Confession: I am not a very good baker. I think it has something to do with my impatience. Baking isn’t like cooking where you can casually throw in a little of this and a little of that. Baking is precise. If you mess up the correct amounts of salt and baking powder, you can REALLY screw up a recipe.
For me, cooking is a creative task. Sometimes I throw a bunch of stuff in a pan and call it dinner. When in doubt, I just add more garlic and more cheese. I’m not a fantastic cook, but I wouldn’t say I’m horrible either. Baking on the other hand, always seems stifling to me. You have to mix certain ingredients in one bowl, and then other ingredients in a different bowl, and then combine them in a certain order. It’s exhausting and scientific, and I’ve never been good at science. I’m an English/arts girl. I’m creative. Sometimes I just want to throw a bunch of sugar and butter together and add cheese and see what happens, you know?
The problem is: sometimes I crave cookies. And I mean, I CRAVE them. Like I have to have them, immediately, or my head will explode.
Which is exactly what happened last Wednesday morning, only I didn’t have any eggs. Shocker. I never have all the ingredients to make what I want, ever. This is how I wind up blending white sugar with molasses on a Friday night to make my own homemade brown sugar (totally works, by the way). Likewise, this is how I ended up combining boiling water with baking soda, which apparently is the equivalent of an egg.
To make a long story short: I was craving cookies big time but had no eggs, so I found an eggless oatmeal cookie recipe online but I had no rolled oats, so I improvised with apple cinnamon oatmeal instead. Which brings us to the made-up recipe for Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.
And let me tell you, THEY WERE DELICIOUS. If you are thinking to yourself, whoa Ashlee! That’s a lot of flavors in one cookie! You’re right, but somehow it works. Kind of like Rachel’s Thanksgiving trifle. Apple? Good. Cinnamon? Good. Chocolate chips? Goooooooood.
I followed the recipe (kind of), and improvised a little, which is really the best balance for baking in MY kitchen, I’ve decided. I like my cookies with a little bit of spunk, you know?
Anyways, if you find yourself craving cookies and have no eggs, but have instant oatmeal of some kind, you can whip these up any time and they’re sure to be a hit.
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter or 1 cup margarine
- 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 cup boiling water
- 2 cups apple cinnamon oatmeal (from Trader Joes)
- 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions:
- Beat butter or margarine, sugars and vanilla until light and fluffy.
- Add flour and salt, mix well.
- Dissolve baking soda in boiling water and add to mixture. Stir in oatmeal and chocolate chips.
- Drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Makes 3-4 dozen.
These cookies are best enjoyed in servings of three. Eat up! Original recipe found here.
