I'm Having a Love Affair With Martha Stewart's 5-Ingredient Lace Cookies

The aroma of butter and sugar caramelizing in the oven always takes me back to my grandma's kitchen, but the cookies that emerge aren't her thick, chewy oatmeal rounds. Instead, delicate, lacy discs cool on my baking sheet, a recipe that's become one of my favorites over the past decade.

These are Martha Stewart's Oatmeal-Lace Cookies; I've had a love affair with them for years. As someone who typically gravitates towards a cookie with a "good chew," I never expected to love these crispy cookies as much as I do. Over a decade after the first time I baked these, I still regularly reach for this versatile and elegant recipe.

With just five ingredients (six if you count salt), they transform from a bowl of pantry staples into a cookie that looks like it belongs in a Parisian pâtisserie window. I want to caveat the "easy" note by saying that while they are beginner-level and easy to throw together, they require some time and attention when baking.

Why I Love Martha's Oatmeal Lace Cookies

I've packed these cookies in lunchboxes, served them at book club meetings, and even used them as impromptu birthday "cakes" by stacking them with whipped cream. They're equally at home on a paper napkin or a fine china plate, if you still keep those in your house. In the fall, when the air turns crisp and I'm craving something cozy, I love to sandwich them with a smear of homemade salted caramel.

I'll often drizzle the cookies with melted dark chocolate for the holidays and sprinkle them with flaky salt to tuck them into a cookie tin. They're very delicate, but if you have the patience, they make beautiful edible ornaments hung with a thin, festive string or ribbon. The trick is to use a metal straw (or something similar) to create a distinct hole in the cookie as soon as they come out of the oven and before they set. Once they're on the wire rack, you can gently thread a thin ribbon through the hole before they're fully cooled. They may not last long enough to make it onto the tree!

While they originally appeared in the summer section of Martha's What to Have for Dinner cookbook, I find them just as delightful crumbled over a scoop of vanilla ice cream and fresh fruit in July as they are paired with a steamy coffee in the winter months. Their versatility knows no seasons.

Tips for Making Martha's Oatmeal Lace Cookies

After years of baking these delicate, lacey cookies, I've picked up a few tricks that I hope will make your cookie-baking experience much smoother.

• Space is critical. These cookies spread like gossip in a small town. Stick to the 1 1/2 teaspoon portioning suggestion and give them at least three inches of room on the baking sheet. You can only fit six cookies on a sheet at a time, but the payoff is worth the time it takes to bake them.

• Parchment is a must. Use parchment paper or a silicone baking mat to line your baking sheets. The cookies are greasy and sticky; lining the sheet will make it easier to clean once cooled. I often replace my parchment in between batches, as well.

• Take a half-time break. I check the cookies halfway through to ensure there isn't a thin candy spread with a pile of oats in the middle. At this point, I use the back of a spoon to corral the mixture into a circular shape. This is also a good time to rotate your pan to avoid any hot (or cold) spots in your oven.

• Patience pays off. Let them cool for five minutes on the baking sheet before you even think about moving them. They're far too fragile to move when warm but crisp up beautifully as they cool. After they've set on the baking tray, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

• Embrace the dark side. Don't be afraid if the edges get quite brown; that's where the delicious toffee-like flavor comes from. Golden is great, amber is better, and dark is good. Whatever you do, make sure the cookies have some color. If they're light, they'll be undercooked and unenjoyable.

• Get creative. While they're perfect as-is, these cookies are also a great canvas for experimentation. Add sliced almonds, chopped pistachios, walnuts, pecans, or even peanuts to the batter for more of a brittle or praline vibe. Drizzle or dip the cooled cookies in melted chocolate, or sandwich them with ice cream, ganache, or Nutella for a fancier take.

• Handle with care. Store them in an airtight container, layered between pieces of parchment or wax paper, to keep them intact. They're extremely brittle, so store them safely.

After all these years, Martha's lacy oatmeal cookies still delight me. They're delicious proof that crispy cookies can win over even the most devoted chewy cookie fans.

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