Sunday, May 4, 2008

NEW ADDITION - Thin and Crispy Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe has not been cut out from the magazine yet, so no one has it. These are The Best Oatmeal Cookies Ever. Most oatmeal cookie recipes end up chewy, and if you prefer that fine...I always feel like they end up semi-stale tasting. I think I have been subconsciously looking for these cookies, without knowing what I was really looking for. If there is an oatmeal cookie recipe in your cookbook, it won't make the new edition. These are in. Again, I got this recipe from Cooks Illustrated. I made them recently for someone who had a baby, and forgot to take a picture. I don't follow the recipe exactly, which is probably why mine don't end up as thin as the picture. Mel - you will die when you see how much butter is in them, but I have had good luck cutting the butter back quite a bit. I want to say I only used 1 stick with good results, but this last time I think it was 1 stick plus 2T.

Thin and Crispy Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
14 T unsalted butter, softened, but still cool (65 degrees)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350. Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt in medium bowl.
2. In standing mixer fitted with paddle, beat butter and sugars at medium-low speed, about 20 seconds. Increase speed to medium and continue to beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute longer. Scrape down bowl with rubber spatula. Add egg and vanilla and beat on medium low until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds. Scrape down bowl again. With mixer running at low speed, add flour mixture and mix until just incorporated and smooth, 10 seconds. With mixer still running on low, gradually add oats and mix until well incorporated, 20 seconds. Give dough final stir with spatula to ensure no flour pockets remain.
3. Divide dough into 24 portions, each about 2 T, then roll between palms into balls. Place cookies on prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 1/2 inches apart, 8 dough balls per sheet. Using fingertips, gently press ball to 3/4 inch thickness.
4. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies are deep golden brown, edges are crisp, and centers yield to slight pressure when touched, 13 to 16 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack;cool cookies completely on sheet.

3 comments:

Robin said...

Great, keep the new recipe additions coming!

Mel said...

I don't even know how many Tb of butter are in a stick. How sad is that!

And then there's "salted" versus "Unsalted". Am I the only one that doesn't understand butter?

wirrek said...

I think there are 8T in one stick.

Salt in butter acts as a preservative, but I have never had a problem with unsalted butter going bad. But I use the two interchangably (is that a word?) and never really noticed a different. The theory is that by using unsalted butter, you control how much salt goes into your baked good.