Grandma's Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

My last living grandma passed away this month. :(

It had been coming for a long time, but it doesn't make it too much easier to see her go. She was the sweetest grandma you could have ever asked for. Not even saying this because she was my own grandma, but she really was just one of those special little ladies that warms your heart everytime you see her. Sadly I didn't get to see her that much because Michigan is not very close to New Hampshire.

I dug through her recipe collection and found an old oatmeal carton top, the kind that had the oatmeal raisin cookie recipe right on it. My mom told me a story about how someone asked my grandma for her oatmeal cookie recipe (I don't remember who it was.. could have been her?) and my grandma responded something like.. "Oh sure. Go out to the store and pick up some oats. Follow the recipe that comes on the carton." Totally serious. I love that.

So these are NOT healthy.. which is not usually what I like to make. (You might not be able to tell from what I blog about, but I am kind of a health nut. I'm giving veganism some serious thought as well). But these cookies are so delicious, and they remind me of my grandma, so here you go. :)



"Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies" (Quaker)

2 sticks butter, softened (the updated version on the Quaker website says 1 stick plus 6 T, which shows how old this carton top must be!!)
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I actually used about three quarters whole wheat, and it was great)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt (optional.. I opted out)
3 cups Quaker old-fashioned oats
1 cup raisins (I soaked these in warm water to plump them up a bit first)

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown.
Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.


I also want to show off two of my new toys from my Christmas/birthday season!!



(I used both of these toys for the first time with this recipe!)

Almond Joy Cookies

This one's an absolute treasure. I mean it - I cannot believe something so easy can taste so good. I found this recipe on an index card written out by my grandmother (the one who just passed away in May) and I thought I'd try it out. There wasn't much description on it; there was no ingredient list, just a few scribbles of instruction. So here goes..

Almond Joy Cookies

1 can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
2 oz bittersweet chocolate (I used Ghiradelli chocolate chips)
3 cups sweetened shredded coconut
1 tsp vanilla
Handful of almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat milk and chocolate on top of double boiler. Cook and let bubble for several minutes.

In a mixing bowl, measure out the three cups of coconut. Add vanilla. Once chocolate-milk mixture has heated through, pour on top of coconut-vanilla mixture and stir to combine thoroughly.

Use a small cookie scoop to drop on a well-greased cookie sheet. Press an almond into each cookie. Bake for about 8 minutes.

Allow these cookies to cool before removing. They are extremelyyyy sticky so I actually had to peel them off of the parchment paper. If the cookie got misshapen, it was easily fixed by just re-molding it back into shape. Keep these in the refrigerator -- if they are not cold, they will fall apart when they are picked up!

YUM!