salty chocolate oat cookies (recipe clone from kayak cookies)

Surely everyone knows by now my obsession with Levain Bakery in NYC and my obsession with Kayak Cookies aka Salty Oats Cookies here on cape cod.
I've done all the recipe re-creations I can with Levain.
And now I'm onto Salty Oats.
Some of you may have heard of Salty Oats?
They are predominately sold in the NE.
A semi-healthy cookie that is almost a meal too.
A hearty cookie that packs a flavorful taste with a nice dose of salt.
Like Levain, no one knows the recipe for Salty Oats cookie.


Some have speculated that they use a rice flour to get that perfect chewy like texture.
So with my first batch, I used rice flour.
Never baked with it before, but I like it.
What does the rice flour do to the cookie?
Well it makes is half gluten free, it brings a richness to the cookie and that's about it.
I think I might know more when I make the oatmeal raisin version; with chocolate it's hard to tell as the cocoa powder is rich and dominates the cookie flavor-wise.
At Salty Oats they have these flavors: oatmeal-raisin, chocolate oats, chunky chocolate-pecan--all salted--all good!
With these cookies I created I had set out to create first oatmeal raisin, then halfway through mixing I realized I had no raisins!  So last minute, I made them into chocolate BUT wanted to try them with nuts added. Her recipe has no nuts.
So now, I have salty chocolate-walnut.
The verdict?
I think I almost nailed it.
I know I didn't add enough oats, and I should have made them a bit bigger.
But texture wise I nailed it spot on.
If you know of the Salty Oats and are a fan, do try and make these, they taste just like the chocolate oats one.
And it's an easy recipe to play with, switching out different ingredients.




These cookies really don't spread at all. So if you make them into dough balls, you will need to "gently" push down on them halfway through baking.  Just a gentle push because they do crack!


Truly a good cookie.  Hearty, tender inside with a nice gentle crispy outside.
I added a hint of cinnamon too.
At Salty Oats she claims to use Belgian chocolate; I will have to look for Belgian cocoa powder.
Best part? The salt on top, don't worry it's not overly salty at all, and the other best part?
This cookie is not too sweet--I hate overly sweet cookies.

salty chocolate oats (kayak cookie recipe clone )
print recipe

1 1/2 cups bread flour
1/2 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup + 1 TB dark double dutch cocoa powder
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp (16 TB)
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 ts baking powder
1 ts baking soda
1 ts sea salt
1/2 ts cinnamon, optional
2 large eggs
1 ts pure vanilla extract
2 cups of rolled oats (not quick cooking!)
extra course sea salt for sprinkling the tops

In a medium bowl, whisk all the dry ingredients.
In a larger bowl, cream the butter and both sugars; add in the eggs, vanilla extract and mix.
Add dry ingredients to the wet and mix till just combined--don't overmix.
Next, by hand, add in the rolled oats.
Cover dough well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least three hours or overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line up two baking sheets with parchment paper or whatever method you use for baking cookies.
Divide dough into 12-13 large chunks; roll into balls and place on cookie sheet about an inch apart.
Sprinkle tops with sea salt before baking.
Bake for about 14-17 minutes. Halfway through baking, you might need to give the dough balls  a gentle push down to flatten very slightly--be careful not to push too hard as they will crack.  Also rotate pans halfway through baking too.
You'll know they are done when the bottoms are almost crisp/set up and the tops have a gentle crisp to them. It's really easy to overbake them, so definitely check at the 15-minute mark.
Makes 12-13 cookies.