Thursday, September 23, 2010

Road Cookies - Oatmeal White Chocolate Cranberry


If I could, I'd make cookies on a regular basis and keep a well-stocked cookie jar easily accessible.  And I guess while I technically could, I'm not sure my waistline would appreciate it.  Whenever I have an excuse to make some though, I am all over it. 

Some friends and I went to Deep Creek Lake over Labor Day weekend, which meant - road trip!  These cookies, which as it happens, are filled with whole grains and antioxidants, are the perfect road cookie.  They are salty and sweet and seriously delicious.  If you get a little hungry on the road but don't want to stop, these will definitely tide you over for a while.  And I have yet to meet someone who doesn't like them. 

It starts with the good old "Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies" recipe from inside the lid of Quaker Quick Oats, but then I made some adjustments to suit my taste, so I'm going to deem this as another "S Original".  Oh, and just pretend you didn't notice that the first ingredient is a full 2 sticks of butter, because everything really is bettah with buttah....

Ingredients

½ pound (2 sticks) softened butter
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar (I try to mix light and dark if I have both on hand)
½ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cups AP flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ - ½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp salt
3 cups uncooked Quaker Quick Oats (old-fashioned will work if you don't have quick)
Dried cranberries - a couple handfuls
White chocolate chips - a couple handfuls

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium mixing bowl add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  Stir to combine and set aside.  In a large mixing bowl beat together the butter and sugars until creamy.  Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well.  Slowly add the flour mixture and stir until well incorporated.  Stir in the oats, cranberries and white chocolate chips.  3 cups of oats will look like a lot, but trust me, it should all be added.  As for the cranberries and chips - I usually just eyeball it and add as much as I think looks good, it probably comes out to just over 1 cup of each.

Drop the cookies in rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool for a minute on the sheets then transfer to wire racks to cool.  These cookies are pretty delicate, especially when warm, so use a spatula with a nice sharp edge that will slide under them easily.  Makes about 4-5 dozen.  Store in an air-tight container to keep them chewy.




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