I love Oatmeal Cookies. I’ve always felt like they’re a perfect snack when you feel like something sweet, but want something that will actually fuel your body & fill you up.
While Oats themselves have always been gluten free, it’s very common for other grains to cross-contaminate them during processing. So, if your package of Oats doesn’t say ‘Gluten Free’, then don’t use them! It’s important that you buy Certified Gluten Free Oats. I like Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oats – They’re my go-to brand for almost all of my Gluten Free flours & dry ingredients.
Two of my kiddos cannot eat Oats, so if you need a completely Oat Free cookie recipe, that still has the heartiness of a traditional Oatmeal Cookie, then you’ll want to try my Gluten Free & Vegan Hearty Non-Oatmeal Cookie Recipe (over here).
The Tools & Ingredients Used in this Recipe:
This Gluten Free & Vegan Oatmeal Cookie Recipe is an adaptation of my long-time favorite cookie recipe called ‘Quaker’s Vanishing Oatmeal Cookies’. I’ve made them so many times over the years, that I know the recipe by heart! I love how flexible the options are for adding or leaving-out extra ingredients to customize the cookie to your taste.
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The BEST Gluten Free & Vegan Oatmeal Cookie Recipe
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 3-5 dozen 1x
- Category: Baked Goods
- Cuisine: Gluten Free
Description
This Gluten Free & Vegan Oatmeal Cookie Recipe is both Easy & Delicious. A hearty cookie that’s perfect for dessert, post workout, or snacking on anytime!
Ingredients
DRY INGREDIENTS:
- 1 1/2 Cups Erika’s Gluten Free Flour Mix
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder (if using Applesauce in place of Eggs)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 3 Cups Gluten Free Oats – Uncooked (quick or old fashioned)
WET INGREDIENTS:
- 1 Cup (2 Sticks) Butter Alternative (I like the sticks by Melt)
- 1 Cup Brown Sugar (packed)
- 1/2 Cup Sugar
- 1/2 Cup Applesauce (or 2 Eggs)
- 1 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla
OPTIONAL ADD-INS:
- 1 Cup Raisins or Dried Cranberries
- 1 Cup Chocolate Chips
- 1 Cup Chopped Walnuts (or other nuts)
Instructions
- Line Cookie Sheets with Parchment Paper or Non-Stick Mat.
- Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F.
- In Small Bowl, whisk together Dry Ingredients & Set-Aside.
- In bowl of Stand Mixer, beat Butter Alternative & Sugars until creamy.
- Add in Applesauce (or eggs if using), and Vanilla. Beat well.
- Add in your combined Dry Ingredients & Beat Well.
- Mix in your Optional Add-In Ingredients.
- Scoop cookie dough onto prepared cookie sheets spaced a minimum of 1″ apart. I can usually get 12 onto one cookie sheet at a time. My favorite Cookie Scoop is a Size #40 (like this one).
- Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until cookies are a light golden brown.
- Remove from oven & let cookies rest for 1 minute before transferring them to cool on a wire rack.
Notes
Store cookies in an airtight container or zip bag. You can also keep them in the fridge or freezer to even last longer.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 120
I noticed you had both baking powder and baking soda in the tools and ingredients area, but only baking soda was listed in the recipe. I used eggs and 1 tsp. baking soda. I also use 1/2 the amount of butter/margarine and substitute the other 1/2 with applesauce. (have to look for a butter alternative. My cookies taste good but they did not flatten, so I flattened the others with a fork before baking – still did not look as nice as yours. Please clarify if baking powder should be used.
Your GF soft sandwich bread is great also!
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Hi Roxanne! Perfect timing… I’m eating one of these as I type – LOL! =) You don’t need the extra baking powder if you’re using regular eggs. And, they probably didn’t flatten because you only used half of the butter – less butter usually equals a more cake-y cookie outcome. Hope that helps. God Bless! ~Erika
You have done it again, Erika! Vanishing Oatmeal cookies were my go to cookie recipe before my celiac diagnosis. I always made them with chocolate chips, and I loved the touch of cinnamon. Since going gluten free three years ago I have tried several oatmeal and/or chocolate chip cookie recipes, with mixed results–but always disappointing. Did you just recently post this recipe, or have I just not noticed it before? These cookies are delicious! I hurriedly made a half batch this morning in order to take something with me when visiting a neighbor. When does anything ever turn out well when you are in a hurry–especially if you are trying a recipe for the first time? As I worked to mix them up I thought I must be crazy to think this was a good idea. I had already thrown away 2 unsuccessful attempts at shortbread and one unsuccessful loaf of Irish Soda bread over the weekend. All of those expensive gluten free ingredients going into the garbage broke my heart a little. I even had to mix up another batch of your flour blend to make these cookies. It was worth it! The cookies look and taste like “normal” cookies. No grittiness, no starchy aftertaste, and they spread just right–not too much, and not staying in little balls that won’t spread. Eureka!!
I did not need vegan, so I used real butter and egg, but I have adult kids that eat vegan, so I may try them that way next time one of the vegan family members comes to visit.
Can’t thank you enough!
Excellent! I am supposed to be on a diet. I made these for my daughter and ate 4 before she came home. These are very good, work well with no eggs too. I added raisins, cranberries and mini chips. Hold me back! I don’t know why I bother to look anywhere else for a good GF recipe than your site. You need a tv show!
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I’m new to your site. I just mixed up a batch of your GF flour. Now I want to try your version of Vanishing Oatmeal Cookies… we are GF but can have eggs and dairy. So… I know rice flours tend to be dry so what do you suggest I add to make the cookies moist and chewy? thanks so much for all you do to make GF baking good.
Hi, I am new to this site and took a chance and made a batch of your GF flour. I made your oatmeal raisin cookies and made sure to buy good GF oats, they were small and soft looked right. I did add the 2 eggs as well as half the amount of apple sauce in the recipe. The cookies were delicious, soft and chewy as well as a little crisp on the outside. Perfection!! Have made twice. Thank You!!!
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Thank you for this awesome recipe! I used Bob’s red mill 1:1 flour, and kept the recipe exactly as written using apple sauce. I did add a flax egg and they came out beautifully!
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Everyone loves these when I make them! They are delicious and no one knows they are vegan. Note -I make them with regular oats.
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LIterally the best oatmeal cookie I have ever made and eaten. Love the crunch and crumble! I used flax “eggs,” and added 3/4 cup of each pecan pieces, chocolate chips (Lily’s stevia sweetened) and organic raisins. Perfect recipe!
I hated this recipe. I reduced the amount of sugar because it’s way too much and replaced it with honey. Without the sugar all it tasted like was pure starch and shortening. Disgusting. I threw them out and wasted all those ingredients!
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These cookies are delicious! My 1.5 year old daughter was diagnosed with milk, egg, and wheat allergies six months ago and I have been trying new recipes and ingredients to accommodate our new reality since then. Prior to her diagnosis I was a firm believer in all things dairy and was a pretty active baker, but fir the most part had used traditional wheat/dairy/egg based recipes. If I didn’t what was in these cookies, I would have never thought they’re gf/df/ef.
The ingredients you use definitely can make a difference in the result — I used a cup of Laura Lynn brand baking blend (I have found many of their gf products to be better than some of the pricier name brands and about 1/3 of the cost), 1/2 cup of almond flour, country crock plant butter (I’ve tried other vegan butters and this is more readily available and again a fraction of the cost of many others), Neat Egg egg replacer (it’s a blend of flax and garbanzo — omitted the applesauce), gluten free quick oats, and Enjoy Life brand semi-sweet mini chocolate chips (they’re dairy free). Baked for 13 minutes and they were outstanding. As another reviewer noted, mine didn’t spread much, but this was not a problem at all. With each batch I just flattened them a little differently to decide how I liked them best. I used a leveled measuring Tablespoon (as I am always breaking my cookie dough scoops), slightly flattened them, and got about 4 and 1/2 dozen cookies (hard to say exactly as I ate several as they came out of the oven :)
As for Karen…er, I mean Lily, you need to get out of the kitchen and sit down, girl. Of course these cookies won’t turn out well if you omit the sugar and sub in a little honey. Have you ever baked before or even stepped foot in a kitchen before? Yes, they both have sweetness and you can certainly use either to sweeten your tea depending on your preference, but they have decidedly different properties when it comes to baking. Even substituting white sugar for the brown sugar will yield a different result due to the moisture content and subtle flavor difference. Baking is a delicious science experiment and you can’t expect to substantially change a recipe without understanding the properties of the ingredients and how they interact to create a certain result. Perhaps it was the salt you used that was derived from the tears of small children and kittens that made your cookies bitter? I read a book once in which a blogger left nasty reviews for a rival blogger to sabotage her… Conspiracy theories aside, there is nothing worse than someone not following a recipe and then making ridiculous comments about how it didn’t turn out well.
And no, these cookies aren’t particularly healthy (unless you count not causing a severe allergic reaction for my daughter), but they’re cookies. They’re meant to be a treat. I, for one, was thankful to find something that was pretty close to a traditional recipe and didn’t try too hard to be a *healthy*, diet of the moment, version of these cookies. As I noted, this made about 4 and 1/2 dozen Tablespoon size cookies, which was great as many recipes I researched only made about half this quantity.
So, for all the Lilys out there looking for a low sugar cookie (but what would be the point If that, really?!? *unless you are diabetic and that is a completely different and legitimate health concern, in which case you should look for a recipe that has been tested and is geared to that dietary need), this is not for you. But, if you prefer to enjoy life and are looking for an oatmeal chocolate chip recipe that can be slightly modified within reason to accommodate various allergies and sensitivities this is an OUTSTANDING recipe.
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These are so delicious!! I have an egg, dairy and wheat allergy and this was perfect. My husband will try all my allergen free stuff but normally isn’t a big fan of the baked goods, he’s been practically begging me to make these again! Thanks so much for coming up with a great recipe for those of us with limited diets that will also appeal to everyone else.
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Thanks for the recipe. Can I use quinoa flakes instead of oat.?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! My daughter has so many food intolerances that she can’t even have most gluten-free baked goods because they all use almond flour or potato starch. I made your cookies today (I used 1/4 c. Just Eggs substitute) and they are so amazing! They are good, not “good for being vegan/gluten free”, just good (great really)!! The cost of making your special flour was 100 percent worth it. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
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Thank you so much for this delicious recipe! I didn’t have all of the ingredients for your gluten-free flour. So I used a boxed gluten-free flour I had in my pantry. The only thing I did wrong was bake half a batch; they were so yummy. My family wanted more. I’m looking forward to checking out more recipes here.