Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Yields about 40 cookies
Ingredients
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 cups raisins
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
3 cups rolled oats (old fashioned or quick oats, do not use steel cut or instant)
Method
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter two large cookie sheets, or line them with silicone mats or parchment paper.
Place the butter in a thick-bottomed medium sized stainless steel saucepan or other pan with a light, reflective interior. Heat on medium. Melt the butter, whisking so that the butter melts evenly. The butter will foam up, and then the foam will subside. Whisk frequently to check underneath the bubbly surface. At some point, browned bits will form at the bottom of the pan and the butter will begin to smell nutty. Watch carefully—it's easy for the butter to go from browned to burnt. When the browned bits begin to form, remove the pan from the heat. Pour the melted butter, with the browned bits, into a glass or metal bowl. Allow to cool a bit while you prepare the other ingredients.
Vigorously whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cinnamon together in a large bowl.
Place the browned butter (along with the browned bits) in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the brown and granulated sugar. Beat on medium-high until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat for 3 more minutes on medium speed until smooth and light.
Using a spatula, stir the flour mixture into the batter. Stir in 2 tablespoons of water.
NOTE: if you are using jumbo eggs you will probably not need this much extra liquid.
Stir in the raisins and the pecans. Stir in the rolled oats.
At this point, the dough can be made up to a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator.
Spoon out heaping tablespoons of cookie dough and lay them on lined cookie sheets. Make sure you have about 2" of space between each cookie, as they will flatten a little and spread on the cookie sheet as they bake.
Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes, or until they are just brown around the edges, but still soft in the centre. The cookies firm up as they cool. If you want them crispier, bake them from 12 to 14 minutes, but 10 minutes will yield a chewier cookie. Take the cookies out of the oven and let them cool.
