Chocolate Chunks Oatmeal Cookies

Almost two baking posts in a row, sorry but my sweet-tooth can't help it and these cookies have three words before the actual word "cookies" so you know they are pure yummy decadence. My mother did a great job raising me by her side in the kitchen. I know now her plan all along was to train me so that I could bake for her whatever she pleased, whenever she pleased. Seriously, all I need from her is a "I wish we had some oatmeal cookies for coffee this afternoon, and oh! I think there's a chocolate bar in the fridge." for me to know that's code for "start prepping everything, you're baking today." 

And yes, I'm weak so I baked. This particular recipe is great because you can add pretty much whatever you have in your pantry; raisins, walnuts or chocolate chips will do and it gives you thick, chewy oatmeal cookies. Now, I didn't use raisins because cookies with specks that look like chocolate chips but are really raisins are the main reason I have trust issues. I was lucky there was a bar of chocolate in the fridge, this chocolate is for making hot chocolate so it was a bit of an experiment to mix it into the batch but it worked perfectly. My only problem with this recipe is the time it was to spend cooling, I always grow super impatient but the wait it so worth it! They're addictive, you can never have just one!

For the Chunk Oatmeal Cookies you'll need:

1/2 cup (1 stick, 4 ounces, or 115 grams) butter, softened

2/3 cup (125 grams) light brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup (95 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

1/4 teaspoon table salt

1 1/2 cups (120 grams) rolled oats

3/4 cup (120 grams) chocolate chunks or raisins

1/2 cup walnuts (65 grams), chopped (optional)

Directions:

• In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth. 

• In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together. Stir this into the butter/sugar mixture. Stir in the oats, raisins and walnuts, if using them.

• At this point you can either chill the dough for a bit in the fridge and then scoop it, or scoop the cookies onto a sheet and then chill the whole tray before baking them. You could also bake them right away, if you’re impatient, but I do find that they end up slighly less thick.

•  Heat oven to 350°F (175°C) before you scoop the cookies, so that it’s fully heated when you’re ready to put them in.

• The cookies should be two inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake them for 10 to 12 minutes (your baking time will vary, depending on your oven and how cold the cookies were going in), taking them out when golden at the edges but still a little undercooked-looking on top.

• Let them sit on the hot baking sheet for five minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool.

Yield: 2 dozen cookies | Prep Time: 20 minutes + 45 minutes cooling | Cook Time: 12 minutes | Source: The Smitten Kitchen