Oatmeal raisin cookies

I use the "vanishing oatmeal raisin cookie" recipe off the lid of quaker old fashion oats tub. But you tweak it just a little for greatest cookie. Soak the cup of raisins in capt. Morgan's spiced rum. Not long or the raisins will fall out of the cookies. About ten minutes or when you start to see the raisins change color pour the rum off. Take 1/3 cup of that rum you just poured off and add 1 heaping tablespoon of molasses.

sorghum cane molasses if you know who makes it.

Stir until molasses is thinned out by the rum. Add this to the sugar and room temperature butter when you cream it. When you add the vanilla extract and eggs put in three drops of Almond extract. No more and no less,It is powerful. after you have mixed in the flour beat on high for a good 90 sec to a minute to fluff. To this, Mix in the rum wet raisins before you add the oats.
It's not much of a tweak but make all the difference.

My favorite cookie.

Mrs Flash can be persuaded, on occasion, to make cookies to my desire.

Using that same "Vanishing . . ." recipe that ickthus mentioned, ( ignoring the raisins, molasses, and Capt. Morgan, of course) add a 2 cups of Nestle's Semi Sweet chocolate chips, a cup of shelled, coarsely chopped BLACK Walnut chunks, and two tablespoons of ground cinnamon. Bake until they start to brown a little at the edges, and WOWIE!

English walnuts just don't do it. Pecans, lightly browned in a skillet in butter might, though. Hmmmm?

Flash

Flash

Why anyone would ruin a good oatmeal cookie by putting decaying grapes in them is beyond me. Yuck!

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Originally Posted by DeltaBravoKS

Why anyone would ruin a good oatmeal cookie by putting decaying grapes in them is beyond me. Yuck!

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I like raisins, in moderate doses at least but not baked into anything or even combined with something else, like in a trail mix. Same with oatmeal cookies, I sorta' prefer them plain. I would, however, like to try them with banana bits baked in. I like bananas in my oatmeal (and pancakes too) so I'm sure I'd like the cookies. Blueberry might be really good too.

I've been bringing cookies to the office every few weeks and eventually capitulated to their requests for the recipe. It's a heavily modified version of one I found elsewhere and have tinkered with for a few months. I now offer it to you fine folks:

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups AP flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups oatmeal
1 10 oz package semisweet or dark chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (or whatever nuts you like — pistachios and/or hazelnuts are also pretty great)
3-4 oz dried unsweetened coconut (optional)

Directions:

Brown half of the butter over medium-low heat. Transfer to small bowl or cup and refrigerate until mostly solid.
Preheat oven to 350F
Cream all of the butter and sugar in a mixer.
Add beaten eggs and vanilla and mix until combined/smooth.
Mix flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and add to bowl in 1/2 cup increments, mixing until thoroughly combined after each batch.
Add oatmeal, coconut, chocolate chips and nuts and mix to combine. Dough will be CRAZY stiff.
Portion into golf-ball sized amounts, flatten slightly and bake for 10-12 minutes at 350F — the edges should be browned and very slightly crisp. I strongly recommend the use of parchment paper on your baking sheet(s).
Transfer to cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes before transferring to serving/storage.

My oatmeal carton has a blueberry muffin recipe...

As mentioned twice above, I like mine with chocolate chips. A little almond extract makes a marvelous addition. I have found that you need to live in black walnut territory to get black walnuts, and even then you have to fight the squirrels for them. My preference is chopped peanuts.

That sounds wonderful! Thanks for the tip!

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Originally Posted by NotSo

As mentioned twice above, I like mine with chocolate chips. A little almond extract makes a marvelous addition. I have found that you need to live in black walnut territory to get black walnuts, and even then you have to fight the squirrels for them. My preference is chopped peanuts.

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Here, in Pure Appalachia, the "Amish" food stores have black walnuts, shelled. the only problem is that they are $11.95 a pound. But occasionally, they are worth it. If you get them in the winter, you get freshly shelled, the longer they get into spring, the less likely they are to be fresh.

Flash