“Empty?! You took all the cookies!. They were crying to get out of the jar... Cookies get claustrophobia too, you know!” -Charles M. Schultz You know what makes me mad? Here it is National Cookie Month and nobody, I mean nobody, is talking about it! There's all this talk about this candidate and that candidate and which celebrity is doing what where, but no one is talking about cookies (well, except for Dorie Greenspan, noted cookbook author, who has a new book coming out at the end of the month on the subject). Cookies deserve a little more respect than that, I think. So I'm here to give it to them. Cookies are magical. They are little discs of flour, butter and sugar in some variation that you can hold in your hand, no matter how young or how old you are. Who doesn't love a cookie? One little cookie can transport you back to your childhood in an instant (think Proust's madeleines), help you make a friend, make a bad day better, are essential to any Christmas celebration worth celebrating and can create world peace (who could be angry over cookies and milk, right?). Name one other food with that much power and influence. Just as I thought.... So here is my first cookie worth celebrating this month. I created this cookie, Glazed Maple Oatmeal Cookie with Walnuts after trying the recipe for Maple Oatmeal scones in The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten (p 222). Though I love Ina's scones, generally speaking I am not a scone gal. I am, however, a completely devoted cookie gal. I love this cookie with it's chunky texture full of toasted walnuts (I say the walnuts are essential to this recipe- they temper the sweetness and add crunch) and drizzled with that sweet maple glaze. I hope you will love it, too! Glazed Maple Oatmeal Cookies with Walnuts- makes about 2 1/2 dozen 8 ounces ( approx 1 1/2 cup plus 1 Tablespoon) all-purpose flour 3/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt 3/4 teaspoon baking soda* 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 8 1/2 ounces (2 sticks plus 1 Tablespoon) unsalted butter, room temperature 4 ounces (approx 1/2 cup plus 1 Tablespoon) granulated sugar 7 ounces (1 cup firmly packed) light brown sugar 1 large egg 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 fluid ounce (2 Tablespoons ) PURE maple syrup (grade B if available) 1/2 teaspoon maple extract 4 1/2 ounces lightly toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped 7 ounces ( 2 cups) old -fashioned oats Glaze: 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar 3 Tablespoons PURE maple syrup (grade B if available) 1/4 teaspoon maple extract teensy pinch (just a few granules) sea salt 1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F. Line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. 2. in a medium bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon. Set aside. 3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, on low speed, cream together the butter and sugars until combined well . Mix in the egg, syrup and extracts and combine well, increasing speed to medium for about 30 seconds. 4. Return speed to low and stir in the flour mixture until almost completely absorbed. Add in oats and walnuts. Mix well. The results will look like this: 5. Scoop out dough using an ice cream scoop about 3 " apart on prepared baking sheets.** 6. Bake in preheated oven for about 10-12 minutes until edges are nicely golden and middle seems set. Cookies will have puffed up a bit in center and then flattened out. Let cool about 4 minutes then glaze. 7. To make glaze, combine powdered sugar, 3 Tablespoons maple syrup, 1/4 teaspoon maple extract, teensy pinch of salt and enough hot water to make a smooth icing with a drizzling consistency. 8. Using a spoon or spatula, drizzle the tops of the cookies Jackson Pollack style with icing ( as much or as little as you'd like), but you want to see cookie beneath the glaze, not have it completely covered). 9. Let icing set before eating or storing, about 15-20 minutes (it's ok if you have to try one sooner, I won't tell). Promise me you'll share some, right? #cookiesandkindness ♥
*NOTE: I developed this recipe at higher altitude ,at around 5000 feet above sea level. If you live closer to sea level and the cookies are not spreading to your satisfaction, you may need to increase your baking soda to 1 teaspoon. Try it and see.They will taste great either way. **If refrigerating the dough before baking, you may need to pat the dough balls down a bit before baking. Try one or two first and see what you think. It's generally what I do.
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