A few weeks ago, I was pressed for time and wanted to pick up a few things at the store. Normally, I go to Whole Foods to pick up grains and such from their bulk bins, but because I was running short on time, I went ahead and stopped by Luckys. One of the things I grabbed was a container of the quaker oats, because I was wanting to use rolled oats for – well, I forget now, because when I got home, I realized I’d accidentally grabbed the instant oats container. Did you know that the containers for Quaker Quick Oats and Quaker Oats are virtually identical? I probably would have caught it, if I hadn’t been in a hurry – but dem’s da breaks.

Anyhow – so I’ve had these instant oats, sitting in the cabinet – taking up valuable pantry real estate (because no one here eats Instant Oats, we prefer Steel Cut). So When I came across these cookies over on a blog called Avec Gourmandise I was like Aha! Something to use up those oats! She called for old fashioned oats, but I think that the instant oats are better for cookies, since they cook a little more thoroughly and lose some of that ‘raw’ texture. Or atleast, I think that when I’m making cookies that Mr. Man will eat – he can be a little picky about textures sometimes.

Of course, I had to tweak with the ingredients and method a little myself – because that is just how I am. I think the recipe was originally from a baking book by Dorie Greenspan. Not sure what the name of it is, but she mentioned the author in her post. Anyhow – the cookies came out fabulous. I could wish that the Peanut Butter flavor was a little more pronounced, but otherwise they were great. I strongly recommend resting the dough for at least 24 hours to let the oats and flour absorb the moisture in the dough a little better.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups Instant Oats
• 1 cup Flour
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Fresh ground Nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 cup Butter, softened
• 1 cup Natural Chunky Peanut Butter; room temperature
• 1 and 3/4 cups Brown Sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp Vanilla
• 4 oz Milk Chocolate; cut in to chunks
• 4 oz Bittersweet Chocolate; cut in to chunks

Method:

• In a medium sized bowl, stir together the Oats, Flour, Baking Soda, Cinnamon, Nutmeg and Kosher Salt. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, cream together the Butter and the Brown Sugar until fluffy
• Add in the eggs and vanilla, and beat until well combined
• Completely mix in the Peanut butter
• Mix in the oat mixture, a little at a time, until completely incorporated
• Stir in the chocolate chunks
• Cover cookie dough and refrigerate for a minimum of a couple of hours, but I highly recommend resting for at least 24 hours.
• After the dough has rested, preheat oven to 350°
• Drop cookies using a cookie scoop or rounded spoonfuls on to a parchment lined baking sheet
• Bake for about 15 minutes, or until cookies are set in the middle.
• Cool on the pan until firm enough to transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling