Five-Star Oatmeal Raisin Pecan Cookies

This is a recipe I've been tweaking for the last five years. Since I've perfected it, I haven't shared it with anyone. In fact, when my boss asked me for the recipe, I brought her some frozen cookie dough instead. This recipe is my baby. It originally started out as a basic oatmeal cookie with dried cherries. The Captain complained, so the cherries were switched out for raisins, various nuts were experimented with, pecans were voted the best. It's taken dozens of trials to get the right ratios--so here it is!

You'll need: Butter, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, almond extract, flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, oats, pecans, and raisins.

Btw, I doubled the recipe and made an irresponsible amount of cookie dough, don't be intimidated by the pictures. Cream the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated white sugar

 Add the eggs--large is the standard size for all baking recipes 

Stir until smooth. Mix in the vanilla extract and the almond extract

 Add the salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon, and mix until completely combined--don't forget to scrape the bowl every now and then

 Add the raisins

 And the pecans--we like big pieces of pecan, so I just tear them in half as I add them to the measuring cup

Mix it well, then add the flour--to avoid a flour cloud, start and stop the mixer repeatedly until it starts to combine

It looks good, but don't eat it yet (raw eggs = salmonella)

Carefully mix in the oats--I've tried standard vs instant oats, they all seem to work fine; quick oats are what we keep on hand.

Same mixing concept as the flour--short bursts until it is all combined (unless you don't mind cleaning oatmeal explosions off the counter...). If you're doing this by hand use a sturdy utensil--its pretty thick

An ungodly amount of cookie dough, right? You can flash freeze it on a cookie sheet

After about 20 minutes, move them to a zip lock bag, they will keep in the freezer for months

Now you can enjoy a freshly-baked cookie whenever you want

 Chill the dough for about 20 minutes before baking

These delicious cookies will be slightly crispy on the edges, and moist and chewy in the center

The almond extract is the secret ingredient that highlights the raisins and the pecans

Best of all, since they have oats (high fiber), eggs (protein), nuts (omega 3s), cinnamon (heart healthy) and raisins (fruit), you can eat them for breakfast! Totally healthy, right? Well, maybe not, but after trying them you will be convinced by almost any excuse. They are that good.

Five-Star Oatmeal Raisin Pecan Cookies

Ingredients: Makes 3-4 dozen cookies

• 1 cup Salted Butter
• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 1 cup Granulated Sugar
• 2 large Eggs
• 1 1/2 Tbs Vanilla Extract 
• 1/2 Tbs Almond Extract
• 1 1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 Tbs Cinnamon
• 1 cup Pecans
• 1 cup Raisins
• 3 cups Oats

 Directions: 

1. Cream together butter, sugars, and eggs. Add vanilla and almond extracts, beat until smooth
2. Mix in salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add raisins and pecans, mix until well combined
3. Stir in flour, then oats
4. Chill dough for at least 20 minutes before baking
5. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes