Oatmeal Cowboy Cookies

I used to make cookies all the time. I collected cookie recipe books like they were candy, always searching for something new and different. I finally realized that there were only about 6 basic cookie recipes, everything else were just variations on those recipes.

This is one of my family's best loved cookies. I came across it on a Holiday cookie thread over at Epinions when I was on my cookie recipe craze. I've made it over the years, for bake sales and friends, added cinnamon, used different flavour chips, its hard to mess this one up. It's my fail safe, go to recipe.

Add nuts, change the vanilla to almond extract, stir in some coconut or raisins - this is very modifiable to your tastes. Have fun with it!

Oatmeal Cowboy Cookies
makes 48 cookies

  1 cup  butter
  1 cup  sugar
  1 cup  packed demerara sugar, or brown sugar
  2 eggs
  1 tsp  vanilla
  2 cups  flour
  1 tsp  baking soda
  1/2 tsp  salt
  1/2 tsp  baking owder
  1 cup rolled oats
  2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven at 350°.

Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy.

Add eggs and vanilla and blend well.

In a seperate bowl, mix dry ingredients together except chips.

Beat dry mix into butter/egg mixture, combining well.

Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by heaping tablespoonfuls (for big cookies) onto parchment papered cookie sheets.

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.