Homemade Oreos + Video
These easy Homemade Oreos are made completely from scratch. Soft, fudgy (brownie-like) chocolate cookies are stuffed with a simple, vanilla cream filling.
Oreo Cakesters
Remember Oreo Cakesters? The soft sandwich cookies from the mid-2000’s?
These Homemade Oreos are A LOT like that.
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I remembered that my friend Erin used to make some soft Oreos for Christmas neighbor plates, so I asked her for her recipe.
Her recipe uses a boxed cake mix, which is fine, but I wanted something from scratch, so into the kitchen I went to start creating this recipe for you.
Crisp vs. Soft Cookies
This isn’t my first time making Oreos at home. I’ve also got some Homemade Mint Oreos on my blog and they are also really good, but different.
The cookie is crisp, yet tender and makes a great, sturdy sandwich cookie.
It’s a nice choice if you’re going for a more classic Oreo cookie. AND you don’t have to cut it out like sugar cookies.
But for these homemade (cakester style) Oreos, the cookie needed to be softer.
It was tricky to get a softer texture without it being too thick and cakey like a whoopie pie.
After four test batches, I have achieved the BEST homemade Oreos, and I’m confident that you will love these as much as I do.
What are the Ingredients to Make Homemade Oreos?
- All-purpose flour
- Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa (or King Arthur Flour’s Black Cocoa Powder – use half as much or it will dry out due to the higher alkalinity)
- Baking Soda
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Butter
- Granulated Sugar
- Brown Sugar
- Large Egg
- Vanilla
- Milk
These are all basic pantry staples if you’re a regular at-home baker.
I definitely recommend the darker cocoa powder for that classic Oreo taste.
The cookies in these homemade Oreos are moist and fudgy; almost like a brownie.
They’re soft, but not cakey like a whoopie pie.
They taste wonderful by themselves, but the addition of the cream filling creates the tastiest sandwich cookie.
What is the Oreo Filling Made Of?
Classic Oreos are made with a vanilla buttercream frosting consisting of butter, shortening, powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk.
My friend Erin’s homemade Oreos recipe uses a cream cheese frosting in the middle, which I wouldn’t object to, if I wasn’t trying to keep it classic.
If you prefer cream cheese frosting, be sure to use my recipe for the best cream cheese frosting.
It’s lightly sweet and perfect for piping into cookies like this carrot cake whoopie pie recipe. You’re going to love these from-scratch, homemade Oreos!
More cookie recipes to try:
- Mint Oreo Recipe
- Oatmeal Cream Pies with Cream Cheese Filling
- Mexican Chocolate Snickerdoodles
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies with Chocolate Chips
- Dark Chocolate Sugar Cookies
Homemade Oreos
Ingredients
Chocolate Cookie:
- 1 ½ cups (180 g) all-purpose flour, (stir, spoon & level)
- ½ cup (40 g) Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa*
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, (1 stick) room temperature
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) brown sugar, gently packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp milk
Vanilla Cream Filling:
- ¼ cup (57 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¼ cup (57 g) coconut oil/shortening*
- 1 ½ cups (180 g) powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1-2 tsp milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line cookie trays with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugars. Add the egg, vanilla, and milk. Mix completely. Scrape bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix completely. Dough will be thick.
- Scoop about 1 Tbsp of cookie dough (the size of a quarter), round dough into a ball, and place it onto the prepared cookie sheets a few inches apart. (12 cookies per half sheet tray. You should get close to 36 cookies to make 18 sandwich cookies.)
- Use the bottom of a measuring cup to press the cookie dough balls half way down. (Grease the bottom of the cup with cooking spray if needed, to help with sticking.)
- Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 6-7 minutes, until just baked through, for a soft, fudgy cookie. Let cookies rest for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make filling, beat the butter and coconut oil/shortening until smooth in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. Mix until smooth.
- Place the filling in a zip-top plastic bag and cut off the corner. Pipe filling onto the bottom of a cookie. Top with the bottom of another cookie. Repeat until all cookies are paired together and filled. Store leftover cookies in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap.
Video
Notes
- COCOA POWDER: Regular unsweetened cocoa powder will also work well. If you'd like to use black cocoa powder, I typically use half black cocoa powder and half regular unsweetened cocoa powder. It will still look black without being too bitter.
- For Cream Cheese Frosting as the filling, half my recipe here.
- COCONUT OIL OR SHORTENING helps the frosting be more shelf stable. If you don't have these ingredients or prefer not to use either of them, use all butter for the frosting instead. Just keep in mind it may be softer, and more difficult to sandwich the cookies together.
- SMALLER COOKIES: Use a teaspoon to scoop dough for Oreo sized cookies. Will make 38 cookie sandwiches if making them this small.
Nutrition
Did you make this?
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Can I use regular cocoa? Or does it have to be dark? I have Hersheys natural cocoa
Yes, they just won’t be as dark.
These were so good and surprisingly easy! We put a spin on them and used some cookie cutters on them after they were baked to make Star Wars Oreos which my Star Wars obsessed son really got a kick out of. I will definitely be making these again!
What a fun idea! I’m so glad you all enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for taking the time to share your experience with the recipe.
I’m going to try these next week, they remind me of Oreo cakesters, we don’t get them in Canada anymore unless you give up a kidney to buy them online! lol! My son loves these so I hope they work out for me, I’m new to this baking thing lol! I have a quick question, I have to buy some coconut oil but they have a few different ones to choose from there refined, virgin and organic… which one would you suggest? Thanks!
Hi Joy, if you don’t love the taste of coconut you will want to use refined coconut oil, which should be tasteless. Otherwise any coconut oil is fine. You can also substitute the coconut oil with additional butter or shortening if you’d rather go that route. Hope you like them!
Was excited to make these, they look great! Will the filling harden as it sits? Wanted to stack them but the filling started oozing out. Can I keep them refrigerated?
You can chill the cookies in the fridge to help harden the filling so you can stack them. If keeping them stacked I would definitely keep them in the fridge.
These were beyond amazing! So soft and yummy. Both my husband and friends raved about them. I am making them again today to bring to a barbecue tomorrow! Thank you sharing this awesome recipe. 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to share your experience with the recipe Demi!
Do you think this recipe would work in a giant silicone Oreo cookie mold?
I’m not sure it would keep all the details of the mold as it is a soft cookie, but you could try it.
Do these freeze well? I’d like to do some early Christmas baking.
I haven’t tried freezing these. You could probably freeze the dough in balls (after pressing them down slightly, as directed) and then bake and fill them later. Or you could freeze the cookies baked, but not filled.
Do you have the weight of the flour in either grams or ounces?
I don’t, but from what I’ve found from conversion charts, it should be about 180g.
Okay I just made these with the kids I nanny, and they said these were the best thing they’ve ever had. The recipe was quick and easy to make and they were absolutely delicious!
I’m so glad you all enjoyed them! Thanks for your comment Nikita!