best ever oatmeal cookies

i read a blog called 52 cupcakes. looking at the pictures just makes me so happy inside.

a few months ago, the writer made cupcakes using this cookie recipe. she made brownies in a cupcake pan (yeah! the whole brownie was all edges! nearly everyone's favorite). then gave a good dollop of icing. stacked a cookie on top, and then another dollop of icing. i've made these a couple of times since then, usually for special occasions at work, and they are always just the biggest hit. the cookies are also very very good all by themselves. the cookie recipe came from the washington post but the cupcake idea is from 52cupcakes.


salted oatmeal cookies

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups flour
2 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
Sea salt, for sprinkling


using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter for a few minutes on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the sugars, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon, beating until the mixture is well blended. reduce the speed to medium and add the eggs and vanilla extract, mixing until well incorporated. reduce the speed to low and add the flour and oats, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary and mixing just until they are incorporated. cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the dough for at least an hour before baking.

preheat the oven to 375 degrees. form the dough into golf ball-size balls and place about 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. sprinkle sea salt generously on top of each ball of dough, as you would sugar. bake 1 sheet at a time for 15 minutes or until the cookies are puffed and beginning to turn golden, being careful not to over bake. (the cookies should have a tender interior.) transfer the cookies, still on the parchment paper, to a wire rack to cool completely. makes 18 cookies

[this pic came from the cupcake queen's site, they aren't ones that i've made. mine don't seem to last long enough for me to remember to snap their pictures. i make shy cupcakes.]