2015 has been a difficult year.
It all began in February when a sea of sewage flooded one-third of our downstairs only a week after we started a large renovation project in the kitchen.
Mass chaos ensued and for several months we waded through the rebuild process.
I was also newly pregnant and hormonal so you can imagine the sweetness of morning/all-day sickness amidst contractors, plumbing issues, missing walls, etc.
tender memories.
June finally brought a bit of closure to all that nonsense. We were so excited to get our house back but then I was diagnosed with a fairly serious pregnancy complication (more on that later) and was put on modified bedrest until November.
Life had to adjust in an instant.
Then more tough news.
My sweet Grandpa's health took a pretty rapid decent and by the end of July time had come to say our final goodbyes.
I wasn't prepared for all the emotions in that hospital room early one Friday morning. And sure haven't been prepared for the wave of feels that unexpectedly come over me still.
Sadness is strange that way.
I know I've been guilty of assuming grief isn't as sharp when the loss is in the twilight years of life.
Wrong.
Grief if grief.
I don't know when it happened or why for that matter but I cannot get enough baked goods in my house.
Ok, well, I know why...
Because delicious.
But a lot of my baking is made to give away.
I bake for David's co-workers, friends, strangers. any one.
It's my way of creating beauty out of chaos.
Not surprisingly, I've been in the kitchen a lot the past month or so.
Baking in the prime of a Texas summer is pretty hardcore.
But it's comforting and I've needed a lot of that lately.
My Gramps in particular loved sweets, especially cookies.
And his wife, my dear Grands, is the author behind one of my most popular recipes
Snickerdoodles (with pumpkin cream cheese).
We don't play in the kitchen.
About a month ago I was searching for a cookie recipe to make for a friend's birthday.
Unexpectedly, it became my new favorite.
It's my idea of the perfect cookie.
Big, soft, and full of flavor.
These cookies are all comfort and goodness
Perfect for sharing, laughing, celebrating, and remembering.
Tip: Follow my directions precisely then adjust the second time for yourself, if you feel such a thing needs doing.
Cookie secrets are going to be handed down so get your notes out and read.
The details are what make any baking recipe successful so this is not the time to wing-it.
Thoroughly annoyed with my disclaimer?
Good. Now read it again and get baking.
it. will. be. worth. it.
(I'm so bossy today.)
The original recipe is the
2015 Recipe of the Year from King Arthur Flour, Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
This post contains an Amazon.com affiliate link which means that Amazon offers me a small commission on products sold through their affiliate links, at no additional cost to the reader.
Here's my adaptation:
Oatmeal Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 1 cup (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract (I use Nielsen Massey pure vanilla extract
)
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 - 2 cups old-fashioned oats (depending on how oatty you want them)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups semisweet chips (I use Guittard
46% semi-sweet chips)
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips, divided (I use Guittard
63% dark chocolate chips)
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1) Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line several cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2) Beat together the butter and sugars until smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
3) Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla one at a time, beating well after each, about 30 seconds to a minute.
4) Whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and add to the butter mixture in the bowl.
5) Mix until everything is thoroughly incorporated, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl. Do not overmix.
6) Stir in the chocolate chips, leaving some out to place on top of the cookies before baking, until just evenly distributed. Don't overmix.
7) Use a 1/4 cup scoop to make about 20 large, palm-sized cookies. (You can make smaller cookies but it will take much longer to bake as you cannot put these in more than one pan at a time and I prefer the large bakery style cookie for these. Either way is good though, just make sure to adjust baking time.)
8) Scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 1/2" to 2" between cookies. Place remaining chocolate chips on top of the dough mounds.
9) Bake the cookies for 12 to 17 minutes, until they're a light golden brown, with slightly darker edges. Their middles may still look a tiny bit shiny; that's OK, they'll continue to bake as they cool on the pan.
10) Remove the cookies from the oven, and as soon as they're set enough to handle (about 5 minutes in my kitchen), transfer them to racks to cool.
Yield: 20 to 100 cookies, depending on size.
Notes:
- Use the best quality ingredients you can find. I've shared my personal favs above.
- Use the best quality chocolate you can find. Please, please do this. It makes a huge difference. My personal favorite is Guittard which I'm able to buy locally at World Market and Whole Foods. You can also purchase online here
.
- When it says "room temperature," it means it. Put your ingredients out at least an hour before you start baking. This requires some planning but it's worth it.
- Make sure you properly measure your ingredients, especially flour. For more info on how, check out Joy the Baker's post HERE.
- Use parchment paper.
- These taste better a few hours after they've cooled through the second day. Properly kept in an air tight container they will keep several days (but I think they definitely start loosing some of their softness and flavor on day 2 to 3.)
- Milk chocolate, in my opinion, does not work well with these cookies. It just doesn't have enough flavor to make a statement.
For you, Gramps.