Best Cookie Base

The Christmas cookie prep continues this weekend with my absolute favorite cookie base. This dough is perfect for adding in just about anything, and it's a great big batch that results in about 4 dozen cookies.

Here's the recipe for the dough:

1 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups oats
approx 3 cups "add-ins" (see below)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugars. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl, then add to butter mixture, when the flour is almost completely incorporated, add the "add-ins". Mix until everything is evenly distributed. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet (the cookies will spread to about 2 in across so spread the balls out) and bake 8-12 minutes. Or until golden brown and delicious.

The great thing about this dough is you can mix in just about anything from the pantry and come up with a great cookie. Here are some of our favorites

Hootie Cranks
2 cups white chocolate chips
1 cup craisins

Oatmeal Raisin
2 cups raisins
1 cup walnuts

Chocolate chip
2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts

Oatmeal Scotchies
3 cups butterscotch chips

Chocolate Peppermint
replace 1 tsp vanilla for 1 tsp peppermint extract
1 1/2 cups smashed up candy canes
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips (or peppermint chips)

Oh gang, the options are endless. Hooray for cookies!




The wee one, last Christmas.