Cookies!

I love to bake, and while I could, at times, eat everything I bake, I really shouldn't. It works out okay, though, because no one normal turns down baked goods, so I can always bring them to work or send them to work with Brad. I usually send him treats every other week or so, but that dries up in April and May because of end of the year craziness. Now that it is summer, though, I don't go to work, so he gets all of the treats.

Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies
3 1/4 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1 cup white sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, beat butter, shortening and sugars with an electric mixer. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until well incorporated. In a small bowl, combine salt, cinnamon, baking soda, and flour. Beat into wet ingredients until just incorporated. Stir in oats and pecans.

Drop tablespoon sized balls onto greased cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for 15 - 18 minutes, or until browned and crispy. Store dough in refrigerator while cookies are baking. If the dough gets too warm, the cookies will spread out too much when baking. Cool on cookie sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.


Brad has nostalgic memories of oatmeal cookies his grandma made, but unfortunately, no one seems to have the recipe. These were my most recent attempt to recreate them. He says they have too much oatmeal. (My last attempt didn't have enough oats...) I found these to be really delicious. They are really crunchy, though, and the recipe makes A TON! (like 7 dozen)


Lemon Ricotta Cookies with Lemon Glaze (by Giada from foodnetwork.com)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 (15 oz) container whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tablespoon lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.

In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest and beat until just combined. Stir in reserved dry ingredients.

Drop two tablespoons of dough per cookie 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake 12-15 minutes, until slightly golden around the edges. Let cookies cool on cookie sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before glazing.

Combine powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spread glaze over cooled cookies. Allow to harden for about 2 hours before storing in an airtight container.


Brad thought these were too tart. I thought they were really good, but not so good that I'd go buy ricotta to make them. I had an open container I needed to use up, and this was a nice alternative to my usual efforts to use up ricotta - generally calzones.