Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (can make into bar cookies)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened

• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)
• 3 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). (May increase to 335 F)
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth. Cream butter and sugar until very light and fluffy 4 or 5 mins. if you like. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; Add the dry ingredients and mix by hand just 'till blended. This way your cookies will always stay nice and full.  Mix in the quick oats, walnuts, and chocolate chips. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.
3. Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

TIPS:  I add a 1/2 cup more oats and use a mix of chocolate and butterscotch chips. One other tip - chill the mix for 2 hours prior to baking and the cookies won't spread.  Can also spread into 2 cake pans at 350 for about 25-30 minutes and the bars came out totally yummy!  Used about 3/4 cup Cape Cod dried cranberries and half a bag of Hershey's milk chocolate chips.  Add cinnamon!

MORE TIPS: 1) Cookies can be runny when you use ALL butter (it has such a low melting point) so I used 1/2 butter and 1/2 crisco (i used plain - but butter crisco works too) 2) do not use an electric mixer!!!! it breaks everything down WAY TOO MUCH.... just use a wooden or large metal spoon to mix... and mix it JUST enough.... gentle! 3) after the wet ingredients ... PUT IN THE OATMEAL (i used 1/2 quick oats and 1/2 real oats because the quick oats break down). still, the oats stirred into the wet ingredients sop up any moisture 4) used pecan instead of walnuts - they aren't bitter. put them in next before the flour also so they get mixed in well with the batter. IF YOU DO NOT USE NUTS - ADD 1/4 c. MORE FLOUR!! 5) then put in the flour and soda/salt - I use the same proportion of salt and soda and they come out great - 1/2 t. each 6) chocolate chips last - 1 c. is a good amount and mix barely until mixed. SECRET FOR BAKING: if you bake them immediately, then 335 for 12 minutes. If you put them in the frig - 350 for 13 minutes. 7) LAST BIG SECRET: The recipe calls for letting them rest on the hot baking sheet for 5 minutes - DO THAT!!! IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT!!! Yummmmmm!