Oatmeal Chocolate Chip

Yield: about 4-5 dozen

Source: This is another cookie I have been eating since birth. I'm pretty sure my mom got it from the oatmeal carton at some point.

I like to refer to these as my "award winning" cookies, and I also like to think that they deserve it. Does it really matter the circumstances of the award? Okay, I'll tell you anyway. I think I was about 10 or 12 years old. I was in 4H. I entered them in the county fair and won an honorable mention. The judges told me they were a little too dry and crumbly. I disagreed.

This is a fabulous everyday cookie. I have never met the person who didn't like it. (With the possible exception of one friend, who told me that oats made him "so regular." Arguably, though, this did not mean he did not enjoy the flavor!) The recipe is pretty predictable, except that it calls for water, which is a touch unusual.

1 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 T. water

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups flour

chocolate chips

3 cups quick oats

It is very nearly against our religion to make cookies without doubling the recipe. These cookies also have the potential to double your weight, so I guess that's apropos!

Today, I put double the shortening and double the sugar in the mixer before I discovered that I did not have double the brown sugar in the house.

Is there anything more irritating? I dropped everything and ran to the store for more brown sugar. And diet coke.

Start by creaming the shortening, sugars and eggs. Add in the water and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients last.

I once again tested the limits of my mixer by doubling the recipe. The bowl is just not quite large enough for this, which doesn't stop me from trying.

Let me mention a couple things here that I have learned in my many years of experience making these cookies.

FIRST, put the oats in last. Even the chocolate chips go in before the oats. Once the oats are in, nothing else will mix together well, so make the oats the finale.

SECOND, I know that I did not specify how many chocolate chips to use. This is really a matter of taste. I prefer to use an entire bag for one batch, but I realize that many of you would prefer to use less than that. I say, they're your cookies, and chocolate chips are not necessary for the integrity of the recipe, so do whatever you want. You can even use a raisin, as long as you never tell me about it. (Who would use a raisin when you could use a chocolate chip?) When I double it, and I always double it, I use one bag of chocolate, and another of some other kind of chip. Peanut butter is my favorite, but today I used butterscotch.

Be sure to poison check the dough before baking. I have fantasies of sitting in front of the tv with a bowl of this cookie dough and a spoon, and a great chick flick. Be sure to poison check after baking, too, while the cookies are still warm and gooey. (Pause while I wipe the drool from my face.)

This is the part where you drop the dough onto the cookie sheet. I prefer the two-spoon method. It keeps the hands clean.

Bake these lovely little pretties at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. (Preferably 8) They should be a little gooey when they come out, but still brownish on top. Is that technical enough? Leave them on the sheet pan for a couple minutes before moving to a cooling rack. The hot pan will continue to cook them a bit, which will really help the gooey-ness. You might have to experiment with your oven and your area of the world to get this right.

If there is a secret to making this cookie "award winning," it is to underbake just a touch. Just as paint dries a shade darker, cookies cool a shade crunchier. If they are a bit underdone upon coming out of the oven, they should cool to chewy perfection.

Yes, you can freeze them. But, if you're going to do it, make sure you get them in the freezer before the family knows about it, or there will be nothing left to freeze.