They are super easy to make and I really recommend buying the book as it has so many different recipes and they are all super easy but mouth-wateringly good! I mostly use the classic chocolate chip recipe and adapt the extras to whatever I feel like. My two most common are double chocolate chip or white chocolate chip with cranberries and sour cherries.
- 7 1/2 ounces rolled oats
- 8 ounces plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 12 ounces unsalted butter
- 7 ounces granulated sugar
- 7 ounces light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
Method
Step One: Make the Dough
Preheat the oven to 350F/180C/160C fan. Whizz the oats in a food processor. When they are finely ground, pour them into a mixing bowl and stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, beat the butter on a low speed until soft. Beat on a medium speed until light and creamy. Keep beating continuously as you add the granulated sugar followed by the brown sugar. When it is really light and creamy, add the eggs one at a time. If the mixture looks like it's going to curdle, add a spoonful of the dry ingredients as you mix. Fold in the vanilla and the rest of the dry ingredients - do not overmix!
Step Two: Add the flavours
Now's the time to add whatever cookie flavours you prefer most.
- Double chocolate chip - add 2 cups of semisweet chocolate chunks and 2 cups of bittersweet chocolate curls and fold in
- White chocolate, cranberry and sour cherry - add 2 cups of white chocolate chips, 1 cup sour cherries and 1 cup dried cranberries and fold in
- M and M's - add 3 cups of M and M's and fold in
- Peanut butter and chocolate chip - beat in 1 cup peanut butter before you add the eggs, then fold in 2 cups dark chocolate chips at the end
Experiment and see what works for you!
Step Three: Bake the Cookies
Roll tablespoons of the mixture between your hands and place them widely spaced on a lined baking sheet. Press down with the back of a spoon, then bake for about 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and then eat them warm!
I often make a double batch and freeze some for later - just place in a freezer-safe bowl, cover in parchment and foil and freeze for up to three months. Get the dough out of the freezer the night before you want to bake and follow Step Three as above.
Julia's Top Tips
- Don't over mix the dough - it doesn't matter if it's a little streaky.
- Try different flavour combinations and see what works - go crazy! :)
- Oven times vary so watch your cookies carefully - mine are sometimes done after 12 minutes
