Spiced Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
'Tis the season to bake! If you're like me, you may love the smells and flavors of Gingerbread spice, but not enjoy the holiday's favorite cookie-Gingerbread.
I decided this year, I was going to make a cookie that I enjoyed that had those flavors and was made with Oatmeal (another cookie I have never really been a fan of).
Short of eating them, the best thing about cookies to me are that they are perfect for batch prepping and freezing what you don't want to bake at that time. You can freeze these pre-scooped cookies for around 3 months. Just remember to thaw them before baking.
I hope you and your family enjoy baking and eating these! If you want some but don't feel like turning on the oven, just head back to the main page and order some from me. Ordering is for Local only at this time, sorry for the inconvenience.
Also, please check out my dear friends at Dirty South Pottery for items like mine! The bowls, batter bowl and two green rimmed plates pictured below were made in their shop located in Winchester, KY.
Spiced Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
(Video to be added soon)
Description
A twist on the traditional Gingerbread cookie Holiday flavors
Ingredients
3/4 cup, or 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs*
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon molasses
1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (Leveled)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground clove
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups old-fashioned whole rolled oats*
1/2 cup chocolate chips (I use white but use your preference)
Instructions
Cream, with mixer, the softened butter and both sugars together on medium speed until smooth. This takes about 2 minutes, please be patient and do not rush this step. Add the eggs mixing until combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Next add the molasses and vanilla until combined, do not over mix.
In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients, not including the oats. The flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, clove and salt should be mixed before adding to the wet. Add to the wet ingredients, a little at a time, mixing until combined-do not overmix. Overmixing can lead to tough cookies. Next beat in the oats on low speed, and I will usually finish with a folding of the dough with my rubber spatula by hand. Dough will be thick, it may also seem a little dry, but this has worked so well for me.
Using a cookie scoop (or ice cream scoop if you want them large), scoop out your cookies, placing them on a lined baking sheet-you don't need to worry about placing them apart for baking, you can do that later. Chill the dough for about an hour, to reduce spreading. You can chill these for up to 2 days, but before baking after that long of a chill time, you will need them to set at room temperature for around 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Place 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 12-14 minutes until lightly browned on the sides, please remember the baking time will ultimately come down to your preference in the final product (want them a bit more crunchy? Bake a bit longer) and your oven (I highly recommend purchasing an oven thermometer). The centers will look under-baked.
Once you've removed them from the oven, keep them on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to finish cooling. The cookies will continue to firm up and cook a but in that 5 minutes.
This recipe was adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction's Oatmeal Raisin recipe. Please head to her website for many other fantastic and tasty recipes!