Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Baking is kind of my thing. Every time I have people over, I like to make some delicious, freshly baked goods that are always a crowd favorite. My favorite one to make is Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.

Cookies are the best. Who doesn’t like cookies? And these are just soft, chewy and the sweetest things you will ever taste. Everyone always asked me for the recipe and I’ve always said “you will see it on my blog”! LOL

So here it is, everyone. My world famous Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.

Usually when it comes to cooking or baking in Ethiopia, a lot of ingredients are missing and you have to improvise. With these cookies, all the ingredients are available. Baking soda is the one ingredient I can never find so I use it sparingly. If you don’t have baking soda, I guess you can skip it.

When scooping out the flour, make sure to level it using the opposite side of a knife.

Butter in Ethiopia is sold in 200 gram sizes. I use half of that for 1/2 cup and add just a little bit more of the 2 tbsp.

Mixing time is also very important. Sometimes I even let it mix for more than 5 minutes to get a really creamy texture.

Now, I should also tell you from the start that I don’t have the nutritional facts, because I don’t know how to measure that; you never know with Ethiopian ingredients. I’ve read recipes after recipes and decided this is how I’ve adjusted it to my own taste.

 

Yields: about 75 cookies Prep time: 15 minutes               Bake time: 7-8 minutes               Total time: 30 minutes Ingredients ½ cup and 2 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature ½ cup white sugar ½ cup brown sugar or honey* 2 eggs, at room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour 1 teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 3 cups quick oats ½ cup raisins Directions 1.      In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside. 2.       In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars – about 5 minutes and well blended. You should use some kind of a mixer. I think it would be hard mixing by hand. 3.       Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and let everything mix together, about another 5 minutes. 4.       Add the flour mix to the butter mix, in 2 or 3 parts. With a spoon or a spatula, fold in the oats, also in 2 or 3 parts. Fold in the raisins. Let the mixture chill for about 15 or 30 minutes in the freezer, or you can bake it right away. I also keep left overs in the freezer and bake whenever I want them. 6.       Prepare your baking sheet by applying a drop of oil and greasing the whole pan. Add about a teaspoon of flour and spread it on to the sheet. You could also use aluminium foil or parchment paper for easy clean up. 7.       Using a tea spoon, drop the cookies onto the sheet, separated by a couple of inches. 8.       Bake in the center of a preheated oven of 200°C for about 6-8 minutes, let it sit on the pan for about a minute before removing it and cool on a wire rack completely. enjoy! * Sometimes I use honey in place of brown sugar if I can’t find the sugar. Dark colored honey makes for a better alternative.