Brown Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. Just like Mom’s classic oatmeal cookies—but with a gluten-free twist and no refined sugar! Picture buttery oatmeal cookie bars loaded with gooey chocolate chips. They’re made with simple, wholesome ingredients: butter, old-fashioned oats, almond flour, maple syrup, coconut oil, eggs, and probably way too many chocolate chips. But let’s be real—you can never have too many! These bars are sweet, a little salty, packed with chocolate, gluten-free, and absolutely delicious.
Growing up, my mom always baked cookies before dinner. She’s kinda famous for it. That’s just how things were in our house—homemade desserts were a given. The real question was, “Okay, but what’s for dinner?”
Most nights, Dad handled dinner. Things have changed since then, but Mom’s still known for her desserts, especially her oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
She makes them in one bowl—no fancy tricks. Just dump all the ingredients together, mix, bake, and enjoy.
Sometimes she’d make them as cookies, other times as bars. Either way, they were one of my all-time favorites.
After all the holiday baking, I decided to tweak her recipe to make it a bit healthier.
Mom used canola oil, but we’re swapping that for a mix of brown butter and coconut oil. Instead of sugar, we’re using maple syrup, and almond flour replaces all-purpose flour.
Don’t worry—it’s still just as easy. And trust me, these bars are so good, with toasty brown butter and pools of melted chocolate!
Here’s what you’ll need:
Ingredients
- Salted butter
- Old-fashioned oats (I love Bob’s Red Mill)
- Almond flour (again, Bob’s Red Mill is my go-to)
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Melted coconut oil
- Maple syrup
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Chocolate chips (lots of them)
Fancy Tools?
Nope! Just a skillet, a mixing bowl, and a baking pan.
Steps
Step 1: Brown the butter
The secret? Browning the salted butter in a skillet on the stove. Use a medium skillet so it doesn’t bubble over.
Melt the butter over medium heat and let it cook until it smells nutty and turns a gorgeous golden color. Just keep an eye on it—don’t let it burn!
Step 2: Mix the dough
Toss the oats, almond flour, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. Add the melted coconut oil, brown butter, maple syrup, eggs, and vanilla.
Order doesn’t matter—just throw everything in (except the chocolate chips) and mix!
Step 3: Add chocolate & bake
Now, fold in the chocolate chips. Use semi-sweet, dark, or a mix—whatever you love!
Bake for about 25 minutes, and that’s it.
We always dig in while they’re still warm (they’ll be messy, but that’s half the fun). If you can wait, let them cool—but honestly, the warm, gooey middle is the best part. The edges are perfectly crisp, the center stays soft, and they’ve got just the right balance of sweet, salty, and rich flavor.
This batch makes about 24 bars, so they’re perfect for sharing… or not.
