Old-Fashioned Oatmeal Cookies

Abingdon Cookie Time Jar

By Cat, Nov 2014 (Photo, right, from Wikipedia; link has been lost)

• See also: 1. Cookie Menu;
• Includes: 1. Mom’s Oatmeal Cookies; 2. Daughter’s Oatmeal Cookies

I’m busy transferring all my recipes to my new recipe blog, and just finished two varieties of ‘healthful’ oatmeal cookies (they include added fiber in the form of date sugar or flaxseeds, to lower the glycemic value), and got a hankering for the oatmeal cookies I remember from my childhood. I won’t make them now because I’ve learned I have a food sensitivity to oats, but just capturing the recipe will satisfy that longing.

The first recipe is the one Mom made; the second is the recipe I used when I was first on my own. They have their differences which I find interesting:

• The first uses 3 1/2 cups flour and 1 cup oatmeal; the second uses 1 3/4 cup flour and 3 cups oat. In other words, about the same amount of grain, but one is mostly oatmeal and the other mostly flour.
• The first grinds the raisins and nuts with an apple; the second uses whole raisins and chopped nuts (no apple).
• The first uses 4 eggs and the second only 1.
• Both site ‘shortening,’ but based on the copyright dates, I’d guess that means ‘lard’ for the first recipe, and ‘vegetable shortening’ for the second. Of course, I would use either lard or butter, as vegetable shortening contains trans fats which are now known to be harmful.

I like aspects of both recipes: including ground apple (with peel) as in the first recipe helps the cookies to remain moist after baking, but I’m not sure why the raisins and nuts are also ground. I would probably just chop the apple and nuts fairly fine and leave the raisins whole. I might plump them a bit in water or brandy, overnight, before using the recipe.

In the second recipe, I like the use of buttermilk or sour milk (or you could use plain unsweetened yogurt), as it too helps the cookies to remain moist after baking. It could also be used to presoak the whole grain flour of my adaptation, if desired.

Maybe one of these days I’ll merge these two recipes into one, but the big decision will be which to use more of: oats, or whole grain flour.

Mom’s Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe is adapted from the recipe my Mom used when I was growing up, which is from Home Baking Made Easy, by Virginia Roberts copyright 1944 (see Beloved Cookbooks for more info). I have not changed much, and include the original ingredients in parenthesis, where I’ve made changes.

Makes 6 dozen cookies

Ingredients & Equipment

• Prep: 1 cup raisins or other dried fruit, plumped in water or brandy overnight, if desired
• 3/4 cup walnuts; NOTE: I would presoak the walnuts overnight and may as well plump the raisins in the same bowl
• 1 large apple
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or whole spelt flour
• 2 cups unbleached white flour (this plus the whole grain flour was originally  3 1/2 cups Occident Family Flour, an all-purpose flour)
• 1 tsp baking powder, aluminum-free (originally just ‘baking powder’)
• 1 tsp baking soda (originally just ‘soda’)
• 1 cup butter or lard (originally ‘shortening’)
• 2 cups Rapadura sugar (originally ‘brown sugar’) NOTE: if you want more of a molasses flavor, replace 1 Tbsp of the sugar with 1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses.
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup old-fashioned oatmeal (originally just ‘oatmeal’)
• 1/4 tsp unrefined sea salt (originally ‘salt’)
• 1 tsp real vanilla extract (originally just ‘vanilla’ which could include artificial vanillin)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Equipment:
• baking sheets
• grinder
• medium bowl
• stand mixer fitted with paddle, or hand mixer
• 2 large bowls (includes one with stand mixer)

Method:

1. Prep: Preheat oven to 400°F; butter the baking sheet(s).
2. Grind raisins, nuts and unpeeled apple together; if you don’t have a grinder, chop them very fine. Set aside.
3. Sift flour(s), baking powder and baking soda together into a large bowl.
4. Cookies: Using stand or hand mixer, cream butter or lard; add sugar and cream well.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well.
6. Stir in ground fruit & nut mixture, then oatmeal, cinnamon, salt and vanilla, mixing well. NOTE: I would add the vanilla with the last egg in the previous step.
7. Fold in sifted flour mixture; do not overmix.
8. Drop by spoonful on prepared baking sheet(s), and bake about 12 minutes.

Daughter’s Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe is adapted from Better Homes and Gardens NEW Cook Book, published 1976 (see Beloved Cookbooks for more info).  I have not changed much, and include the original ingredients in parenthesis, where I’ve made changes.

If you wish to presoak the whole grain flour overnight, stir the buttermilk into the flour in a small bowl. If this mixture is too liquidy, add some of the oatmeal until it is thick but still stirrable. Press waxed paper against the surface of the dough, cover with towel or place bowl in a plastic bag, and let rest on counter overnight.

Makes about 5 dz cookies.

Ingredients & Equipment

• ‘Dry’ ingredients:
• 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour or whole spelt flour
• 1 1/4 cups unbleached white flour (this plus the whole grain flour was originally  1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp unrefined sea salt (originally just ‘salt’)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• ‘Wet’ ingredients:
• 1 cup butter or lard (originally ‘shortening’)
• 1 1/2 cup Rapadura sugar Rapadura sugar (originally ‘brown sugar’) NOTE: if you want more of a molasses flavor, replace 1 Tbsp of the sugar with 1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses.
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup buttermilk, sour milk, or plain unsweetened yogurt
• Final ingredients:
• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (original quick-cooking rolled oats)
• 1 cup raisins, plumped in water or brandy overnight, if desired
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts; NOTE: I would presoak the walnuts overnight and may as well plump the raisins in the same bowl
• Equipment:
• large and medium bowl
• stand mixer fitted with paddle, or hand mixer
• large bowl (includes one with stand mixer)

Method:

1. Prep: Preheat oven to 400°F; lightly butter the baking sheet(s).
2. Chop nuts; I recommend presoaking them overnight after chopping
3. Sift dry ingredients together into a medium bowl.
4. Cookies: Cream butter/lard; add sugar and eggs together and cream again until light and fluffy.
5. Stir in buttermilk.
6. Stir dry ingredients into creamed mixture.
7. Stir in oats, raisins and nuts.
8. Drop by tablespoon-full, 2″ apart, onto prepared baking sheets.
9. Bake in preheated oven about 8 minutes.
10. Cool slightly before removing from baking sheet to cooling rack.