Seriously good oatmeal cookie recipe

These are not your ordinary oatmeal cookies. For one thing, they don't have those nasty raisins in them--those squished-bug-like raisins that exist only to deceive the nearsighted into believing they're about to bite into a chocolate chip cookie. For another, they are more crispy than chewy, with a delicate consistency similar to sugar cookies. As far as I know, the recipe has been in my mother's recipe box since before I was born, labeled BEST Oatmeal Cookies. She was right.

I have updated the recipe based on extensive (ahem) experimentation. Originally it called for a 50/50/split of white/brown sugar; I have tilted it toward brown for richness and moisture. I've added several spices; the original recipe only involved the cinnamon/sugar coating in the last step. The're fantastic without the spices so no need to fret; use or leave out and you'll have addictively good cookies either way.

Advice from experience: Double this recipe. You won't be sorry.

Better than Best Oatmeal Cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together:
1 c. butter (don’t use shortening—it makes all the difference in the world! And for even more amazing flavor, brown the butter first. If you want to make this vegan, use coconut oil and a vegan flax or chia egg in place of the egg below.)
1/2 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 egg (okay to use egg substitute for a vegan version, but if you’re a vegan you’ll miss the buttery goodness mentioned above)
1 t. vanilla

Sift together, then add to the creamed mix:
1-1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour (yes, you can use white if you must)
1 t. soda
¼ t. salt
¼ t. nutmeg
½ t. cinnamon
Optional: 2 T. ground flaxseed (adds omega 3 for vegetarians)
Optional additional spices: 1/4 t. each ginger, mace; dash cloves.

Stir in:
1-1/2 c. rolled oats
¾ c. finely chopped walnuts and/or pecans

Prepare a bowl of cinnamon/sugar
1/3 c. white sugar
1+ t. cinnamon (keep adding cinnamon until you get the color you want--darker if you want a heavier hit of cinnamon, but if you've added the spices above you don't need too much)

Roll dough into balls the size of small walnuts, then roll in the cinnamon/sugar mix.

Use parchment to line the cookie sheets if you have it--handy stuff! If you don't have it, grease the cookie sheet.

Place on cookie sheet and flatten gently with your thumb or the bottom of a glass. They do spread some so don't crowd.

Bake at 350 degrees for 7-9 minutes; start with 7 to test your often. Then hide a batch for your snacking pleasure before you give your family a taste. In my oven when I first posted this recipe 8 minutes brought them to perfection; I now have a new oven in a different house and I bake them for 7 minutes.

If you put two cookie sheets in the oven at once, then halfway through rotate the pans top/bottom and front/back for more even heat distribution.

After you take the pans out, let them sit for 1-2 minutes before removing from the pan. This allows them to set up; if you try to take them off the pan too soon they'll be floppy and tear apart.