Bake My Day

Today (even shortly after breakfast) I had one thing on my mind: COOKIES. I mentioned to Mark over the weekend that I had the urge to bake, but after reading about—and salivating over—cookies here, I knew I had to pull out the baking sheets ASAP.

I’m basically the Cookie Monster. Back in high school, a friend of mine in newspaper used to have snacks everyday, often of the cookie variety. I used to always ask, “Can I have a cookie?” and apparently the way I said it was comical. Emphasis on a cookie.

Mark has bought me 2 Cookie Monster t-shirts over the years. Oddly enough, both of them were assaulted by an exploding pen in the clothes dryer; one was destroyed, one escaped relatively unscathed, becoming a “never leave the house” shirt. Which begs the question: Pen explosion or not, would you leave the house in a Cookie Monster shirt?

Truthfully, I’ve never met a cookie I didn’t like. Chocolate chip, oatmeal, peanut butter, shortbread, sugar, ginger, lemon ricotta—I don’t discriminate. Crispy, cake-y, crumbly, chewy: you name it, and I’ll eat it, though I tend to prefer the chewy ones (especially hot out of the oven).

Tonight, I decided to try a healthier version of what’s become a classic in my house. I substituted WW pastry flour for the AP, replaced the butter with coconut oil, and made a few other additions or reductions based on personal taste.

Oatmeal-Cranberry Cookies with Walnuts and Chocolate Chips

inspired by Giada de Laurentiis

makes 12 large cookies*

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp fine sea salt
½ cup coconut oil (solid)
½ cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg**
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup dried cranberries
¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
¼ cup walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 and line 2 baking sheets with parchment or silicone baking sheets.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the first 6 ingredients. In a stand mixer, beat the sugars and coconut oil together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla, beating until smooth. While the machine is running, gradually add the flour mixture. Next add the oats, cranberries, chocolate chips, and walnuts, mixing until just incorporated. The mixture will be very thick. For 12 large cookies, scoop ¼ cup size balls onto the baking sheets. Flatten the tops slightly and bake for 13-15 minutes, until edges are lightly golden. Allow cookies to cool and then stuff your face. Or share with a loved one!

These are some of the best oatmeal cookies I’ve had. The dough was a bit more crumbly using the coconut oil (and a slightly smaller egg than usual), but after cooling, the cookies held together nicely, maintaining a wonderful chewy quality. The cranberries and walnuts make these cookies perfect for the holidays, but they would be equally delicious with any type of dried fruit and nuts.