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The Bomber’s Best Ever Oatmeal Spice Cookies
Dessert
On a recent visit to our friends Kim and Mary, the aroma of something delicious just out of the oven drew us to the kitchen. I could detect hints of cinnamon and cloves and thought it might be a pumpkin pie (maybe that’s because it was so close to Halloween) …
… but was happy to learn Kim was baking a batch of his mom’s oatmeal cookies. Wow! Chewy and crispy at the same time, full of subtle spice flavor, these are not your usual thick, bland oatmeal cookie.
The Bomber is Kim’s (and his brothers’) nickname for their mom. With three growing boys, the Bomber would make 20 dozen at a time and store them in the freezer for the boys to grab and go. Kim said he would stretch the end of his t-shirt into a bowl and fill it with as many cookies as would fit. No wonder his mom made 20 dozen at a time!
If you love oatmeal cookies (my mom’s favorite!) I guarantee these will be the best oatmeal cookies you have ever tasted. Soft and chewy in the center, crispy on the edges with the sweet, somewhat spicy flavors of cinnamon and cloves and, the Bomber’s secret ingredient? Allspice (which is actually ground up a dried brown berry from a Pimenta dioica tree native to Central America and the West Indies). If your container of allspice has been in the back of your cupboard for who knows how long, pick up a new jar as allspice tends to lose its flavor after being ground.
Speaking of spice, I doubled the amount of spices called for by the Bomber because I really love that whole cinnamon/autumn spice thing. If that is not your favorite, cut the spices in half.
One other important note, take these cookies out while they still look undercooked and are slightly golden brown on the bottom; otherwise, you will have a crunchy rather than soft-centered cookie. They continue to cook while cooling and have that perfectly soft yet crunchy around the edges texture I personally love.
Kim does not add anything to these cookies, but I think you can’t go wrong with raisins, cranberries, or nuts. Whatever your favorite is, toss them in!
These will definitely be our go-to oatmeal cookies from now on. Yay!!
Ingredients:
½ cup salted butter softened
½ cup shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Kosher or fine sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
3 cups old fashioned oats (not instant or quick oats)
Optional add-ins: Raisins, dried cranberries, or nuts.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a couple of cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. (It’s best to use a couple of different cookie sheets so they can cool between batches. Adding the dough to a warm sheet will make them spread even further.)
Use a stand or hand mixer on medium speed to cream the butter, shortening, and sugars together in a large bowl. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until combined and fluffy.
In a small bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice together. Add to the creamed mixture and combine on low.
Stir in the oatmeal and any additional ingredients you desire.
Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon of dough and drop onto the prepared cookie sheet about 2 or 3 inches apart as the cookies will spread … a lot! 12 cookies spread together into a giant cookie blob …
… 6 cookies to a sheet seems to work better.
Bake until the centers are just set and golden brown on the bottom, about 10-12 minutes. The cookies will look underdone, but they will be more crispy than chewy if you bake them any longer.
Cool for five minutes on the COOKIE SHEET and then move to a wire rack to cool.
Makes 24 to 30 cookies, depending on the size of your scoop.
Based on 15 Review(s)
