Description
Delightfully chewy caramel oatmeal cookies featuring a buttery base, old-fashioned oats, and sweet toffee bits, encasing a gooey caramel center with a sprinkle of flaked sea salt on top for a perfect balance of sweet and salty flavors.
Ingredients
Scale
Wet Ingredients
- ½ cup butter (room temperature)
- 1 large egg (room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- ¾ cups dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1¼ cups old-fashioned oats
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
Add-ins and Topping
- ½ cup toffee bits
- 14 soft caramels
- Flaked sea salt for topping
Instructions
- Cream Butter and Sugars: Place the room temperature butter, dark brown sugar, and granulated sugar into a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until the mixture becomes light and fluffy, approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add Egg and Vanilla: Incorporate the egg and vanilla extract into the creamed butter mixture. Mix until smooth and well combined, about 30 seconds.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together salt, baking powder, baking soda, and all-purpose flour. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing slowly to avoid over-mixing. Stop mixing when some flour remnants are still visible around the bowl.
- Add Oats and Toffee Bits: Mix in the old-fashioned oats on low speed until just incorporated, then fold in the toffee bits gently by hand.
- Prepare Cookie Dough with Caramels: Using a 3-tablespoon scoop, portion the dough into cookie balls. Take one soft caramel, roll it into a small ball, and place it gently in the center of each cookie dough ball, being careful not to push it too far in. Chill the cookie dough for 2 to 24 hours to allow the flavors to meld and dough to firm up.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Baking Sheets: When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 365°F (185°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and arrange 6 to 8 cookies per sheet, spaced apart. Lightly sprinkle flaked sea salt on top of each cookie.
- Bake Cookies: Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges turn golden brown but the centers remain soft. After removing from the oven, top with a little extra flaked sea salt for added flavor contrast.
Notes
- Chilling the dough overnight enhances the flavor and helps prevent cookies from spreading too much during baking.
- Use soft caramels for easy rolling and melting inside the cookie center.
- Be careful not to overmix the dry ingredients to maintain a tender cookie texture.
- If you prefer a chewier cookie, slightly underbake by removing them from the oven when edges are set but centers are still soft.
- Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: caramel oatmeal cookies, toffee cookies, chewy cookies, caramel stuffed cookies, homemade cookies
