Raisin Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

Raisin Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

After much success from the French Apple Tart I made a few weeks ago, I’m back to making more recipes from Ina Garten’s book, Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics: Fabulous Flavor from Simple Ingredients. This has to be one of my favorite cookbooks. There is not a recipe or dish that isn’t fabulous! Ina claims to be an oatmeal cookie aficionado, so I had no doubt that these cookies would come out delicious. The secret trick learned here was to toast the nuts before adding them into the cookie dough. It really brought out the flavor of the pecans in these sweet & chewy oatmeal cookies. You’re going to love them :) XOXO....little j Y

Raisin Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

Recipe by: Ina Garten

* Makes 30-35 cookies

½ pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs, at room temperature

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp kosher salt

3 cups old-fashioned oatmeal

1 ½ cups raisins

1 ½ cups pecans, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Arrange pecans on sheet pan and bake for 5 minutes, until crisp. Set aside to cool.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. {Tip: Make sure you are working with room temperature butter. Set the butter out over night to save yourself time.} Add in eggs, one at a time, and vanilla and mix on low.

Sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a medium bowl. Gradually add dry ingredients to the butter mixture and blend at a low speed. Stir in oats, raisins and pecans. {Tip: Kosher salt measurements are different than table salt. If you are using table salt, use half the amount from the recipe. I use Kosher salt in everything. It has more texture and tends to have a softer flavor than table salt. You should definitely give it a try!}

Line sheet pans with parchment paper. Drop dough by 2-inch mounds onto the sheets. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Bake larger cookies for about 20 minutes. {Tip: For chewier cookies, allow them to cool on pan before transferring to a baking rack.}