Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
TASTE: Gooey chocolate marbled throughout a nutty, oaty cookie with the perfect amount of bourbon flavor – and the sprinkling of flaky sea salt is the perfect finish.
TEXTURE: Soft, moist, and CHEWY!
EASE: Super simple – you don’t even need a mixer for this recipe.
PROS: So many incredible flavors in one delicious cookie.
CONS: This cookie dough does need to chill prior to baking – but I promise it’s worth the wait.
WOULD I MAKE THIS AGAIN? I’ve already made these cookies many times!
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Infused with rich bourbon caramel notes, chewy oats, nutty rye flour, chocolate decadence, and flaky sea salt, these Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies are the most flavorful, heavenly, salty-sweet bites of indulgence you’ll ever taste.
These cookies are a new favorite in my house. And with my team. And all our family and friends. Yes, they’re truly that amazing!
I’m known for being cookie-obsessed. I have over 100 fantastic cookie recipes on the site, with favorites like my famous Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies, my crazy-popular Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies, and fun recipes like my Browned Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies.
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I even wrote a whole cookbook on cookies, full of life-changing cookie tips and tricks, as well as dozens of delicious recipes.
So, when I decided to create a bourbon-forward cookie recipe, Joe was thrilled (he loves whiskey) and my team couldn’t have been more excited to help me test it out.
We experimented with this cookie recipe about 10 times before nailing the texture and flavor – and our friends and family didn’t mind one bit! Joe even proclaimed these as his new favorite cookie! He’s asked me to make these countless times since.
These bourbon cookies are great for any holiday party or potluck – and they’re the perfect unique Christmas cookie idea! Be sure to check out all my tips just below for the most amazing cookies ever.
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies
How to Make Chewy, Flavorful Bourbon Cookies
- Weigh your ingredients. This is my #1 tip for moist, chewy cookies. Measuring by volume (using measuring cups) makes it so easy to accidentally add too much flour, resulting in cookies that are dry, tough, hard, and don’t spread nicely as they bake. I recommend using a digital kitchen scale, but if you don’t have one, use the ‘spoon and level’ method to measure your ingredients.
- Don’t reduce the sugar! Sugar does so much more beyond simply sweetening your cookies. Learn more about sugar’s role in baking here.
- Chill the dough before baking. It’s worth the wait for thick, chewy cookies with amazing flavor, promise! Chill for at least 2 hours, but 24-48 hours is best. Skipping this step will make your cookies flatter with a much more subtle bourbon flavor. Don’t chill longer than 48 hours, as oats tend to zap moisture and will dry out your cookie dough. Learn more about chilling cookie dough here.
What Type of Bourbon do I Need?
I tested these Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Maker’s Mark bourbon. If you use a cheaper brand, keep in mind that your cookies may have a more subtle bourbon flavor once baked.
Can I Omit the Bourbon or Use a Different Alcohol?
Although these cookies are fantastic with bourbon, feel free to experiment with a different dark liquor if that’s all you have on hand. Rum, rye, or a different whiskey should work just fine. Scotch may overpower the cookies, but if you like the flavor of scotch, feel free to give that a try.
If you need to skip the alcohol entirely, I recommend instead trying my Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe here.
What Type of Chocolate for Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies?
- I used a combination of semisweet and bittersweet chocolate for these Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies.
- This combination gives the perfect balance of sweetness and richness in each bite and complements the bourbon perfectly.
- I recommend chopping blocks of baking chocolate (like Ghirardelli baking chocolate) for the best flavor and marbling of chocolate throughout each cookie.
- Chocolate chips will work instead in a pinch.
What Type of Oats for Bourbon Oatmeal Cookies?
Use old-fashioned rolled oats, not quick oats. Old-fashioned oats will give a wonderful chewy texture and a pretty craggly appearance to the cookies.
Do I Really Need Rye Flour?
- Yes – a combination of all-purpose flour and dark rye flour is crucial for the flavor and texture of these cookies.
- We tested these cookies using only all-purpose flour and found the resulting cookies to be much less flavorful, less chewy, and they also dried out faster.
- I used Gold Medal Bleached All-Purpose Flour and Bob’s Red Mill Dark Rye Flour.
- Dark rye flour brings a fabulous nuttiness to these cookies, adding a beautiful layer of complexity that I just adore.
- If you can’t find dark rye flour, regular rye flour will work, too – but you can grab dark rye flour online here.
- If you cannot use rye flour: Use a total of 2 cups (249 grams) all-purpose flour, and be sure to chill the cookie dough for 24 hours before baking. Skipping this chill period will result in thinner cookies with much less flavor.
Do I Have to Use Dark Brown Sugar?
Dark brown sugar adds more moisture to these Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies, but if you only have light brown sugar, you can use that instead (1:1 ratio) – just note that your cookies may be slightly lighter in color and less flavorful.
Can I Halve This Recipe? Can I Double This Recipe?
Yes – simply double all ingredients to yield approximately 48 cookies, or halve all ingredients to yield about 12 cookies.
How to Store Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies?
Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. To keep the cookies extra soft, store them with a small tortilla or apple core!
Can You Freeze Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies?
Yes! Chill the Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookie dough in the fridge for 24 hours, then freeze portioned cookie dough balls topped with chocolate chunks in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the fridge before baking as directed in the recipe. Baking straight from frozen will result in cookies with a milder bourbon flavor and less spread (not recommended). Learn why chilling cookie dough before freezing is important here.
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Bourbon Rye Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter
- 2 cups (400 grams) lightly packed dark brown sugar
- 1 1/4 cups (159 grams) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (90 grams) dark rye flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons bourbon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups (180 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 4 ounces (113 grams) semisweet chocolate, chopped into chunks
- 4 ounces (113 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chunks
- Flaky sea salt, for finishing
Instructions
- In a large bowl, melt the butter. Add in the sugar and stir to combine. Let cool to just warm.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, rye flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- To the cooled butter mixture, whisk in the egg, egg yolk, bourbon, and vanilla until very well combined. Slowly beat in the flour mixture until just combined. With a rubber spatula, stir in the oats and nearly all of the chocolate chunks, setting aside about ⅓ cup (50 grams) to garnish the cookie dough balls. Cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours but preferably overnight.*
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Using a spoon or large spring-loaded scoop, drop 3-tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto a lined baking sheet, spacing at least 3 inches apart. Press a few chocolate chunks into the top of each dough ball.
- Bake for about 12 to 13 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Let the cookies cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.
- Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Recipe Notes
Photos by Joanie Simon.
I made these at Christmas and they were a HIT! Everyone raved about them, these cookies are absolutely delicious 😋. It’s my best friend’s birthday this Thursday, and she requested these instead of cake!
Can I use semisweet chocolate? I didn’t have the bittersweet in my pantry
Hi Jackie! For the best balance of sweetness, we’d recommend using a mix of semisweet and bittersweet. If you only have semisweet, just know that your cookies will be sweeter.