Homemade Oreo Cookies
This easy homemade oreo cookies recipe is so fun to share with your friends and family. These chocolate sandwich cookies feature the perfect chocolate cookies with a generous portion of cream filling. They’re easy to make, vegan, and delicious!
I think I’ve been to nearly every store in the country. OK. Maybe I’ve missed a few (or a lot) of them. But just about every store I’ve been to has sold Oreo cookies. I kid you not. Convenience stores. Pharmacies. Grocery stores. Even hotel gift shops! They all sell Oreo cookies. So why would you make homemade Oreos when you can so easily buy them at nearly any store?
The only answer that comes to mind is…for the fun of it! Sure, we buy the store-bought variety of Oreo cookies from time-to-time. They are a great treat. But it can be so fun to prepare them yourself, knowing what ingredients are involved, and imagining the version you make with your own hands is somehow healthier and fresher than the ones with a six-month shelf life.
What Makes This Recipe Shine?
- Using Dutch-process cocoa powder yields a darker, richer chocolate cookie.
- Vegetable shortening helps create a firm but creamy filling
- Rolling the batter into balls and then flattening those into discs means you can leave the rolling pin in the cupboard and makes more the batter useable for cookies.
What You Need
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe, including substitution ideas:
- Flax Egg — You can use a flax egg or substitute a chia egg.
- Flour — I recommend using all-purpose flour
- Cocoa Powder — You can use natural cocoa powder, but I recommend using dutch-process cocoa powder for a d
- Baking soda + baking powder
- Salt
- Granulated sugar
- Vegan Butter — You can use storebought vegan butter like Earth Balance or Miyokos or make your own vegan butter.
- Vegetable shortening — We will use just a bit of vegetable shortening to make the cream filling nice and firm.
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract — You can use regular vanilla extract or clear vanilla to keep the filling white.
There are two main types of cocoa powder, natural and Dutch-process. Natural cocoa powder is lighter brown and is what you see most commonly in stores. It has a higher acidic level, meaning it interacts with ingredients like baking soda to create soft cookies. Dutch-processed cocoa powder has been through a refinement process that reduces the acidity of cocoa powder. That creates a darker color and a smoother flavor. You can use either type of cocoa powder for this cookie recipe, but for darker-colored cookies, the Dutch-process is the way to go.
Here is the step-by-step at a glance:
- Prepare the flax egg and set it aside.
- Stir together the dry ingredients from the flour to the salt.
- Beat the butter at high speed until light and fluffy. Then add the sugar and flax egg and beat until light and fluffy.
- Make the batter by pouring the dry mixture in with the creamed butter and mix until combined. Cover and place in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Roll the chilled cookie dough into 1/2-inch balls and place on a cookie sheet and use a glass to flatten them into round discs.
- Bake for 6 to 7 minutes.
- Make the homemade Oreo cream filling by mixing butter and shortening at medium speed until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy.
- Assemble sandwich cookies by spreading filling on the flat side of one cookie and topping with another.
Here are more detailed step-by-step instructions for this homemade Oreo cookie recipe:
Step One: Mix Dry Ingredients
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Step Two: Cream Butter
Use a mixer to beat the butter on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately one minute. Then add the sugar and beat on medium speed until fluffy.
Add the flax egg and beat again on medium speed for about 30 seconds to a minute.
Step Three: Make the Batter
Pour the cocoa mixture in with the butter ingredients and mix on low until combined.
The batter will be sticky at this point so cover and place in the freezer for about 10 minutes.
Step Four: Roll and Bake
Roll the chilled cookie dough into ½-inch balls and place on the prepared cookie sheet, leaving two inches between them. Spray the bottom of a glass with cooking spray and then flatten the cookie dough balls.
Bake the cookies for 6 to 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave the cookies on the pan for 1 minute. Then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Step Five: Prepare the Homemade Oreo Filling
Make the filling by combining butter and shortening in a mixing bowl. Mix at medium speed until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and mix on low until combined. Add the vanilla and mix on medium-high and beat for about 1 minute, until light and fluffy. This is a thick filling.
Spread a dollop of filling on the flat side of one of the cookie wafers. Place the flat side of another cookie wafer on the filling to make a sandwich. Continue until all the cookies are complete.
Storage Tips
Store cookies in an airtight container. These will keep at room temperature for 3 to 5 days or in the fridge for up to 10 days. These cookies can be frozen and will keep up to 2 months when properly stored in the freezer.
Yes, store-bought Oreo cookies are vegan when purchased in the United States. I believe in some other countries there may be dairy in the cream filling. That said, you can always make easy homemade Oreos because then you have a little more control of what’s actually in them.
More Oreo Recipes
If you love this homemade Oreo recipe, here’s even more fun dessert recipes that use them:
Don’t forget to make these yummy vegan Oreo balls.
That’s it for these homemade Oreo cookies. Enjoy!
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Ingredients
Chocolate Wafers:
- 1 flax egg
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup dutch-process cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegan butter , softened
Filling:
- ¼ cup vegan butter
- ¼ cup vegetable shortening
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Prepare the flax egg and set it aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Use a mixer to beat the butter on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately one minute. Then add the sugar and beat on medium speed until fluffy. Finally, add the flax egg and beat again on medium speed for about 30 seconds to a minute.
- Pour the cocoa mixture in with the butter ingredients and mix on low until combined.
- The batter will be sticky at this point so cover and place in the freezer for about 10 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Roll the chilled cookie dough into ½-inch balls and place on the prepared cookie sheet, leaving two inches between them. Spray the bottom of a glass with cooking spray and then flatten the cookie dough balls. Bake for 6 to 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave the cookies on the pan for 1 minute. Then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
- Make the filling by combining butter and shortening in a mixing bowl. Mix at medium speed until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and mix on low until combined. Add the vanilla and mix on medium-high and beat for about 1 minute, until light and fluffy. This is a thick filling.
- Cookie Assembly. Spread a dollop of filling on the flat side of one of the cookie wafers. Place the flat side of another cookie wafer on the filling to make a sandwich. Continue until all the cookies are complete.
- Store cookies in an airtight container. These will keep at room temperature for 3 to 5 days or in the fridge for up to 10 days. These cookies can be frozen and will keep up to 2 months when properly stored in the freezer.
Recommended Equipment
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The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This post was originally published in 2011 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2020.
Nice Recipe!
Thanks — I’m glad you like it!
Great Article… I love to read your articles because your writing style is very good, it is very very helpful for all of us and I never get bored while reading your article because they become more interesting from the starting lines until the end.
Thanks so much. I’m glad to hear it!
cream looks very good. better than the store oreo
What kind of vegetable shortening do you use ? I try really hard to avoid products with palm oil. Any recommendations or ideas would be greatly appreciated. I’d love to make these . Thank you !
Hi Patty. This is such an important question, thanks for asking it. This Nutiva Shortening says it’s made with palm oil sourced from local organic farms which claims to be better for rainforests. That said, you can leave the shortening out if you prefer. The cream filling won’t be as firm. But I think it will still taste great!
I love that this outer cookie looks chewy! Way better than the store bought kind!
NOOOOOO WAY! lately some bloggers have been like in my mind or something.. this morning i wanted to make my own oreo’s! i just had the craving for them, but i know that oreo’s are full of not so great things and same with Newman O’s! my body does NOT like processed sugar one bit, thank you for posting this! i hope to make it sometime, maybe even tonight:)
What a fun post! These look great