Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I want a cookie, damn it.

For the last week, I have been debating whether to make these healthy cookies. I havent gotten around to it and in the meantime made some pretty healthy muffins instead. Said muffins aren't disappearing like I envisioned. It certainly doesn't help that there are 12 of them and T is out of town. Z likes them and I do too, but they just arent the 'stuffing-your-face' type.

That said, they are still staring me in the face, but I want a cookie.

Not any cookie will do. Its gotta be chocolate chip, and its gotta have oats in it.

I have been doing pretty good lately, not eating so many sweets. really. only a few chocolate chips in peanut butter each night. or, a pumpkin cookie. But, last night, I had a pint of ice cream in my freezer. my favorite BJ flavor, chocolate mint cookie. and, I had more than a few bites. and, I think it helped me sleep. so, the spiral downward begins.

where is that cookie.

So, I made these.

these were oatmeal and chocolate chip made with a little spice and a little bit of wheat flour, just to kid myself.

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup oats

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup wheat flour

1/2 teas baking powder

1/2 teas baking soda

1/2 teas salt

1/2 teas cinnamon

1/8 teas nutmeg

1 cup chocolate chips.

no, I didnt plan for all the measurements to be in 1/2 or 1. but, what an easy recipe to remember!

cream butter and sugars. add vanilla and egg, cream. premix and then add the dry ingredients. add the chocolate chips.

bake at 350 around 12 minutes. longer if you like em crunchier. makes just shy of 2 dozen.

Yesterday, I went to Specialties and couldn't walk out of there without buying one of their wheat germ chocolate chip cookies. I bought 2 actually. I have been wanting to recreate these gems for a while and so I was conducting a little taste research.

yeah, taste research.

I like the ring to that.

what makes these cookies so good is the amount of butter or shortening that is in them, and the nutty flavor of the wheat germ, a hint of cinnamon, little chocolate chunks scattered throughout. their texture is a little on the cakey side, with a little chewy and a little crispness on the outer edges.

I tend to like my chocolate chip cookies on the either crisp-chewy or the really crunchy side. I am not really a cakey cookie gal, but who am I kidding? I wouldnt actually turn any chocolate chip cookie down.

Today, I set out to recreate these puppies. take one.

the result.

a good first attempt! I do think that I could have used more butter to mimic the cafe's cookie, but I was actually happy with my lower calorie version. with a little less fat, it wasnt quite as moist, but I definitely thought the flavor was there, not to mention those healthful ingredients!

here is the recipe:

note: I have since made batch number 2 which doesnt quite resemble the cookies above, but I felt it yielded a tastier and moister, yet a little flatter result. I have increased the butter 2 oz and lessened the egg by one.

6 oz butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 eggs
1/4 teas vanilla
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup wheat flour, fine
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/4 teas cinnamon
1/4 cup oats
1/2 teas salt
1/4 teas baking powder
3/4 cup chocolate, chopped

cream sugar and butter. add eggs and vanilla and cream until fluffly. mix dry ingredients and set aside. add dry ingredients to wet, stir to combine. add chocolate and stir to combine. bake at 350 12-15 minutes.

I am back!!

Today is the start of a new era. For the last 7 months, I have pined for cooking and baking, have yearned to write my weekly blog entries in Whisk and Wander, and we have traveled, which usually warrants a few entries and some photos. but life has changed so much in the last 7 months, that I have been tired, not rested and frankly, not too motivated to do much of anything aside from caring and doting over my baby boy.

But, the tides are changing. I have finally figured out how to get my son to fall asleep on his own. I feel like my world is opening up again, especially my free time in the evenings. So what do I do, a week after I started ‘sleep training’ him and am getting a little more rest myself? First, I have a celebratory beer and then, I cook. (tonight, its coconut curry with halibut) For the first time in several months, I have felt the urge and the energy to get back in the kitchen. Not to say that I haven’t done any cooking…but, I know, I know, potstickers and edamame don’t count now do they?

My first blog back was going to be a re-creation of the famous French Macaroon cookies that we had from Laduree in Paris. But, I admit, I am rusty and they were not blog worthy, believe me. The extent of my baking as of late has been easy stuff like scones and chocolate chip cookies.

I have been an avid walker since Z was born, and often, my walks take me into a café for a halfway point coffee and a cookie. I have been to quite a few cafes around, so I have made it my quest to find the best and worst chocolate chip cookies out there. (not really, but as a frequent buyer and eater of CCC’s, I find that I am getting duped…but am still spending the money on these things anyway..) I hate to sound like a CCC snob, but there are some doozys out there…

If I had to describe my perfect CCC, it would have a slight crunch on the outer edges and give way to a chewy interior. And, unless they are toasted pecans, I hate nuts in my cookies…and brownies and banana bread.



Place #1: This place is known for its coffee, which is roasted in small batches in house…and I love their coffee, think they make the best lattes in Seattle, but their baked goods are….pretty mediocre. Their scones are almost always underdone and their cookies are always falling apart. Whenever I ask for one, the poor barista cant seem to grab just one from the case. Most times, I get a broken one, and part of an extra one, which is nice….if only they didn’t taste so much like bananas.

Place #2: This place is known for its grilled sandwiches and soups and they serve a decent latte, but again, their baked goods are ALWAYS doughy…. ‘the baker is afraid of the oven’, doughy. But, I admit, I have been known to like an underdone cookie now and again. Not bad, I like the chewy factor…but, recently, I saw the owners walk in with a huge tub of ‘Otis Spunkmeyer’ cookie dough…so, this kind of changed everything for me…

Place #3: This place is known for its Asian inspired pastries and they all actually look delicious, but for some reason, I order a CCC instead. Their cookies are the worst texture, dry and sort of chewy, in a stale way…and, they have walnuts. Yuk. I know that they make most of their things from scratch, so I am surprised that the baker pulls these out of the oven, takes a bite, and thinks they are heaven. They are not. (bonus minus point in my book since the walnuts were rancid in my last cookie...)

Place #4: I wasn’t going to get a CCC here, but I didn’t have cash and they only accepted debit cards with 5$ or more, so I gave in. They are a Cuban coffee shop and I think are known more for there unique atmosphere and coffee than their baked goods, but I have to say that I actually liked the cookie. I wasn’t expecting much, as it was wrapped in plastic, which usually says to me.. “Day Old..” and, did I mention that it was 2.00$ ? geez…But, a Double bonus, it had chocolate chips AND m&m’s…no nuts and although it was a dense cookie, it had a good dense yet chewy texture.

I am a baker by trade, so I have to be critcal when trying out these places. But, of course, I have been to most more than once, and I have again and again ordered the same cookie, so they are hardly inedible, but I am still on the search for the best, and I guess not having found it so far keeps me baking my own at home..