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Rafiki Oatmeal Cookies
I am a chocolate addict. If I am going to make any dessert it usually has chocolate in the title. I first made these cookies for a friend of mine who believes that chocolate is the root of all evil. I got it from a book entitled, "125 Cookies to Bake, Nibble and Savor", thank you Elinor Klivans! This woman is amazing!
  • 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour


  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda


  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder


  • 1/2 teaspoon salt


  • 8 tablespoons soft unsalted butter


  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar


  • 1/2 cup brown sugar


  • 1 large egg


  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract


  • 1 cup oatmeal (not quick-cooking)


  • 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

    • 1. Position 2 oven racks in the lower middle and upper middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.

    2. Stir the flour baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl and set aside. Put the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium speed until the mixture is blended and smooth, 1 minute. Add the egg and mix on low speed until blended thouroughly, about 15 seconds. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl during this mixing. On low speed, mix in the flour mixture until it is incorporated. Mix in the vanilla, oatmeal, and walnuts.

    3. Pinch off a rounded teaspoon of dough for each cookie and smooth it slightly to form a 1-inch piece. Place the cookies 1 1/2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Set aside 1 baking sheet of cookies at room temperature.

    4. Bake the remaining 2 sheets for 10 to 11 minutes, or until the cookies and their bottoms are light golden. After 5 minutes, reverse the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom to ensure even browning. Watch the cookies carefully as they near the end of their baking time. Bake a third sheet of cookies on a rack set in the middle of the oven, reversing the baking sheet after 5 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

    I have tried adding raisins and of course chocolate chips to this recipe. I recommend against it. The dough is not made to hold them and the cookies taste delicious all by themselves. If you don't like nuts, this recipe is not for you. The nuts are essential not optional.