To start this blog off on the right foot, let’s talk cookies.  I love testing cookie recipes, tweaking them, and making them awesome.  One of my favorite sources for cookie recipes is Martha Stewart.  Now, admittedly, Martha leaves something to be desired in the recipe department.  She’s not always on the cutting edge of new ingredients or healthy alternatives, and some of her recipes are pretty dated.  But she also has some quality basics that are a great springboard to adapt into a more successful version.  Say what you will about Martha, but with her help, I think this recipe is a good thing.

Not only are these delicious, but between the whole wheat flour, oatmeal, dried cranberries, and nuts, how could you go wrong!  Every time I make these, I get nothing but raves.  Don’t be intimidated by the long ingredients list, you have most of it in your pantry, just run out to the store to grab the add-ins!

Awesome Oatmeal Cookies

Yields about 4 dozen (this is a big batch)

• 4 sticks of unsalted butter (2 cups)
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 1/2 cups AP flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt or milk
• 4 cups old fashioned oats
• 1 12 oz package of white chocolate chips
• 1 12 oz package of butterscotch chips
• 1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1-2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Cream butter and sugars together with electric mixer.
3. Sift together dry ingredients: flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
4. Add eggs, vanilla extract, and yogurt/milk to butter and sugar.  Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients.  Once ingredients are combined, add in oats, white chocolate, butterscotch, dried cranberries, coconut, and nuts.
5. Mixture will be relatively stiff.  Make sure that the add-ins are uniformly distributed throughout the batter.
6. Use an ice-cream scooper to portion out dough into 2 inch balls on cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.  These will be a great texture if they are closer to golden rather than brown.

Here’s what they looked like when I made them around Christmas.  Enjoy!