I baked some cookies!

The recipe I use is originally Paula Dean's but as much as I love Paula's no-nonsense southern cooking I have to cut the sugar a bit and even with that I still don't understand how anybody could eat those cookes with icing on top. Even 46 couldn't imagine it but we don't eat nearly as much sugar as we used to.

These cookies are sooo soft. Everybody I know likes them from the sweet lovers to my sister, who's a bit of a health nut.

This recipe is adapted from Paula's Loaded Oatmeal Cookies.

Prep time 15 minutes
Cook time 12-15 minutes
Yields 5 dozen (so she says. I think 3 dozen medium sized cookies)

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) magarine, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 1/2 cups quick-cooking oatmeal
1 1/2 cups raisins
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Grease 1 or more cookie sheets.
• Using an electric mixer, cream together butter, shortening, and sugar in a bowl until fluffy.
• Add eggs and beat until mixture is light in color.
• Add buttermilk. Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice; stir into creamed mixture.
• Fold in oatmeal, raisins, walnuts, and vanilla, blending well. Drop by rounded tsablepoons onto cookie sheet.

FYI: This dough is softer than other cookie doughs I make, a bit less tacky but the common problem on the Food Network Review site is that they come out flat. Make sure your Baking powder and soda are fresh and you may need to add up to an extra cup of flour. This time around I had to use 2 cups of flour instead 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour.

Lightening it up: I've made this recipe alot. A few times people wanted less fat or sugar. I've used 1 cup of margarine instead of 1/2 cup margarine and 1/2 cup shortening.

For a sugar free or non refined sugar version I've also used 1/2 cup honey or 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce or 1 cup splenda though prefer the brown sugar blend splenda with this recipe.

I've also used whole wheat flour. I actually like it best with whole wheat flour and molasses as the sweetener. with pecans , raisins and craisins... so tastey.