BIG BUTTERSCOTCHY OATMEAL COOKIE

Makes: 16-18 1 1/4 cups (375 mL) all-purpose flour

1 tsp (5 mL) baking soda

1 tsp (5 mL) ground cinnamon 1 tsp (5 mL) kosher salt

1 cup (500 mL) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup (500 mL) brown sugar 1/3 cup (80 mL) granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 tsp (10 mL) vanilla extract 2 cups (500 mL) old-fashioned oats

1 cup (250 mL) raisins

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F (175 C). Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a medium-size bowl.

2. Blend the butter and both sugars together in a large bowl with a hand mixer (or standing mixer) until well blended. Beat in the egg, and then the vanilla.

3. Add the flour mixture gradually, mixing on low speed until each batch is incorporated. Mix in the oats and raisins.

4. Use a 1/4-cup (60-mL) measuring cup (or ice cream scoop) to measure out balls of the dough, which should be placed on an ungreased cookie sheet with at least 3 inches (7.5 cm) between each ball ( bake only six cookies per classic-size cookie sheet).

5. Use your hand to flatten each ball. If you like, cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate for two days or longer. (You can layer the flattened disks of dough two deep in a container, with parchment or wax paper in between the layers, to save fridge space.)

6. Bake the cookies for about 11 to 15 minutes (see important note below) until they are golden brown but still have nice give in the middle. Let them sit on the baking sheet for a minute before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Note: If your cookie dough is at room temperature, start checking the cookies at 11 minutes. They tend to go from almost done to definitely done very quickly. The longer baking time is for dough that’s straight from the fridge. I’m still playing around with this, but baking them from room temperature does seem the most successful in terms of texture and consistency. Having said that, the few that got a bit crispier were unbelievable crumbled over a bowl of vanilla ice cream.