Sourdough Honey Oat Cookies

These sourdough honey oat cookies are soft, chewy, and full of cozy flavor. They mix wholesome oats, golden honey, and a little sourdough tang for a cookie that feels comforting and just a bit fancy. The honey butter glaze makes them glossy, sweet, and the kind of cookie everyone reaches for first.

I came up with this recipe as a little twist on my sourdough oatmeal raisin cookies. I wanted the same cozy oat texture but with the golden sweetness of honey and a shiny glaze on top, a bit like my sourdough maple pecan oatmeal cookies. The method is really simple and follows the same easy mixing and resting process you already know and love.

Why You'll Love This Recipe!

Sweetened with Honey - Honey adds warmth and depth that pairs beautifully with the oats and sourdough.

Soft & Chewy Texture - These cookies bake up with crisp edges and soft, chewy centres that stay perfect for days.

Simple Pantry Ingredients - Everything you need is probably already sitting in your pantry (and you've gotta love that).

If you enjoy the flavor combination of honey and oats, you might want to try my honey oat sourdough bread or sourdough maple oat sandwich bread, which has a similar taste, and is soft and squishy.

Ingredients

• Butter - Use room temperature butter so it creams easily with the sugars. This helps create that perfect chewy texture. Salted or unsalted butter both work fine here.
• Granulated Sugar
• Brown Sugar - Adds moisture and a lovely caramel note that balances the honey. Light or dark brown sugar both work.
• Egg - I've used a large egg, about 60g.
• Sourdough Starter - Use active starter or discard to make these cookies. Both work fine.  
• Honey - Brings natural sweetness and that golden, floral flavor that makes these cookies shine.
• All Purpose Flour
• Cinnamon - Adds warmth and a hint of spice that complements the honey and oats perfectly.
• Salt - Just a pinch brings all the flavors together.
• Baking Soda
• Rolled Oats - Use old-fashioned rolled oats for a hearty, chewy bite. Quick oats will work, but the texture won’t be as nice.
• Powdered Sugar - You'll use powdered sugar to make the glaze with water, honey and butter. The glaze is optional, but I highly recommend it.
• Toasted Oats - A mix of oats, honey, olive oil, and salt adds a little crunch and extra flavor on top.

How to Make Sourdough Honey Oat Cookies

Add the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg, sourdough starter and honey together in a large mixing bowl. Whisk until well combined.

In a separate bowl add all of the dry ingredients together - all purpose flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda and rolled oats and gently stir through.

Now tip the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix together to form a sticky dough. It will be fairly wet and that's ok.

You need to cover the cookie mixture and place into the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours (and up to 48 hours). These cookies taste best fermented overnight.

When You're Ready To Bake

Preheat the oven to 190ºC (375ºF).

Using a large spoon or cookie scoop, scoop balls of dough onto the cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. These cookies will spread so make sure you leave some room between them to allow for this.

Place trays into the oven and bake for around 15 minutes at 190C (375F) or until the edges of the cookies are starting to brown but the middles are still soft. Don't let them overcook!

Remove them from the oven and allow to cool on the cookie tray for around 10 minutes before placing them on a wire rack to fully cool.

Once cool, they will have crispy edges and a soft, chewy centre - YUM!

Glaze + Toasted Oats

To toast the oats, add the rolled oats, honey, olive oil and salt to a bowl and mix until the oats are completely covered in the honey and oil. Spread them out on a small baking tray and bake in the oven at 180ºC (350ºF) for around 10 to 15 minutes or until they are golden and toasted. Allow them to cool on the tray.

To create the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, water, honey and melted butter until smooth. Drizzle over the cooled cookies and sprinkle over some of the toasted oats. Allow the glaze to set before enjoying.

How to Store + Freeze

Store at Room Temperature - These cookies will stay soft and chewy for about 3 days when stored in an airtight container. I like to keep mine wrapped in baking paper inside a tin or glass container. It keeps them fresh without going sticky. Avoid plastic containers if you can. They trap too much moisture and can change the texture.

Freeze for Later - These freeze beautifully. Once completely cool, layer them with parchment in a freezer-safe container or bag. They’ll keep for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to enjoy them, let them thaw at room temperature. You can also warm one for a few seconds in the microwave for that just-baked feel.

Freeze the Dough - You can also freeze the unbaked dough balls. Place them on a tray to firm up, then transfer to a freezer bag. Bake straight from frozen, adding an extra minute or two to the baking time.

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