky sea salt and let cool at least 10 minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.
- Repeat with remaining cookie dough, making sure the baking sheets are fully cooled between uses.
Recipe Notes
- These cookies do spread as you can see from the photos. The caramel makes them spread a little un-evenly and unpredictably while they bake. This is totally normal. A very quick fix is to use a small rubber spatula and just gently tuck in or gently press in uneven edges with it as soon as the cookies are out of the oven and still warm and moldable. If the cookie dough chilled longer than 3 hours, let it sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. This makes the chilled cookie dough easier to scoop and roll.
- For that bakery style look ( or Instagram worthy look) make sure to add extra chocolate and caramel pieces to dough balls before and after baking - simply press some into the cookies they will settle into the dough from the heat of the cookies - then sprinkle them with some flaky sea salt if desired.
- MAKE AHEAD: You can make the dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Allow to come to room temperature then bake as normal.
- STORAGE: Baked and cooled cookies can be stored in and airtight conainer for up to 1 week.
- FREEZING DOUGH: Place dough into a large ziploc bag and flatten. Freeze up to 3 months. Let dough defrost fully (overnight in the fridge is ideal), and then continue with baking instructions.
- FREEZING DOUGH BALLS: Scoop and roll cookie dough into balls and place on lined baking sheet - place in the freezer on baking sheet a flash freeze for 1-3 hours until frozen solid. Then remove from baking sheet and place in a freezer safe bag and place back in the freezer and store for up to 3 months. Let cookies defrost to soften when ready to bake – then continue with baking directions in recipe below or bake from frozen baking them for an extra few minutes.
- FREEZING BAKED COOKIES: Allow cookies to cool completely then store in a freezer-safe zip-lock storage bag labelled. They can either be stored all together as is or individually wrapped or separated with waxed paper or parchment. When you want to eat one, take it out and let it sit at room temperature or warm it in the oven or microwave for a few minutes.
Adapted from The FeedFeed and Sally’s Baking Addiction
