Oat, Fruit and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Oh my here is my second post and as promised it is a cookie post So what has happened to all the healthy food. Well I think I will have one tomorrow. It will be interesting. Monday I will talk about we Wooly Dunn and Meatless Monday. thoes who know me know some of my struggles already.

A little back ground on these cookies. On Thursday I was in the shower getting ready to go to my last massage appointment with my massage therapist. She is moving on to other things. I felt that I needed to take her a little thank you. As I have said before I like to make cookies. It was 11:00 and my appointment was at 12:30 a 15 minute drive away. I was pretty sure that I could make some sort of cookie. So I pulled out my BHG New Cook Book. 2005 version with the Breast cancer Pink cover and flipped to the back. It has this pink section called "Eating for Life" They are recipes that are supposed to be better for you.

Now there is one cookies recipe in the section. "Oat Fruit and Nut Cookies" They sounded pretty good only I had no nuts in the house and I am always reluctant to take nuts to people to many allergies and dislikes. Now I know she loves Chocolate. I had chocolate chips. So I thought I would substitute that instead of the nuts. For Fruit I had both regular and golden raisins on hand. I got them made and packaged up and I was only 3 minutes late to my appointment and that was traffic anyway! she liked them and so do I.

Needless the cookies I didn't take didn't make it through Friday so Griffin and I made some more tonight with Crasins (dried cranberries). Again very yummy.

Oat, Fruit and Chocolate Chip Cookies

(adapted from Better Homes and Garden New Cook Book 12th edition, 2005 Oat, Fruit, and Nut cookies page A-65)

Preheat Oven to 350F

1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup packed Brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup dried fruit pieces (raisins craisins cherries chopped apricots etc.)
3/4 cup chocolate chips.

In large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer until soft and fluffly about 30 seconds.
Add brown sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda beat on medium until combined. scraping the sides as needed.
Add eggs and Vanilla until well combined scrapping the sides until well combined.
Add flour and beat on low
Stir in oatmeal fruit and chocolate chips.
Drop on cookie sheet in a size that makes you happy.
Bake for 10-14 minutes until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

Vicki's Tips:
I use my Kitchen Aid stan mixer and I combine steps 2 and 3.
I try and always use parchment paper under my cookies. My sister uses silicon baking mats. The cookies don’t stick and you can literally slide them on the the cooling rack.
I don’t measure the fruit and chocolate exactly. I put them in with the mixer running until it looks right.

Griffin’s Thoughts:
Thumbs up from Griffin, he says “I like it. It made me feel good to help make them.”