Chai Spiced Oatmeal Cookies
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Classic oatmeal cookies get a spicy makeover with cinnamon, cardamom, and ginger.

Oh my. I have a huge apology to make. HUGE.
It has been almost a year since I last shared an oatmeal cookie with you… And that, my friends, is an absolute travesty!!
I have made it clear time and time again that I sincerely adore oatmeal raisin cookies. So much so that I have an entire category on my blog dedicated to it. Although I don’t necessarily post cookies all that often, I feel like I should have thrown an oatmeal cookie your way sometime in the last year, but alas I did not.
And so, here we are, an epic oatmeal cookie to add to your cookie trays this holiday season. Because this is an oatmeal cookie that will put all other oatmeal cookies to shame. But don’t worry, classic oatmeal raisin cookie— all the googly heart eyes to you until the end of time. Swearsies.
We’ve gotten comfy with chai spices around here in the past. We’ve made cake, donuts, and granola, and we’re adding cookies to our chai arsenal because chai spices are the ones that warm us to our bones and give us all the good feelings in our bellies that tell us, “oh yeah, this is comforting to my soul.”
Can I get an amen?

And what better way to do that than with an already comforting oatmeal cookie that we can dip in coffee or tea and curl up with on the couch under all the blankets? No better way! Thank you, 12 Days of Christmas Cookies, for allowing this cookie to come into our lives.
To get yourself familiar, if you’re interested, with the way my oatmeal cookies go down, check out my extensive explanation about why oatmeal raisin cookies are made the way they are and why they contain the ingredients they do.
These chai spiced oatmeal cookies are everything those classic cookies are minus the raisins which we swap with white chocolate chips and with a few more spices than just cinnamon to jazz up the flavor and turn something basic into something fancy.
Cardamom and ginger are our besties in these cookies. Cardamom especially is what makes chai so chai-y. It’s a slightly expensive spice, but OMG, it’s amazing.
A favorite spice of my childhood (see these cardamom rolls for something that will knock your socks off), cardamom will turn your oatmeal cookies upside down and keep you coming back for more. Which is totally fine because it’s the holiday season and all about those cookies.
Right? Right.

What you’ll find is that these cookies are so much chew. They are slightly crunchy on the edges, which lead to the most perfectly soft and chewy center filled with those warm spices and white chocolate chips to complement all the goodness happening with the flavors and hearty oats.
You can absolutely leave out the white chocolate chips, but I urge you to leave them in! Just like in my chai spiced granola, they just make life a little sweeter and go so well with all that oatmeal cookie flavor.
Like I said, so sorry it took me a year to bring you another oatmeal cookie! I’m hoping it won’t be 2018’s 12 Days of Christmas Cookies before I bring you another one, because really, the world can never have too many oatmeal cookies.
Am I right?

Whip up a batch and let me know how you like ’em! And get ready for 3 more cookie recipes this week. We are far from over, bakers!
Chai Spiced Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 and 2/3 cup all purpose flour be sure to measure properly
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 and 1/4 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 Tablespoons molasses
- 3 cups old fashioned oats do not use quick oats
- 2/3 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium size bowl with a handheld mixer, or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and both sugars until smooth. Add the eggs and beat on high until combined. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl as needed. Add the vanilla and molasses and beat on high again until completely combined.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat well on low until combined. With the mixer still on low, add oats and white chocolate chips. Blend until everything is evenly dispersed.
- Cover and chill the dough for at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days in the refrigerator. If chilling for longer than an hour, allow dough to sit at room temperature for at least 20 minutes before rolling and baking.
- When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat oven to 350ºF. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside.
- Using a cookie scoop (I use this #50 cookie scoop for all of my standard size cookies), scoop dough into your hand and roll into a ball. Place on baking sheet at least 1 and ½" apart.
- Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes or until edges just begin to brown. Remove from oven and allow to rest on baking sheet for at least 3 minutes. Cookies will look underdone, and will “set” as they cool on baking sheets. Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature up to 1 week. Baked cookies freeze well, as does unbaked rolled dough (up to 2 months). Do not thaw and add an extra minute to baking time.
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Yum! I might make these for my office cookie swap.
If you do, you’ll have to let me know how everyone likes them!
Amen! I love anything chai. I could probably eat a whole dozen of these cookies myself!
Right?! I may have gotten close…
These look amazing! I think I’m going to add them to my Christmas cookie rotation this year. I’m not a big fan of white chocolate, and I know you said we could leave out the chips, but do you think cinnamon chips would work–or would they be overpowering?
Hey, Lara! Sorry I’m just now seeing your comment. It went to my spam for some reason! I think cinnamon chips would be an amazing addition– did you decide to try them??
No worries! I actually couldn’t find cinnamon chips and decided to try the white chocolate and you were so right—they were amazing! Thanks again for the recipe!
Awesome, so glad you loved them!
My family disowns me if I don’t include these in the Christmas cookie tray. 🙂 I adore everything chai-related, and these cookies do not disappoint! The subtle sweetness with the molasses, the spice combination, the white chocolate chips…chef’s kiss! Plus, your living space will smell wonderfully for a few days as a result of the spices! Comes together simply, and a masterpiece of a cookie as a result!
Thanks so much, Laura! I love the spices in this cookie so much!
The only way to make an oatmeal cookie better is to add some chai spice. These are so yummy and feel like a big hug.
TOTALLY AGREE.