SANDRA’S WHITE CHOCOLATE CRANBERRY OATMEAL COOKIES

The indulgent white chocolate

nicely enhances the sweet-tart cranberries

and crunchy oatmeal...

I was feeling creative today, and this new cookie recipe rocks! I’ll be sending these delectable treats along with my husband and a few other family members while they head out on an Alaskan road trip over the next several days.

Yields: (3.5 to 4 doz.)

Prep: 15 Mins.

Bake: 12 to 14 Mins.

INGREDIENTS

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

1 (11 oz. pkg.) white chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli)

1 cup dried cranberries

1-1/4 cups quick-cooking oats

METHOD

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper (you can reuse while baking additional batches).

Beat butter on medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add sugars, beating well. Add eggs and vanilla extract, beating until blended.

Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Gradually add dry ingredients to wet mixture, then beat just until blended (do not over beat or cookies will become tough). Using a spoon, fold in white chocolate chips, cranberries, and oats until incorporated.

Drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet 2" apart.

Bake cookies 12 to 14 minutes, until light golden brown around edges. Cool on baking sheet 2 minutes, and transfer to wire rack to cool completely. ~ Enjoy!

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Tip: I did a test by placing a batch of cookies on a cold baking sheet  into a hot oven vs a hot baking sheet  into a hot oven (as most do when they pull a previous batch out) and the difference was amazing.  Cookies baked on the cold baking sheet into a hot oven produced perfect results with lighter, thicker and uniform cookies, although the hot baking sheet into a hot oven produced flatter, unappealing spread out cookies that were way too crisp to my surprise.