copycat little debbie oatmeal cream pie sandwiches stacked on top of each other

Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies

Name: Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 14 min
Total time: 34 min
Ingredients: 1 3/4 cups (222 grams) all-purpose flour; 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter, (at room temperature); 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar; 1 1/4 cups (250 grams) lightly packed dark brown sugar; 2 large eggs, (at room temperature); 1 large egg yolk, (at room temperature); 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 3 cups (270 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats; 1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter, (at room temperature); 2 1/2 cups (313 grams) powdered sugar, (sifted); 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 1 tablespoon milk

By Tessa Arias

October 12th, 2021

5 from 5 votes

13 Comments

5 from 5 votes

13 Comments

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This copycat homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies recipe brings back the best childhood memories of biting into an ultra chewy cookie with a rich creamy filling. They're surprisingly easy and satisfying to make from scratch!

Yield: 12 sandwiches

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook: 14 minutes

Tessa's Recipe Rundown...

Taste: They taste like your childhood… but better! Not quite as sweet and with the perfect hint of cinnamon.
Texture: My favorite part. The cookies are the perfect chewy complement to the rich and creamy filling.
Ease: Easier to make than you might have thought!
Pros: A better tasting and less artificial version of your favorite nostalgic treat.
Cons: None!!
Would I make this again? Absolutely.

Move over, Little Debbie. These Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies are about to become your new best friend.

I like to call these the “adult-version” of Oatmeal Creme Pies. No, they don’t contain alcohol; however, these cookies are decadent and so flavorful. With no artificial flavorings, these copycat cookie sandwiches are made with ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.

Remember how thin and squishy the store-bought cookies were? These babies are thick and chewy with a hint of spice from the cinnamon and chock full of the creamiest, smoothest buttercream.

What is it about fall that’s so nostalgic? Is it the cooler weather, the sound of leaves crunching under your shoes, the building anticipation for the upcoming holidays?

Whatever it is, I’ve been itching to recreate desserts that I loved growing up, and what better way to bring back the best memories of childhood than by recreating a dessert BETTER than what I had as a kid?

Best part about these cookie sandwiches? I guarantee the first bite will evoke all those childhood memories of sitting in the lunchroom and skipping over your sandwich to go straight to your Little Debbie snack while playing with your Tamagotchi, or, let’s be real… listening to Britney Spears on your Walkman.

I think you’re going to love these Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies. Or Oatmeal Creme Pies. However you spell it 😉

How to Make Oatmeal Cream Pies

What kind of oats to use for oatmeal cookies?

This recipe calls for old-fashioned rolled oats, which give the cookies that characteristic craggly look and chewy flavor.

Can I add raisins or chocolate chips to my oatmeal cookies?

You can, though that’ll change the texture and add a little more height to your cookies.

Why are my cookies flat?

If your cookies end up flat, butter that was too warm is likely the culprit. When you go to cream your butter and sugar when making cookies, the butter should be at a COOL room temperature. To be precise, it should be 67°F.

If your butter is too warm, your cookies will spread into flat puddles and you’ll end up with thin cookie sandwiches.

Just take a look at the cookie comparison below:

Flat cookie made with warm butter vs. thicker cookie made with cool butter

Does this dough need to be chilled?

No dough chilling required! I don’t like to refrigerate dough made with oats for too long because oats are such a drying ingredient and really suck up moisture, and you don’t want the dough to dry up too quickly. While you can refrigerate this dough, it’s best to not refrigerate more than 48 hours at most, otherwise you run the risk to dry out.

How to store Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies:

Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Let come to room temperature before serving. The sugar in the frosting acts as a preservative, so these cookies can be stored at room temperature instead, but no longer than a couple of days.

Can I freeze oatmeal cream pies whole?

Yes! Wrap them individually in plastic, then store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight, then let come to room temperature before serving. You can also scoop the cookie dough into balls and freeze those. Learn how to freeze cookie dough and bake from frozen here.

More recipes you’ll love:

5 from 5 votes

How to make

Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies

Yield: 12 sandwiches

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 14 minutes

Total Time: 34 minutes

Ingredients

For the cookies:

1 3/4 cups (222 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups (250 grams) lightly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups (270 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats

For the filling:

1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups (313 grams) powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk

Directions

Make the cookies:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, egg yolk and vanilla, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Slowly beat in the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the oats with a rubber spatula.
Using a spoon or large spring-loaded scoop, drop 3-tablespoon sized balls of dough onto prepared baking sheets. Flatten slightly with the bottom of a measuring cup.
Bake for about 12 to 14 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned, rotating baking sheets halfway through. Let the cookies cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Make the filling:

Beat all ingredients together with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light, fluffy, and smooth, about 5 minutes.
Spread or pipe the filling on half of your cookies and use the remaining cookies to sandwich. Serve or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Let come to room temperature before serving.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: oatmeal cream pies, oatmeal creme pies

If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a picture and share it on Instagram with #handletheheat so we can all see!

Recipe by Tessa Arias

Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.

About Tessa...

I share trusted baking recipes your friends will LOVE alongside insights into the science of sweets. I'm a professionally trained chef, cookbook author, and cookie queen. I love to write about all things sweet, carb-y, and homemade. I live in Phoenix, Arizona (hence the blog name!)

Find Tessa on

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All Comments Questions I Made This

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Kristen Ewing — January 7, 2022 at 2:41 pm

The cookies were super good. I’m not sure I would fill them again. Such a big sandwich and soooo sweet. But fun to try something new.

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Laura — December 3, 2021 at 11:32 am

can this measurement be clarified please, 1 1/2 sticks of butter does not equal to 170 grams. Which one is should i do for the recipe?

Thank you 🙂

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  Haley Wehner — December 3, 2021 at 2:28 pm
  
  Hi Laura! There are 113 grams in one stick of butter, so 170 grams in 1 1/2 sticks of butter. You can follow either measurement for these cookies. Hope you enjoy your oatmeal cream pies!
  
  Reply
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Lizzy — October 30, 2021 at 7:34 am

The creme is a little sweet but its yummy

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Amanda — October 16, 2021 at 11:18 pm

Super good cookie. I would make just the cookie and eat it it’s so good. They are super sweet though with the icing so I would rather make a bunch of smaller ones because I have a hard time eating even half of one this big due to the sweetness.

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  Emily — October 18, 2021 at 3:47 pm
  
  So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Amanda! With oatmeal cookies, you want to be careful using a 2 tsp scoop or smaller as you run the risk of the cookies drying out and crumbling due to the oatmeal soaking up all the moisture, so make sure to bake for a couple minutes less depending on the size scoop you use 🙂
  
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ana sousa — October 16, 2021 at 3:03 am

sorry for my silly comment about printing….. I hadn’t noticed you already have this button…. (forget my comment)

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  Emily — October 18, 2021 at 2:48 pm
  
  So excited for you to try these! Please let us know what you think 🙂
  
  Reply
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ana sousa — October 16, 2021 at 3:00 am

Iíll try to bake them this weekend, they look so yummy…. I am not american, I am European (Portuguese) so I’m not familiar with these cookies, but I am dying to taste them…. thanks for sharing… By the way is there a PRINT button? It makes things so much quick and easier to print and copy to keep the recipe in my recipe dossier for further bakings

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Katie — October 15, 2021 at 1:36 pm

These cookies were amazing! I added 1/4 cup if dried cranberries because I’m looking at making something like this for Thanksgiving!

If I make these again, I’ll cut the cookie size in about half because they make ginormous cookie sandwiches! My husband thought they were perfect size though!

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  Emily — October 15, 2021 at 2:31 pm
  
  Oooo adding cranberries would make them that much chewier, delish!! So happy you both enjoyed this recipe 🙂
  
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Alyssa Williams — October 15, 2021 at 9:34 am

These were super easy to make with ingredients I had laying around the kitchen. I tend to make bigger cookies (not like that’s a bad thing ) so I ended up getting 16 cookies so 8 sandwiches and then cut those in half to bring to work for everyone. I’m not kidding when I say I intended to only have one bite and ended up eating three. Everyone at work loved them and said they put the little Debbie ones to shame.

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  Emily — October 15, 2021 at 10:50 am
  
  Amazing! So happy to hear that! I agree, this homemade version is SO SO good! Thanks so much for sharing, Alyssa 🙂
  
  Reply

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