Crispy Oatmeal Cookies

Rolled oats. What do you do with them? There was a time when my mum, my auntie and I jumped on the rolled oats bandwagon to lose weight. Every evening at dinner time, we would sit at our dinner table nursing a bowl of rolled oats, grim faced and optimistic that we were doing the right thing.

Everyone seems to have a photo of stacked up cookies. I must do at least one.

That fad didn't last very long obviously and rolled oats are now a distant memory. Enter Little Thumbs Up November and Vivian of Vivian Pang's Kitchen has wisely chosen Rolled Oats as this month's theme. Though rolled oats doesn't exactly make me jump up and down (I still can't jump by the way), I am actually pleased to be working with oats and looking forwards to be inspired by oats.

Cookie dough. Gave me a very good arm workout.

I was clearing up my study when I found a recipe I printed from Joy of Baking. Crispy Oatmeal Cookies couldn't have come at a better time. This is perfect, I thought. And going through the ingredients, I found that rice cereal is also used. I went into the kitchen and found my box of Rice Krispies. But when I checked the expiry date....eeeekkk!!! It read 19 October 2013 which was that very day :( But hey, I opened the package and the rice cereal was still crispy :)

I got busy and made the cookie dough. Since it ain't Chinese New Year, I don't have to make dainty cookies. I chose to make them hunky and chunky. Yes, I want my cookies chungkeh and yummeh! Since they were big cookies, I got them baked in 4 batches instead of 8. Less work for me :)

One ingredient that made me hesitate was fine ground coffee. How would coffee figure in this equation? It was only 1 teaspoon and I wonder if they would affect the cookies greatly. Well, I am glad that I added coffee as it gave a very subtle and pleasing aroma and taste to the cookies. Please do not skip the coffee. It is good. Very good.

Being one to enjoy crispy cookies, I baked mine at 160C for 20 minutes. After the second batch, I reduced the time to 18 minutes as the oven was very hot. When the cookies were cool enough, I took my first bite. Fantastic! I love the crunch and the combination of rolled oats, rice cereal and chocolate chips. The gentle hint of coffee elevated the flavor of the chocolate chips and now I appreciate the chemistry.

Though oats in cookies is not exactly health food, it is alright if these cookies are enjoyed in moderation. Go ahead, have a cookie!

Crispy Oatmeal Cookies

Recipe source : Joy of Baking

(My notes and modifications in red)

- 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature (I used 250g)

- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar (I used 60g)

- 2/3 cup (140 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar (I used 50g)

- 2 large eggs

- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

- 1/2 tablespoon light corn syrup (can use honey, golden syrup, or glucose) (optional)

- 2 cups (260 grams) all purpose flour (I used self-raising)

- 1 teaspoon baking soda (I omitted because I used self-raising flour)

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- 1 teaspoon fine ground coffee (optional)(I recommend that you do not skip the coffee!)

- 1  1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

- 1  1/2 cups semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

- 1  1/2 cups rice cereal

Method :

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C)(I used 180C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, or lightly butter or spray with a non stick cooking spray.

2. In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth. Add the sugars and beat until smooth and creamy (about two minutes). Add the eggs, vanilla extract, and corn syrup, and beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and ground coffee. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture and beat just until incorporated. Stir in the oats and chocolate chips, and then gently stir in the rice cereal. If the batter is soft, cover and refrigerate until firm (about one hour).

4. For large cookies, take a scant 1/4 cup (60 ml) of batter (I use an ice cream scoop), and place the cookies about 2 inches (5 cm) apart on the baking sheet. Flatten the cookies slightly with your fingers so they are about 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) thick. Bake the cookies for about 10 - 13 minutes or until golden brown around the edges but still soft in the centers. For chewy cookies, slightly underbake. For crunchy cookies, bake a few minutes longer. Remove from oven and let the cookies cool a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling. Can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days or they can be frozen.

Makes about 30 cookies.

Note : I used 2 tablespoons to spoon the cookie dough. Since they are bigger, I baked them for 20 minutes, turning the baking pan at half time to achieve even browning. After the second batch of cookies, I reduced baking time to 18 minutes as the oven was quite hot and the cookies baked much faster. I got about 36 cookies.

Also noted that the cookies did not stay crispy after they cooled down. They were soft and chewy. Somehow I didn't mind :)

This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs Up organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY and hosted by Vivian of Vivian Pang's Kitchen.