Beautiful Lace Cookies Recipe | Foodal (2024)

When I was a little girl, I loved going to the bakery to help pick out cookies when we were hosting a special occasion at our home.

I would stand in front of the display case and point to the prettiest ones that I thought would help decorate our dessert table.

And I always had a favorite…

Lace cookies!

Thin, delicate, and covered in tiny holes, these beautiful rounds were always my first pick.

Sometimes with a layer of melted chocolate or decadent ganache sandwiched between them or drizzled on top, they make for the most memorable treat.

Around the time we were planning my first child’s christening, I came across a recipe for these beautiful, caramelized sweets.

I hadn’t even considered that I could recreate this childhood favorite of mine in my own kitchen.

I was even more excited that I already had all of the simple ingredients in my pantry and fridge!

That weekend, I made dozens upon dozens for the reception, expecting everyone would try just one to start… but then quickly come back for more.

And my prediction was right – they were a huge hit!

With basic baking ingredients like butter, oats, sugar, and flour, you probably have what you need already on hand to make these for your next special occasion.

All you need now is the recipe.

Take a look below, and get ready to make a breathtaking, sweet delight everyone will love.

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Cooking by the Numbers…

Step 1 – Prep

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line three half-size baking sheets with one silicone mat or parchment paper each.

Take note that the slippery material of silicone mats may cause the batter to spread more thinly than parchment paper.

Completely melt the unsalted butter in a small pot on the stovetop or in the microwave. Allow to cool slightly as you measure the remaining ingredients.

Measure out the granulated sugar, light brown sugar, vanilla extract, oats, flour, salt, and baking powder.

Beat the egg in a small bowl with a fork or whisk.

Step 2 – Make the Batter

In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and both sugars. Mix until they are completely combined. Add the beaten egg and vanilla extract, whisking once again until everything is completely combined.

At this point, switch from a whisk to a mixing spoon or rubber spatula. Because the oats will get stuck in the whisk, it will be much easier to mix with a more suitable utensil.

Mix in the oats, flour, salt, and baking powder, continuing to stir until all of the ingredients are completely combined. The mixture will resemble a thick yet soft and slightly runny batter.

As the butter continues to set at room temperature, do not be surprised if the batter becomes slightly thicker and stiffer. This is normal!

Step 3 – Portion and Place on Baking Sheets

For the most consistent measurements, use a 1-tablespoon scooper utensil to create even portions.

Use the scoop to measure out portions of batter, ensuring that the batter is flush with the top edge of the scoop.

Gently drop each portion onto a prepared baking sheet, positioning 8 portions per baking sheet that are about 3 inches apart from each other.

You don’t want to overcrowd the pans – the batter will spread significantly. You want to leave enough space so that the batter can spread without running into the other portions as they bake.

You may have some leftover batter – if that is the case, you will need to place any remaining portions on a fourth lined sheet pan.

Step 4 – Bake and Cool completely

Transfer the baking sheets to the oven. Depending on your oven size, you may need to work in batches.

Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until the mounds have formed into thin rounds that are a deep golden-brown color around the edges with a slightly pale-yellow center.

Do the rounds still look… really pale? They still need to spend some time in the oven – continue baking for an additional 2 to 5 minutes, and check again.

If some of the mounds did spread into each other a little – and this will happen, as factors such as subtle measurement variations, humidity in the air, and differences between baking sheet liners can all slightly affect the baking outcome – don’t panic.

The worst decision you can make is to try to fix anything while everything is still warm and setting. Just… wait!

Once they have cooled in the next step, they will easily break off into individual rounds at the points where they spread into each other.

Immediately remove the baking sheets from the oven.

Allow them to cool completely on the baking sheet. This will take up to one hour.

Do not agitate or disturb them as they continue to cool, as they may break. The cooling process sets each baked round into their final shapes – be patient!

Step 5 – Remove from Baking Sheets

Carefully remove each round from the pan using a small, offset spatula.

The thin metal blade of this nifty, and very useful, decorating tool is able to fit between the cookie and the silicone mat or baking sheet, helping to cleanly and swiftly detach each one with little risk of breakage.

While they may stick slightly if you try to pry them off by hand, they should come off easily with the offset spatula.

But still be gentle! They are very delicate and can break easily.

Serve immediately, or store them for up to one week in an airtight container at room temperature. You can gently place them on top of one another.

Step 6 – Decorate with Melted Chocolate (Optional)

Once they have cooled completely, you can choose to decorate them with melted chocolate. Use your favorite kind of chocolate – dark, milk, or white.

To make sandwiches, spread a thin layer of melted chocolate on one side of a cookie, and place another plain cookie on top of the chocolate layer.

You can also drizzle chocolate on top, or dip one half of a cookie in chocolate. The choice of chocolaty goodness is yours!

Place them on a cutting board, baking sheet, or tray and let the chocolate harden completely at room temperature before serving.

Love That Lace

Caramelized and delicate, lace cookies are a beautiful dessert to serve for any special event you are celebrating.

Weddings, birthdays, anniversaries – any of these fun occasions will surely be memorable, especially with the sweet help of these buttery, crispy treats!

While the dreamy chocolate provides a perfect decadent contrast, you can definitely serve them on their own without this indulgent extra ingredient.

This might be the case if your chocolate seizes on you! But we can help fix this melting mishap.

Have you made these before? How do you like to serve them? Give us all the details in our comment section below.

For more cookies featuring the hearty, nutty goodness of oats, read through these three recipe suggestions next when you’re ready to make another addictive batch of desserts:

• Salted White Chocolate Chip Oatmeal
• Chocolate and Pomegranate Oatmeal (Vegan and Gluten Free)
• Classic Oatmeal Chocolate Chip

Photos by Nikki Cervone, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published on August 18, 2017. Last updated on October 23, 2023. With additional writing and editing by Nikki Cervone.

Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.