Grandma Millie’s Famous Oatmeal Cookies
My Grandma Millie was one fantastic grandmother, that’s for sure. She was originally from England, and ever since I was a little girl – I thought she was the classiest lady I’d ever known. From the words she used when she spoke, the way she dressed, to even the way her house was decorated.
She passed away just a few years ago, when I was pregnant with my little boy – who is now 3 1/2. We knew she was dying, and she had told me not to come to the hospice because she wanted me to remember her healthier. But, I think deep down inside she knew I was too stubborn for that. So, I came – and I will never forget her words when I walked through the door to her room. ‘Crystal! I told you not to come…. But, I’m SO glad you did! Now, come give me a hug!’.
That was the last day I saw her, and I even get a little teary eyed writing this post. She was such a wonderful grandmother, I couldn’t have asked for a better one. And, I will always carry memories with me of the great times we had together.
You know, the very first time I ever had macaroni & cheese from ‘the blue box’ was with her? My Mama never bought the stuff, and always made hers from scratch. Well, Grandma Millie pulled out a box of it from her pantry one day when I was spending a week with her when I was about 13 year old, and prepared it for us for dinner – and it may sound crazy to some of you, but I was in total awe and thought it was so good… much to the dismay of my dear mother who’d labored over the stove making it homemade all my life! So, ‘the blue box’ of macaroni & cheese became a tradition for us to eat whenever I came to visit. There was never a time I was there that she didn’t stock up on it – it was ‘our’ thing.
My favorite memory of all was making cookies with her! And of course, eating those cookies!
Grandma Millie made cookies with all of her grandchildren when any of us came to visit, and it was always a blast! Plus, there was never a Christmas that went by that we she didn’t send every one of her kids & grandkids a big ol’ box of cookies. She was like the Queen of Cookies!
She made so many varieties, but her specialty was her ‘famous’ oatmeal cookies. No, they weren’t famous like Brad Pitt – but they were famous to our family for sure! In fact, I don’t remember a single Christmas without a big batch of these in our house, and everyone always looked forward to those special cookie deliveries. Even when Grandma Millie’s arthritis started getting really bad later in life, she still was in the kitchen making her oatmeal cookies for all her family.
Grandma Millie is in Heaven with the good Lord now – and I have picked up the tradition of making her delicious oatmeal cookies for my own children, husband, the rest of my family, & friends. I even package them up & mail them to my father so he can enjoy his favorite cookie too. Last year, Daddy paid me one of the biggest compliments I’ve ever received from him too… which was, “Crystal, these cookies taste just like moms!‘. Wowzers! That made my whole month year when he told me that!
I have never had an oatmeal cookie that I like better than my grandmother’s. Seriously! They are absolutely delicious – and it’s just not Christmas here in my house without a big batch of these!
So, when the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap came up – I immediately knew that these would be the cookies I’d make to send out to the 3 bloggers I was assigned. And, I figured it was about time that I shared this magnificent cookie recipe with all of y’all… handed down to me from my wonderful grandmother, and now I’m handing it down to all of you! What better way to let my beautiful Grandma Millie’s memory live on by sharing her delicious oatmeal cookie recipe with all of you?!
Although, I do have to say – I’m all about sharing my & my family’s recipes with you, my friends… but this was the one recipe I was a little hesitant about for a while. But, I’ve been thinking about it for some time now – and I decided I was finally ready to share this wonderful cookie recipe of my lovely grandmother’s with all of you… and I really hope that you enjoy them as much as we all do, and have enjoyed for as long as I can remember!
Yet another great thing about this recipe – they are SO simple! Seriously! Even my kids can make these… and they’re better than any other oatmeal cookie I’ve ever tasted before. Crisp with just the right amount of sweet & oatmeal.
Absolute Perfection.
Here’s what you need:
As you can see in the above ingredient photo, I’ve got a stick of margarine… or as Grandma Millie would say, ‘oleo‘. Now, this part is VERY important. Do NOT by any means substitute the margarine for butter! You may think, hey – butter makes everything better. And in 99% of cases, that is absolutely correct. But, not here. Don’t do it, just don’t. I don’t know why, but it ruins these cookies… they just don’t taste right. You HAVE to use margarine. Trust me on this.
First things first, cream together 1/2 cup of shortening with 1/2 cup of margarine (aka oleo – just love that word!) using an electric mixer or stand mixer. You can also hand beat it with a whisk, but I’m kind of lazy in that aspect and prefer to my electric mixing devices 🙂
Beat in 1 cup of brown sugar & 1 cup of white sugar until creamy.
Add in 2 eggs along with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Beat well.
Mix in 1 & 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, & 1 teaspoon of baking soda.
And last but not least, stir in 3 cups of old fashioned oats.
Grandma’s recipe calls for using an ungreased pan – but I do usually line my baking sheet with aluminum foil & give it a light spray of non-stick cooking spray.
Roll the cookie dough into small balls – and place on your baking sheet.
Using 2 fingers, lightly press down each ball just a tad to slightly flatten them.
Bake in an oven that has been preheated to 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. No more than 10 minutes! I’ve found that my cookies are done at precisely 10 minutes each & every time – and you certainly don’t want to overcook them.
What comes out of your oven is not only a time honored recipes, past down from my grandmother – but you get the best oatmeal cookie EVER.
Grandma Millie was the master of oatmeal cookies, and now you can serve her famous oatmeal cookies in your own home. 🙂
Grandma Millie's Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup shortening
- ½ cup margarine do NOT substitute butter, trust me on this - they won't turn out the same!
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 & ½ cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 cups old fashioned oats oatmeal
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Cream together the shortening & margarine. Beat in the light brown sugar along with the white sugar until smooth & creamy. Add in the eggs & vanilla extract; mix well. Stir in the flour, salt, & baking soda. Fold in 3 cups of old fashioned oats.
- Roll the cookie batter into small balls, about 1 teaspoon's worth or so. Place on a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Using 2 fingers, lightly press down on each cookie dough ball to slightly flatten it. Don't completely flatten them, just press down lightly so they're not a round ball anymore.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes. I find my cookies are done in exactly 10 minutes, and not a second more. You don't want to overcook them! After baking for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes; then transfer the cookies onto a wire cooling rack to finish cooling. They will crisp up as they cool.
I was one of the lucky ones to receive your cookies from the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap. Thank you!! I’m glad to hear this story, it is so sweet!! (cookedwithlovebymom.com)
Yay! I hope you enjoyed them as much as we do every year. They always remind me of my Grandmother and such wonderful memories spent with her! <3
Hi Crystal,
Lovely story! My mother was also very happy precious in spirit – even in hospice. You sharing this recipe so touched me. I FELT it! 🥰 The only question I have is if you ever added walnuts and raisins? Thanks for sharing, and, blessings!
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So loved hearing about your Grandma. I too adored my Gramma – she made crullers which I have never tried to duplicate tho have the recipe. I don’t have any margarine (oleo 🙂 to my Gramma also) but will buy the next time I grocery shop b/c I have to make your Grandma’s Famous Oatmeal cookies – with that loving recollection how could I not. Thank you for sharing.
Hi there, thanks for sharing you treasure with the world 🙂
I’ve never seen a recipe so simple and that sounds so delicious like this before!
The only thing I can’t find is the shortening (I’m not in the US) 🙁
what could be a good substitute?
Vegetable shortening is a white, solid fat made from vegetable oils. In the UK it is sold under the brand names Trex, Flora White or Cookeen. In the US Crisco is the best known and there is also an organic solid vegetable shortening made by Earth Balance. In Australia the best known brand is Copha.
IN THE RECIPE YOU PUT SODA, BUT IN DIRECTION YOU PUT SODA. WHICH IS IT. CAN RAISINS BE ADDED TO RECIOES.
I AM SORRY YOU PUT BAKING POWDER.
Omg!!! I was unable to read your recipe between the tears. Family recipes and traditions are a must to pass down. My mother’s meat pie recipe was a challenge but after all these years practising I can finally go solo and make the traditional meat pie at Christmas and thanksgiving . It truly is an honour when you hear, “taste just like Moms’. Can’t wait to bake a batch of your famous oatmeal cookies. There is always room for one tradition!
Do have to use light brown sugar?
This recipe is very similar to my Great-Great-Aunt Minnie’s oatmeal ranger cookies, and I want’ to back you up: NO BUTTER, MARGARINE IS A MUST! Aren’t these the best?!? My husband likes these with raisins, too, but Aunt Minnie never used them.
What a sweet and beautiful story. These are so delicious and we are keeping this recipe! However, I made the “cardinal sin” and substituted 1/2 cup unsalted butter for the shortening, and 1/2 cup salted butter for the margarine. We don’t eat margarine for health reasons, thoigh that’s all my mom used as a kid. I also just used baking soda (not baking powder) as baking powder would have turned them into little cakes I presume. Thank you for sharing your sweet memories, and for bringing this recipe and her memory to others????!!!
Lovely sentiments. Don’t like margarine, but you have me sold.
Can I add raisins?
Sure!
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Thank you for Grandma Millie’s Oatmeal cookies! I wanted a new cookie to try to go on my cookie trays this year and now I have it! I tried them out tonight and LOVE them! They are crispy and chewy! I used baking soda and am now seeing the comments about it saying baking powder in the directions! Which is it supposed to be? I can’t imagine them tasting any better so I guess I’ll stick with the baking soda!
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What do use for shortening?
Usually Crisco
Thank you. I shall try these today. I was looking for something crispy, as my husband doesn’t like chewy oatmeal cookies (I just don’t get it). Also I love that it’s margarine, as we keep kosher and I wanted a pareve recipe not daisy
Hello, how happy am I that I found your Grandmother’s OATMEAL COOKIE RECIPE, (MY absolute favorite cookie in the whole world, hands down), However, they HAVE to be the crisp kind, not those soft ones, and sharing the memories are by far UNBEATABLE. THANK YOU SO MUCH for that. I hadn’t heard about “the infamous BLUE BOX” in ages. ???? That was always my choice of Mac n Cheese before empty nesting. The cheese sauce in the foil packet was a sure fire hit!!! I am looking forward to making some of the COOKIES really soon. “HIGH-FIVE”
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Well is it baking SODA or baking POWDER? I KEPT WAITING FOR AN ANSWER. I want to make these.
It’s baking SODA 🙂
Thanks for sharing, i love your story, ❤️
Can you use quick oats for this recipe?
Yes, you can.
These are THE BEST oatmeal cookies. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe!
I’m so glad you love them!! I happen to think they are too. It makes me so happy that so many other folks are making Grandma Millie’s oatmeal cookies in their own kitchens!
Substitution for margarine??
Butter is the best substitute, however – they just wont taste the same. I am someone who never ever uses margarine, but this is the only recipe Ill buy it for. Otherwise, they just aren’t as good.