Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I really like to try and justify eating crap-for-you foods. Ice cream craving? Oh, that’s dairy. You need calcium. You don’t want osteoperosis, just ask Sally Fields and her Boniva commericals.

Pasta? Oh, it’s carbs for energy- you marathoner, you.

Chocolate? Um. Duh.

So I have a heyday with oatmeal cookies. Hello, that’s practically health food, right? Right? Anyone? No? Ok. That’s alright. I’ll eat them anyway. I’ve tried a couple of other oatmeal cookie recipes in the last few months, and I have one other that I love (but keep forgetting to put on the blog- coming soon) but I’m always up for trying new things (when those things are cookies, that is) so I put this one to the test. They very much lived up to it’s title of “thick and chewy”.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional, but highly recommended!)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350.

In a large bowl/bowl of an electric mixer, cream together butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla until creamy.

In another bowl mix together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt, then mix into the butter mixture.

Add in the oats, walnuts and raisins and mix until combined.

Scoop the dough onto a cookie sheet, leaving cookies 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until edges are golden. The tops will look a tad under-done still. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack.

Source: Smitten Kitchen