The cookie that almost kicked my baking butt Ha!

If you have been reading my blog this month, you know that we are in full mode of baking around here to make Christmas tins as gifts filled with goodies from our kitchen .  We are down to the last two cookies and one of them almost kicked my baking butt right out of the kitchen.  I decided to try a new recipe this year that I actually found two years ago in Cook's Country magazine.

Cook's Country magazine is a FABULOUS magazine for someone who loves to cook.  The magazine is designed in large full color layout, ad-free, and filled with great ideas for country cooking.  My husband and I love this magazine not only for its great recipes but for the tips from other "home" cooks like ourselves.  One idea we got a few years ago was to freeze in small zip-lock bags any unused portion of heavy cream, buttermilk, etc. that you don't end up using in a recipe.  Because lets face it, you buy a small carton of that stuff for a recipe and most times only need a few tablespoons or cups out of it and the rest goes to waste.  Each issue of Cook's Country is packed with succulent recipes, equipment resources, "how-to" guides, and more.

So, the recipe that almost kicked my Christmas baking butt, was Oatmeal Lace Cookies.  I will state right but front, in NO WAY am I or my husband professional cooks.  My husband grew up in the kitchen, his mom loved to cook and insisted (as does my MoG) that as soon as her children were big enough to stir, they were in the kitchen helping to cook.  I just love to cook and so when I married a man who loved to as well it just seemed like a natural thing for us to do together.  So I had this recipe tucked away in my "cook this someday" box of recipes and pulled it out for this season of Christmas baking. 

The trick of this cookie is that I found the recipe to be very delicate and so ended up creating my own tricks to make it work . . . . .  and I added my own embellishment of chocolate to the finished edges of the cookie.

Ingrediants:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/4 cup dark corn syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons heavy cream
1/2 cup quick=cooking oats

1.  Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchement paper. (It is KEY to use parchement paper with this recipe, it makes it MUCH EASIER to move the cookie when it is set)
2.  Mix Vanilla, salt, flour, cream, and oats together and set aside.

3.  Bring butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup to boil in medium saucepan over medium heat. 

4.  Remove from heat and combine with already prepared ingrediants.
5.  Using a 1-teaspoon measuring spoon, drop batter 3 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.  Bake until cookies are golden and no longer bubling,, 6 to 8 minutes, rotating and switching baking sheets halfway through baking time. 

6.  Cool cookies on parchment on wire rack, about 20 minutes. 

7.  Repeat with remaining batter.  Once cookies are cool, peel off parchment and store in airtight container at room temperature for up  to 2 days.  (They also do well in the freezer)

This next step is something I decided to do to add to the look and taste of the cookie.  This is easiest to do if you work with frozen cookies otherwise they just fall apart due to the heat of the melted chocolate.
1.  Melt chocolate in a double boiler over medium-high heat
2.  Carefully roll edges of cookies in the melted chocolate and lay on parchement paper.  (Another option would be to put the melted choclate into a baker bag and drizzle over the top of the cookie)

The cookies set up better if you place the cookies on parchement into the feezer for them to set-up in about 5-10 minutes.  Work in small batches of 8-10 cookies and put into airtight container when they are finished.  Keep container in refrigerator until you are ready to serve or put into feezer for a later date treat. 

Although this cookie was a challange for me to cook, I will totally do it again because it is so YUMMY with the chocolate finish on it.  I welcome any tips you might have to make the next time we bake these a little easier.  I hope you enjoy making these delicate tasty cookies.