Since discovering Oreos, I regularly have to steer myself away from the cookie aisle just in case I buy another pack but now I can make my own – and so can you.

I love to make the things I love from scratch though so, of course, I had to try to create the classic chocolate cookie myself. These homemade oreo cookies taste just like the real thing. This recipe makes the perfect crisp chocolate cookie, filled with a simple vanilla buttercream.

A grey plate covered in homemade oreo cookies on a white tablecloth

Ingredients you’ll need

Homemade Oreo Cookies contain all the usual chocolate cookie ingredients;

Try to get a really dark dutch processed cocoa. This is what traditional Oreos are made with and gives them their signature colour. For me, I found they still weren’t quite dark enough so I also added the tiniest bit of black food colouring. This is totally optional, however.

You can see these cookies without the black food colouring sitting atop these Chocolate Cookies and Cream Cupcakes and I’ve also used them to make my Chocolate Peppermint Cookies.

How to make Oreos from scratch

Creaming together butter and sugar for cookies in a glass bowl, then adding flour & cocoa

A bowl of thick chocolate cookie dough, then the dough rolled out

  1. Start by creaming together butter and sugar.
  2. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Also add the milk and the food colouring if using at this point.
  3. Stop mixing once it comes together into thick clumps of dough.
  4. Roll the dough out until it’s about 3-4mm thick (imagine how thin oreo cookies are – these cookies will rise just slightly in the oven)

Cutting out circles of chocolate cookie dough and placing them on a baking tray

Piping white buttercream onto chocolate cookies, then sandwiching them together.

  1. Use a 4cm circle cookie cutter to cut out circles of dough,
  2. then space them out on a lined baking tray, about 1 inch apart.
  3. Pipe the buttercream onto the “top” of each cookie – these gives you a pretty pattern to use as the texture on the cookie which is actually the underside of the baked cookie.
  4. Top it with another cookie “bottom up” and you’re done.

Substitutions

You can really have some fun substituting flavours here.

  • Flavours: How about trying mint or strawberry extract in place of vanilla.
  • Chocolate: Try dipping them in chocolate
  • Buttercream: Want to make your homemade oreos even easier? Just cut out circles of rolled fondant to use as the filling.

The cookies will soften over time, so the best way to store them is in an airtight container with a small dish of baking soda with them. The baking soda helps to absorb excess moisture, keeping the cookies as crisp as possible. They longer they are store, though, the more they will soften.

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So there you have it, folks. This Homemade Oreo Cookie recipe will surprise in how simple yet how perfect they are. Get a glass of milk ready, because these are that classic chocolate cookie made from scratch.

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A stack of homemade oreo cookies on a grey plate

Homemade Oreo Cookies

Yield: 25 cookies
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
0 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
4.9 from 40 ratings
Homemade Oreo Cookies are not only easy to make but they're also better for you than shop-bought. Full of chocolate flavour and a simple buttercream, you can be serving up these cute little cookies today.
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Ingredients

FOR THE COOKIES

  • 130 g  plain (all-purp) flour (1 cup / 4.6oz)
  • 35 g  corn flour (cornstarch) (¼ cup / 1.2oz)
  • ⅓ cup dutch processed cocoa (35g / 1.2oz)
  • ½ teaspoon  baking soda (bicarb)
  • 135 g  granulated sugar (⅔ cup / 4.8oz)
  • 95 g  unsalted butter, softened (3.4oz), (notes)
  • 1  tablespoon  milk  (notes)
  • 1-2 drops black gel food colouring (optional)

FOR THE EASY VANILLA BUTTERCREAM

  • 113  g  unsalted butter, softened (½ cup / 1 stick)
  • 1 ½  cups  icing (powdered / confectioners) sugar (195g / 6.9oz)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or to taste)

For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided

Equipment

  • circle cookie cutters

Instructions
 

FOR THE CHOCOLATE COOKIES

  • Preheat oven to 180C / 350F /160C fan forced. Line 2 large baking trays with baking paper.
  • Sift together the flour, cornflour, cocoa and baking soda and whisk to thoroughly combine.
  • In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until lightened and fluffy.
  • Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add half the flour mix. Beat until just combined. Add the milk and food colouring (if using), and remainder of the flour. Mix until it starts to clump.
  • Pull the dough together with your hands. Dust a sheet of baking paper lightly with cocoa, then the top of the dough. Roll the dough out to about 3-4mm thick and use a circle cookie cutter to cut out small circles (3-4cm or not quite 2 inches round). Re-roll as necessary.
  • Sit on baking trays an inch apart. Bake for around 10 minutes, turning the trays halfway through.
  • Allow the cookies to cool on the trays for a few minutes before using a spatula to help to transfer them to a wire cooling rack. Once cool, they will firm up and be crispy all the way through (notes).

FOR THE EASY VANILLA BUTTERCREAM

  • Add the butter, icing sugar, vanilla extract and colouring (if using) to a bowl and beat with a handheld mixer (or in a stand mixer) until pale and creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
  • Spread or pipe some buttercream onto the flat side of half of the cooled cookies, then top with another cookie (underside pointing up so that you get a textured looking cookie top).

Notes

  1. I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (= 4 teaspoons worldwide)
  2. For best results, you should always weigh ingredients like flour and sugar. Kitchen scales are relatively cheap but if you can’t weigh the ingredients, use the spoon and level method (don’t scoop).
  3. I use corn starch a lot in my baking. Cake flour is a combination of all-purpose and cornstarch but in Australia is not so readily available. I use this combo in my recipes a lot instead of using cake flour.
  4. To keep the individual cookies crispy, store them in an airtight container along with a small bowl filled with a couple of tablespoons of baking soda (bicarb). 
  5. These cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to a week.
  6. If you don't have scales, the butter in this recipe is equal to 1 stick less 4 teaspoons.
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Calories: 32kcal
Author: Marie Roffey
Course: Afternoon Tea, Dessert, High Tea, Sweets
Cuisine: American
Have you tried this recipe?Don't forget to leave a rating and comment below and let me know how it was! I love hearing from you. Nutrition information is approximate and derived from an online calculator. The brands you use may cause variations.