Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love these cookies! In fact, it is hard for me to talk about them without sounding like the Cookie Monster as I describe them…COOOOOKKIIIEEESSS! What’s not to love about these? They are portable so you can eat them on the run….they have chocolate, full stop…..they have oats and pecans so they’re practically a health food, right?! I like to form mine with an ice cream scoop so they stay a little higher than a flat cookie. Plus, when you talk about chocolate chip cookies the conversation usually breaks into two divisive camps….chewy or crunchy. I am definitely a chewy guy so that is how I bake them. When I make these for a potluck or event though, sometimes I make a couple batches of each so there is something for both parties. Honestly though, would you ever turn a good chocolate chip cookie away? I think not!

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Recipe

Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 cup butter, room temperature

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 cup brown sugar

• 2 XL eggs

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 2 cups flour

• 2 1/2 cups Oatmeal (put into blender and blended to powder consistency)

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 12 oz semi sweet chocolate chips

• 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. I make everything in my Kitchen Aid mixer so this ends up being a one bowl recipe. Start by creaming together the butter and sugar using paddle attachment. Then add the eggs and vanilla and beat until creamy smooth.

3. Add your flour, powdered oats, salt, baking powder and soda into bowl and mix on slow so you don’t end up with flour everywhere. Once dry ingredients start to get mixed in turn up speed to medium and mix for about 20 seconds until everything is thoroughly combined. This will be a very thick dense dough. Add your chocolate chips and pecans and mix for a few rounds so they are evenly distributed.

4. Using medium ice cream scoop, scoop 12 cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet, evenly spaced apart (I do 4 across and 3 down).

5. For chewy cookies, bake for 10 minutes until pale golden brown. Immediately remove from oven and let rest for a couple of minutes before putting on platter. For crispy crunchy cookies, bake for 12 minutes until golden brown (keep an eye on them so they don’t get too dark). Then remove and let rest as above. I usually have two cookie sheets going at a time when making these. That way I can start preparing the second sheet while the other cookie sheet is cookie.

Serve with your favorite beverage….big glass of milk for dunking, hot cup of coffee or tea, or a great glass of red!