Choco-Oatmeal Cookies

I am not a great recipe follower. Actually, I am a really bad one, you can ask my husband. But when it comes to baking, one should (or needs) to follow a recipe down to science. Or so I was told.

Along the way, I got a recipe for Chocolate chip cookies from my mother-in-law. I asked her if she had a 'half' recipe for these cookies since the usual ones you find will make so many cookies that more of them go into my own tummy than anybody else's (and that's never good). Plus, everybody would agree that cookies are best fresh out of the oven. So the more cookies made in the same batch, the less fresh the uneaten-right-away ones are.

Cut to the chase. I have been using this 'half' recipe for a while now and trying to follow everything as best I can. Today, of course, my usual non-recipe self said I should substitute a little oatmeal for the 2 extra Tablespoon of flour asked for.

It satisfies my creative-baker self, and I think it still tastes great. Here is the revised recipe, if you are interested. And if you would rather use the original recipe, just substitute the 2 Tablespoons flour instead of the oatmeal... And if I remember right, there is something about 1 Tablespoon water, too...But I have never really used that. See what I mean?

Choco-Oatmeal Cookies

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 lb unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dry ingredients:

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Set oven at 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk wet ingredients together until smooth. In another bowl, combine dry ingredients together before adding it to the wet ingredients until all blended. Spoon small balls of cookie dough onto a baking sheet.

Bake about 9-11 minutes until light brown. Longer if you like your cookies crisper. I usually like mine on the chewy side. Eat warm with a cup of tea or coffee...or a cold glass of milk for your children (or your Mid-western husband).