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These small batch lace cookies bake into thin, crisp cookies with a buttery, caramel-like flavor and a delicate lacy texture. Made with simple pantry ingredients, this easy recipe gives you 4 to 5 beautiful cookies in minutes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple to Make: This easy lace cookie recipe uses just 7 basic ingredients to create classic thin and crispy cookies.
- Beautiful Texture: The delicate, lacy pattern and caramel-like color make these cookies look elegant on any dessert table.
- Quick Baking Time: They bake in about 8 minutes, making them a fast option when you want a sweet treat without waiting.
- Crispy and Buttery: Each cookie delivers a light, crisp bite with rich buttery flavor and a toffee-style crunch that lace cookies are known for.
Lace cookies have always felt like such a special treat to me. These delicate, thin Florentines bake into beautifully crisp cookies with a light, buttery, toffee-like flavor that reminds me why this classic has lasted for centuries.
Traditionally made with simple ingredients like sugar, cream, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and flour, they often include oats for extra texture. Versions of these elegant cookies can be found all over the world, from Italian Florentines to Ireland’s oatmeal lace cookies.
This small batch recipe gives you all the beauty and flavor of traditional lace cookies in a quick, easy format that yields just the right amount. With only a handful of ingredients and a short baking time, you can enjoy 4 to 5 stunning cookies without making a full batch. They’re light, crisp, and almost too pretty to eat, and I think you’ll love how simple they are to make.
If you enjoy small batch cookie recipes as much as I do, you might also like our small batch oatmeal cookies, small batch ginger cookies, small batch chocolate chip cookies, small batch shortbread cookies, and small batch peanut butter cookies.
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this small batch lace cookie recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
- Oats: Use old-fashioned oats for the thin, crisp texture lace cookies are known for. Leftover oats work well in recipes like strawberry crisp for one, single serve baked oatmeal, or small batch baked apples.
- Flour: All-purpose flour helps the cookies hold their delicate, lacy shape. For a gluten-free version, substitute with King Arthur Gluten Free Measure For Measure Flour.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar adds sweetness and helps create the caramelized edges that make lace cookies so delicious.
- Heavy Cream: Heavy cream or heavy whipping cream both work. The high milk fat helps the cookies spread and develop a caramel-like flavor. We also use heavy cream in mini German chocolate cake, banana pudding for one, and mini French silk pie.
- Corn Syrup: Light or dark corn syrup both help the cookies bake into thin, crisp rounds. Use whichever you prefer. Extra corn syrup can be used in a small pecan pie.
- Butter: Salted or unsalted butter is fine. Butter melts during baking and helps the cookies become light and lacy.
- Vanilla Extract: Adds warm, rich flavor that pairs perfectly with the buttery, caramel-style cookies.
How To Make Lace Cookies
See the recipe card below for exact measurements and full instructions.
- Prepare the Batter: Place the sugar, cream, corn syrup, and butter in a saucepan. Warm over medium heat, stirring until the butter melts and the mixture starts to gently boil.
- Cook the Mixture: Lower the heat and let it cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.
- Add Flavor and Texture: Remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in the vanilla, then add the oats and flour. Mix until a loose batter forms.
- Let the Batter Rest: Set the batter aside for 10 minutes. It will thicken slightly as it cools, making it easier to scoop.
- Shape the Cookies: Spoon about 1½ tablespoons of batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Leave at least 2 inches between each portion so the cookies can spread.
- Bake the Cookies: Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Bake for 6 to 8 minutes. The cookies are ready when the edges turn light golden brown.
- Cool the Cookies: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then use a spatula to transfer them to a wire rack. They will firm up as they cool.
This recipe makes 4 to 5 Florentine lace cookies.
Expert Tips
- Bake a Few at a Time: Lace cookies spread a lot, so bake only 2 to 3 cookies per sheet. Leave at least 2 to 3 inches of space between each portion of batter.
- Use a Nonstick Liner: Line your baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat like a Silpat. This helps the cookies release easily and keeps their delicate shape intact.
- Let Them Cool Before Moving: Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before lifting them with a wide spatula. If they tear, let them cool another minute and try again. The cookies firm up quickly as they cool.
- Watch the Color: Lace cookies go from golden to too dark very fast. Pull them from the oven as soon as the edges turn light golden brown.
- Keep Batter Consistent: If the batter thickens too much as it sits, stir it gently before scooping.
- Make Sandwich Cookies: For a fun addition, spread Nutella or melted chocolate on one cookie and press another on top.
- Store Carefully: Once cooled, store lace cookies in a single layer or separated with parchment so they stay crisp and don’t stick together.
Frequently Asked Questions
Lace cookies naturally spread, but too much spreading usually means the batter was too warm or the scoops were too large. Let the batter rest for 10 minutes and use about 1½ tablespoons per cookie.
Lace cookies crisp as they cool. If they stay soft, bake them 1 to 2 minutes longer. Remove them when the edges turn light golden brown.
Always use parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Lace cookies are delicate and will break if they stick.
Once completely cooled, store them in a single layer or with parchment between layers in an airtight container. Keep them at room temperature.
Absolutely. Melt chocolate gently in the microwave in short intervals or over a double boiler, then drizzle or dip once the cookies have cooled.
Yes. Spread Nutella, ganache, or melted chocolate between two cookies to create a sandwich cookie. Let them set before serving.
RELATED: 15 Easy Dessert Recipes For One
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
If you’ve tried this small batch lace cookie recipe or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
Also, if you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see it!
Small Batch Lace Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons old fashioned oats
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the oats and flour. Set aside.
- In a 1-quart saucepan, add the sugar, cream, corn syrup, and butter. Warm over medium heat, stirring until the butter melts and the mixture begins to gently boil.
- Lower the heat and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Stir in the oats and flour mixture until a loose batter forms.
- Let the batter sit at room temperature for 10 minutes to thicken.
- Scoop about 1½ tablespoons of batter onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 2 inches between each cookie.
- Bake for 6 to 8 minutes. The cookies are ready when the edges turn light golden brown.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then carefully transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Bake a Few at a Time: Lace cookies spread a lot, so bake only 2 to 3 cookies per sheet. Leave at least 2 to 3 inches of space between each portion of batter.
- Use a Nonstick Liner: Line your baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat like a Silpat. This helps the cookies release easily and keeps their delicate shape intact.
- Let Them Cool Before Moving: Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before lifting them with a wide spatula. If they tear, let them cool another minute and try again. The cookies firm up quickly as they cool.
- Watch the Color: Lace cookies go from golden to too dark very fast. Pull them from the oven as soon as the edges turn light golden brown.
- Keep Batter Consistent: If the batter thickens too much as it sits, stir it gently before scooping.
- Make Sandwich Cookies: For a fun addition, spread Nutella or melted chocolate on one cookie and press another on top.
- Store Carefully: Once cooled, store lace cookies in a single layer or separated with parchment so they stay crisp and don’t stick together.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
I am happy that you also include recipes for larger quantities. I also am enjoying your Cooking for One Cookbook.
No heavy cream or would have used this recipe tonight.
Love this group and thank you all for sharing your expertise.
First off – thank you very much for your scaled down recipes, it is so appreciated from this empty nester. My question about lace cookies is : at what point would I roll them so that I can fill them with a brandy cream – a cookie I tasted one time while on a holiday. Thank you
Thank you. I’m so happy you are enjoying the recipes.
To roll the cookies, bake them and leave the cookies on the baking sheet for about a minute or two, carefully tuck the edge of a spatula under the edge of the cookie and roll the cookies around a spoon or other mold.
Enjoy!
I love lace cookies. I am delighted with this recipe. As I only have a toaster oven, I bake 2 at a time on my small cookie sheet. Perfect. If I feel really decadent, when I take them out of the oven, I place a few chocolate chips on one edge to melt. so good.
I love the idea of adding a few chocolate chips – such a great idea!!
I melt about half a cup of milk chocolate chips then smear it on the bottom of one of the lace cookies and smash it onto the bottom of another one to make little chocolate sandwiches. They are incredible
Your cookies seems yummy and from above comment I also come to know its cosmopolitan recipe. Will surely try this recipe.
Your cookies had their origins in Italy. They traveled through the Catholic Europe, hence the recipes to be found in France and Ireland which are indeed similar. They have a Christmas origin although it is said it is more todo with the First Communion that they young people take hence the reference to lace.
Jonathan, thank you so much for letting me know. I find the history of foods we eat today so interesting. In fact, now that you mention it the cookies do remind me of a Communion wafer.
Have a great week!
Joanie