The famous Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe!
Blended oatmeal in the cookie dough is the secret ingredient that gives these cookies just a little more texture and body. A batch of homemade Neiman Marcus cookies, full of chocolate chips and nuts, is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser any time of day.
Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe
Ingredients:
- Oatmeal: the secret to this cookie is OATMEAL! And the secret to the oatmeal is popping it in the blender before adding it to the cookies to make a course flour out of it. Amazing texture and flavor!
- Flour: gluten in the traditional all-purpose flour adds a softness to the texture of the cookie to go with the whole grain oats
- Baking powder and baking soda: these help the cookies to rise and have a nice texture
- Butter: beloved butter makes for a cookie that has great color and lots of flavor
- Brown and granulated sugar: when you combine the two sugar your cookies brown up nicely and have great flavor
- Eggs: these help to bind all of the ingredients together
- Chocolate chips: long live all the chocolate, you can use the type of chocolate chips that you like or have on hand
- Hershey bar: this is the second secret ingredient to these famous cookies and it adds a subtle element to chocolate in every bite, I love this addition
- Chopped nuts: you can use what you like or have on hand, I normally use walnuts or pecans in this recipe
How To Make The Original Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe At Home
Overall, this is a simple and straightforward cookie recipe. The only extra bit to perfecting Neiman Marcus chocolate chip cookies is blending up some oatmeal and adding some grated chocolate.
- This cookie recipe follows the creaming method, which means you’ll start by creaming butter and sugar in a mixing bowl. If you have a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment on medium-high speed.
- Creaming incorporates air into the butter, which helps your cookies stay light and fluffy. Serious Eats has a great article on the importance of creaming butter and sugar when making cookies.
- I like to mix together the dry ingredients (blended oatmeal, flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda) before creaming, and gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.
- Mix until everything is just combined, being careful not to overmix, which can result in tough cookies. Finally, fold in your mix-ins: chocolate, more chocolate, and nuts.
- At this point, you can refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes. Chilling creates even thicker, chewier cookies, as the cold dough won’t spread as much in the oven.
- When you’re ready to bake, form balls with your dough and arrange on cookie sheets. I use a #40 disher/scoop to get even cookies that bake into perfect circles. If you bake a lot of cookies like I do, this scoop is a time saver and makes evenly sized cookies every time.
- Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes. Don’t worry about taking them out a couple of minutes before the cookies look fully set. Resting on the hot baking sheets will continue to bake the cookies all the way through. Then, move the cookies to a wire rack to cool fully.
- At this point, if you don’t eat them all straight away, the chocolate chip cookies can be frozen for several months or stored in an airtight container on the counter.
Tip: To bring your butter to the perfect temperature for creaming, cut the butter into tablespoons and put it in your mixing bowl. By the time you’ve assembled all your other ingredients, your butter will be ready to cream.
Video on how to make Neiman Marcus Cookies:
Update: I’ve updated this post with a video and helpful tips and tricks to make these legendary cookies live up to the hype.
The story behind the famous cookie recipe:
The classic Neiman Marcus cookie came as a result of a hoax someone pulled against the Neiman Marcus Cafe. It was said that a woman went to the cafe and loved the cookie she ate so much that she asked for the recipe. The person said that they’d give it to her for “two fifty”. But when her bank statement came she realized that the recipe wasn’t sold to her for $2.50 like she thought, rather for $250. This story spread throughout the country and it became a big ordeal.
The funny thing is, the Neiman Marcus Cafe wasn’t even offering cookies on their menu at that time. So, in response to the hoax over a cookie that didn’t exist, the Neiman Marcus Group created the Neiman Marcus cookie.
The store actually released a version of their cookie recipe a few years ago. While similar to this one, it contains espresso powder and leaves out one very important ingredient.
Why Use Blended Oatmeal in Chocolate Chip Cookies?
Blended oatmeal is the key to the delightful texture of the original Neiman Marcus cookies. It’s the secret ingredient that the store left out of their published recipe.
It only takes just a couple of minutes to make blended oatmeal in your kitchen. Simply add oats to a blender and pulse into a coarse powder.
While oat flour is also a form of oats ground into powder, it’s not a great substitute for the oats in this recipe. Oat flour is much more finely ground than you will achieve in your home blender. It also may change the texture of your cookies.
When choosing oats for these cookies, I always opt for old-fashioned oats, but you can substitute quick-cooking oats if needed. Do not use Instant Oats.
More great cookie recipes:
If you’ve tried this Neiman Marcus cookie recipe or any other recipe on Barbara Bakes, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some pictures of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories.
Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups oatmeal blended
- 2 cups flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar firmly packed
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 12 oz. chocolate chips 2 cups
- 1 4 oz. Hershey bar, grated
- 1 ½ cups chopped nuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degree F.
- Add the oatmeal to a blender and blend into a course flour or powder.
- In a medium bowl, mix together flour, blended oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars, on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until well blended, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add flour mixture; mix just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips, grated chocolate, and nuts. (Optional: cover dough and chill 30 minutes – add a minute or two to the cook time if using chilled dough.)
- Roll into balls and place two inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
- Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet before transferring cookies to racks to cool completely.
Video
Notes
- Walnuts or pecans are a nice option for this recipe, if you are going to omit them add an additional 3 tablespoons of flour to the recipe.
Nutrition
The Neiman Marcus Cookie is a soft, chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookie that is perfect with a glass of milk. This recipe is sure to be one that the whole family will enjoy.
Helen Greig
my cookies are rock hard. does the recipe call for 2.5 cups ground oats or 2.5 cups oatmeal, ground?
Melissa Griffiths
it’s 2.5 cups oatmeal, ground, not 2.5 cups ground oatmeal, that would indeed make them too stiff
Michelle
I like this recipe for the ground oats, the baking powder and soda combo, two sugars. But I can’t leave out the espresso powder. It adds something special to the flavor.
Carrie Schulte
Please send me the recipe using the expresso powder.
Stefanie H
has anyone tried to freeze and bake later? if so…how?
Samantha
I wonder if you could blend the flours and the grated chocolate together first the proceed?
Patty
I made this cookies and maybe needed to use a different oats. I used rolled oats and may have not blended them enough. My cookie was good but a little on the dry side. Maybe try to add an extra egg yoke next time. I will try again. I also added some shredded coconut, loved it.
Maria
Have made these for over 20 years for my kids and now my grandkids. Always a huge hit!!! I reduced the oatmeal to 2 cups and measured before blending. Just always worked best for us. Saw the comment about adding coconut – think I might try that!!! YUM!!! Got the Neiman Marcus thing back in the day, but found out recently that the story was a hoax and neiman marcus came up with their own version without oatmeal and using the coffee (yuck!!) as a counter action. They didn’t even sell cookies back then.
Joan Allison
Mine have been dry. I think i put in 2 1/2 cups of oats after grinding not the before grinding amount.
Melissa Griffiths
That would make a difference!
R
you DO realize this is not the recipe, RIGHT?
Melissa Griffiths
Do you have the original recipe? I’d love to see it!
Lisa
I was just thumbing through an old community cookbook published in 1993 – three island cookbook Glenn’s Ferry Idaho. This recipe was there exactly the same! It even had an introduction with how the contributer (she made it sound like it was herself) paid the 250 for the recipe when she went to the neiman Marcus cafe, thinking the waitress was saying 2.50. So she wanted to share the recipe with everyone when they refused to refund her.
Melissa Griffiths
That’s so fun, thank you for sharing your find!
Barbra
Hi, when I make chocolate chip cookies using a scoop, they never quite flatten out, they kinda remain in a semi-mound. I have watched many videos of people making them and using scoops and they flatten. Do you know what I could be doing wrong?
Barbara Schieving
Hi Barbra – a couple of things to check. Is your oven temperature accurate? Are you packing too much flour in the cup when you’re measuring your flour. https://www.barbarabakes.com/how-to-measure-flour/ I love using scoops and if I know a dough doesn’t spread much when baking, I’ll sometimes use the flat bottom of a cup to flatten the cookies slightly. I haven’t had to do that with this recipe though.
Barbra
Thanks. Can you clarify the amount of hersheys is it 14 ounces?
Lyn
When u scoop your cookies put them in the fridge just to firm up then preheat your oven to what ever temperature is required put cookies in to oven for 3 to 4 minutes then take them out of the oven put another tray on top of them and push down in the center of the tray and push down on the corners also this is a equal level to flatten for all the cookies on the tray return to oven and bake for required amount
Keith
Can instant oats be used instead of old fashioned oats? Fixing to give these a try.
Barbara Schieving
Hi Keith – I haven’t tried it with quick-cooking oats but it should work as a substitute although you may need to use less since they’re already ground up a little bit. Instant oats are often pre-cooked in small packages and would not be a good substitute.
Sana
Hi! I used instant oats 1:1 and they came out perfect!
Sana
I should also mention I have used the original recipe as well with old fashioned. I actually liked the instant version better.
Allison
Made these yesterday for a group of men and omg did they loved them. Every single cookie was demolished. I grew up on these cookies…I remember my mom making them for me and my brother when we were young and it was a real treat! Even my picky teen who hates oatmeal snuck a few. I used an ice cream scoop so the cookies were rather large. Wouldn’t change a thing about this recipe.
Barbara Schieving
So fun to hear the cookies were a big hit. Thanks Allison!
Sandra
I used to make these without blending the oats, since I didn’t have a blender or food processor, and I always added coconut. They were pretty amazing that way. This was about 20 years ago. Now, I have a food processor, so I plan to try doing it the right way!
Barbara Schieving
Hi Sandra – congratulations on the new food processor! Coconut sounds like an awesome addition too.
R Boyd
We add toffee brickle to ours and they are delicious.
Barbara Schieving
Sounds like a delicious addition – thanks for sharing!
Jennifer Smith
Should I sift the dry ingredients?
Barbara Schieving
Hi Jennifer – you can whisk the dry ingredients together, but rarely is it necessary to sift the dry ingredients together anymore. Today’s flours are so well refined that sifting isn’t really necessary.
Jennifer Smith
Great. Thank you. Beat cookies ever!
Barbara Schieving
Thanks!
Jennifer Smith
These cookies were great!!! Why no espresso powder?
Barbara Schieving
I’m not a coffee drinker and don’t like coffee-flavored desserts, but you could certainly add it if you prefer, 1-1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder.
Jennifer Smith
So I made the original Neumann Marcus recipe that you reference but I like your recipe with the oatmeal better. This is now my official cookie recipe. Thank you!!!!!
Barbara Schieving
That’s so fun – thanks!
Jennifer Smith
Can I just use oat flour instead of blending oats?
Barbara Schieving
Hi Jennifer – I haven’t tried it. My concern is it might be too finely ground and make the cookies heavy, but you could certainly try it. Let me know if you do.
Mary
Thank you for this recipe. I really liked this recipe and followed it exactly with chilling the dough. I used my nutribullet to grind up oats. Butter I left out to room temp, it did not turn light and fluffy but I made sure to blend well. Very easy, parchment paper a must. I used ghiradelli bittersweet chocolate chips 60% cacao, they are bigger chips. I will do this recipe again.
Barbara Schieving
Thanks Mary – those Ghiradelli chips sound like a great addition!
Lisa Napier
I put in crunchy peanut butter because I didn’t have any nuts. I put half peanut butter and half butter. I also ground up a couple of white chocolate Easter bunnies that were left over from Easter. It all worked really well and the cookies were great!!
Barbara Schieving
What fun additions – thanks for sharing Lisa!