Are you ready?

Seriously, are you sitting down?

First, let me bid you farewell, as this will likely be my last post. Because it’s entirely possible my family will put a hit out on me for sharing this recipe. (just kidding. kind of.)

In all seriousness, I love cookies. Not just cookies, SOFT cookies. I mean who doesn’t?

And I think that’s why oatmeal cookies have such a bad reputation. Most people think of hard, boring cookies their Grandma used to give them. Well, I’m lucky. My Grandma was far too awesome for that. I learned this recipe from her, and she got it from her mother (my daughter’s namesake, Isabel). I have no idea where Great Grandma Isabel got the recipe, but I am not going to lie, it is magical.

It also has some odd extra steps that you can. not. skip. Don’t even ask. I have, however, fiddled with ingredient proportions and added in a few things.

Now that we’ve gotten that all cleared up, one more tip regarding these cookies. If you are a mom-to-be or currently nursing a baby, hold onto this recipe. These cookies are chock full of milk making goodness (galactagogues, yo), and they are a generally healthy (I have, after all, cut back the sugar from the original recipe, and hello oatmeal) and easy to grab snacks, making them perfect for a busy mom with her hands literally full. Because I know how that goes.

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Soft Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 c. old fashioned oatmeal
• 1/2 c. one stick butter
• 1/2 c. shortening
• 1 c. raisins
• 2 c. flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 T. ground flax
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 5 T. reserved raisin cooking liquid I will explain this in a moment
• 1 tsp baking soda
• Optional Add Ins: 1/2 cup walnuts or pecans 3 T. brewer's yeast (this sounds weird, but it adds important B vitamins, is a galactagogue, and most importantly you can't really taste it)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven (with a baking stone, if you have one) to 375.
• Step 1: Brown the Oats
• In a large skillet, melt butter and shortening over medium heat and add oats. Stir until lightly browned, then remove from heat.
• Step 2: Cook the Raisins (you heard me...)
• While the fats melt, put the raisins in a small saucepan and add just enough water to cover. Cook on medium low until warm (doesn't ahve to boil), then remove from heat.
• Step 3: Dry Ingredients
• In a large bowl, mix the flour, cinnamon, cloves, flax, and salt (NOT I repeat NOT the baking soda). Stir to combine.
• Step 4: The Rest
• Once the oats have cooled (not completely, just enough to not cook the eggs), stir the eggs, sugar, and vanilla into them, right there in the skillet. Drain the raisins but reserve 5 T. of the liquid. Stir the baking soda into the raisin water, then add to the oatmeal mixture along with the raisins and any add ins and stir until just combined.
• Place heaping spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet or directly onto a preheated baking stone and bake for 10-15 minutes or until tops are lightly brown.

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Articles by Brandis Roush

Brandis Roush

I am a well traveled Nebraska native who now resides in central Minnesota. My husband and I have been married just over ten years and have three unbelievably smart, beautiful children. As a family we love any outdoor activity, going to movies, reading good books, and enjoying all the fairs, festivals, and other awesome activites the areas has to offer during the 6 months it is not a frozen tundra. I graduated from Kansas State University with a degree in Secondary Education before following my husband to three different states. Since then I have received an additional certification in Early Childhood Education, started a small chicken farm, and opened a small business on Etsy. One of my many mottos is “know better, do better” so I spend much of my spare time doing research on the many decisions I must make as a parent, a business owner, a board member, a spouse, or simply as an adult and I love passing some of that information on to my readers.