Oatmeal CookieBlog

Reader Query: Too-Moist Cookies, Creaming Creamables, and Silpats?

Melanie, a reader and real-life recipe user, emailed me the following questions after making my Apple Jack Cookies:

Hi Greg! :)

I tried making the applejack cookies yesterday, they taste great! However, i couldn't get them to be crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Was it because of the apples?

While baking, my mother and I had an argument on how long the butter should be creamed for, or to what consistency. how long do you cream the butter and sugar for? Does it make a difference if it is creamed longer?

I discovered something amazing, silicon baking sheets! These things are amazing! the cookies pop right off the mat!   They're so easy to clean and wash too! but does the oven temperature have to be higher coz i use the mats? when i took the cookies off the mat, i found condensation on it, do you think the mat was the cause of my soft cookies? :o

thanks for listening to all my questions! I was so excited after i found a blog dedicated to making oatmeal cookies, i went out and bought a bag of oatmeal right away! hahah! would be trying golden girls next! wish me luck! :)

Love (all the way form Singapore!)
Melanie

Hi, Melanie. Thanks for writing in! I'll take on your questions one by one:

1) I've found that baking with apples can be a little tricky because the moisture content varies from one piece of fruit to another. The key to getting the right texture when making apple cookies is to keep an eye on the oven...and a finger on the dough. To make sure these cookies are done and not too soft, leave them in the oven until they are nice and evenly browned, the edges are firm, and the tops give some resistance when you poke them with your finger. You might want to let them rest for up to five minutes on the baking sheets before you remove them so that the carry-over heat from the oven can finish up their bottoms.

2) When creaming creamables, you want to be careful not to overbeat. Depending on the temperature/softness of your butter, it should take you only a few minutes to cream together the butter and sugar. If you overbeat the butter and sugar, your creambles will be to airy, which--I've found--leads to a flatter, crispier cookie that spreads out a lot. (Which is fine...if that's what you're looking for.) You'll know your creamables are good to go when when you can't see chunks of butter, and you've got what looks like a paste with even texture. Take a look at my Picturing posts to see what my creamables look like.

3) The condensation you saw on your Silpat is nothing to worry about. I don't think the baking mat was the cause of the too-soft cookies. I think both the condensation and the texture of the cookies means that you've just got to leave the cookies in the oven a little longer...that's all.

I hope this helps. Good luck on the Golden Girls Cookies. And congratulations on buying that big bag of oatmeal! :-)

Honey-Roasted Peanut Cookies

My blog buddy Laurel had a pretty ingenious sweet/salty combination: candy corn and salted peanuts. And she wondered if I could come up with a cookie version of her unconventional combo. Then I saw packs of Nature Valley Sweet & Salty granola bars at the grocery store.

I love sweet/salty stuff, so I was all over this one: sweet honey and salty salt on top of a crispy/chewy peanut butter cookie.

Believe it or not, I've actually attempted a cookie that used whole honey-roasted peanuts in the recipe. Unfortunately, the peanuts dried out during baking and tasted chalky, and the flavor of the honey-roasted coating just kind of faded away. Disappointing all around. So for this cookie, I'm going to build the honey-roasted flavor into the recipe, not rely on coated peanuts themselves to provide the flavor.

I'm picturing my super-tasty peanut butter cookies, drizzled with honey, sprinkled with sea salt, and baked to perfection. And I think those old-school criss-cross fork marks will look cool and provide some nice nooks and crannies for the honey and salt.

Reader Query: Candy Corn Cookies? III

My blog buddy Laurel wrote in to add an interesting twist on candy corn cookies:

Here's another thought Greg...I like to eat candy corn with peanuts. It is the perfect sweet and salty combination. Maybe you could add some candy corn to some almost cooked PB cookies. That way they keep their shape and don't melt or let them melt if the cookie consistency is good. Or stuff a PB cookie with candy corn and let them melt inside. Do you think this would work? If it doesn't have enough of the salt flavor, you could top them with some kosher salt like you do with the salted caramel cookies.

Thanks, Laurel! I'll have to try that combo. But you've sparked an idea for a non-candy corn cookie. I'm thinking of a salty/sweet honey-roasted peanut cookie. I know it's off topic, but you can never tell where the ideas will take you. :-)

Reader Query: Meal Replacement Bars?

JS5981 wrote in to ask a question about meal replacement bars:

Hey Cookieguy, I don't know how long it's been around but I've been noticing in the news lately that there's something called the "cookie diet". They say it consists of 5 high protein cookies which are to be eaten throughout the day when you're hungry. Which got me to thinking, have you ever tried to make a trail mix style cookie or a dense "clif bar" style cookie that you could use as a meal replacement?

Hey...that's a pretty good idea! I'll have to do some research on what high-protein stuff would have to go into a meal replacement bar. Nuts, certainly. But I wonder what else... Stay tuned!

Reader Query: Nutella Cookies?

I've been getting lots of reader queries and comments about new cookies and new ingredients. Bird, who agrees with my friend Katie about doing a goat cheese cookie, also asked this:

Any thought to adding Nutella to your recipes?

That's a great idea, Bird! There must be something in the air because I saw a Nutella commercial for the first time the other night, and--of course--I thought about making a Nutella cookie. Great minds thing alike, I guess.

Nutella, a hazelnut-chocolate spread, is the European equivalent of American peanut butter. In other words, it's pretty tasty stuff. Stay tuned for some stuffed and nonstuffed recipes coming soon.

Reader Query: Candy Corn Cookies? II

I've been thinking a lot about Carrie's candy corn cookie query lately, trying to figure out how to get the best result.

At first, I thought I'd make one batch of dough, split the dough into thirds, tint two of the thirds with food coloring, roll out the thirds into bands, join the bands together, and then use a triangle cookie cutter to make 2D approximations of candy corn.

But then I realized I'd end up with triangular cookies with inverted colors on the tops and bottoms and that only half of the cookies would be correct. Hmmm...what a pickle.

Now I'm leaning toward doing a multicolored rolled cookie that you slice instead of cut out or scoop. Oh...why not Indian corn? You know...candy corn with a chocolate layer at the bottom? Back to the drawing board.

Reader Query: Goat Cheese Cookies?

My friend Katie is really into my savory cookie recipes (see here and here), and she recently asked me this:

What about a goat cheese cookie?

Hmmm. My first thought was that Mumma wouldn't be caught dead within 50 miles of such a creation. You see, she absolutely abhors anything goat. (Blame it on a pet goat and a crafty mother who had a funnel and an empty milk bottle.)

But the more I thought about the idea, the more I liked it. Goat cheese is one of those ingredients that could go savory or sweet. I love goat cheese in my salad, and cheesecake made with goat cheese is really good.

I'm thinking goat cheese, dried cranberries, and almonds would work well together in a cookie. Just consider it: creamy, salty/tangy cheese + chewy, sweet/tart cranberries + crunchy, savory nuts. It's a combo that hits every flavor and mouthfeel receptor. Stay tuned to see what I come up with!

Reader Query: Carrot Cake Cookies?

Leeleemarie asked the following question about The List:

OMG!! Just thought of this one...Carrot Cake Oatmeal cookies! What do you think?

Hi, Leeleemarie. It's funny you should ask that question. I've been thinking of doing a stuffed carrot cake cookie for a while now, but I haven't settled on how to get the carrots into the cookies. Shredded carrots? Finely ground carrots? Carrot juice?

My stuffed cookies are always a hit, so it's a no-brainer to fill the cookies with the cream cheese and pecan frosting instead of spreading it on top.

I've got some thinking and investigating to do, but don't worry: I'll have a recipe up sometime soon, I hope. And I've added this one to The List.

Reader Query: Revising Recipes?

Greenbean, a reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in to ask about my process for developing, tweaking, and finalizing my recipes:

Hey OCG!

I love how you describe how you develop your recipes. You make it sound so easy. Is it really this easy? How many attempts does it usually take for you to settle on a recipe?

Hi, Greenbean! Thanks for writing in. That's a great question.

I've been pretty good with getting the flavors and textures of my cookies to match my expectations. But there have been a few times when the recipes I thought up just didn't work. (Check out some of my failures here, here, and here.)

I usually get the recipe right on the first test. I've been baking cookies for so long now that I've got a pretty good feel for the measurements. I've learned that some ingredients are tricky and unpredictable, though: apples, for example, because moisture and sweetness levels can vary from one piece of fruit to another. So sometimes I get a cookie that's slightly cakier than I expected but that still tastes great.

I think the key thing is to have fun and not take the process too seriously. If a batch of cookies comes out wrong or just plain inedible, I toss out the cookies along with the recipe, analyze what went wrong, and start over. In baking, as in life, you learn from your mistakes.

Too sweet? Cut back on the sugar or rethink another ingredient that brings too much sweetness to the party. Too flat? Rethink the wet ingredients. Bland? Pump up the flavorings or add them to each step of the recipe--creamables, wet ingredients, and dry ingredients. Too plump? Either increase the wet ingredients or, if the taste is just right, add a smooshing step while baking to make the cookies a little flatter.

It really is just about improvising and making corrections as needed as you go along. Believe me. I've made some humdingers. Just check out my Oops! postings.

Reader Query: Diabetic-Friendly Cookies?

Valsa left the following query on my XXX Cranberry Cookies post:

How do diabetics make a cranberry treat?

Thanks for writing in, Valsa! I've been meaning to make some diabetic-friendly cookies for a while now, and your question has my wheels turning again. I'll do some experimenting with Splenda and let you know how it goes.

Reader Query: Candy Corn Cookies?

Carrie emailed me to ask about Halloween-themed cookies--candy corn cookies in particular:

I looooove candy corn! Any plans to make a candy corn oatmeal cookie? Halloween is more than a month away. I can't get enough of the stuff.

Hi, Carrie. Thanks for writing in! It's not quite October yet, but it's never too early to think about new recipes.

I've thought about doing a candy corn cookie before, but I've never been sure how to maintain the integrity of the candy during the baking process. Candy corn is made of sugar and corn syrup, which, I'm afraid, will liquefy in high heat and "bleed out" of the cookie. (Hmmm...that's an interesting image for Halloween!)

I think that a drop cookie with with pieces of candy corn in it won't work so well. I'm going to play around and see if I can come up with a cut-out cookie with bands of color/flavor that mimic the look of real candy corn. Stay tuned!

Reader Query: What Kind of Tea? II

Em, a reader and real-life recipe user, left a follow-up question to an earlier Query post about loose tea vs. bagged tea. Here's what she had to say:

I work in a tea store (Teavana) and I am now a tea snob, if you will. meaning I don't like tea bags. Do you have ANY suggestion of how I could still use loose leaf rather than bags? We have an excellent Earl Grey Creme that would be stellar, or else we also have an Earl Grey White that would be full of antioxidants too!

Hi there, Em! Thanks for writing in. Great question!

I've tried using loose tea in a couple recipes, but it just didn't work well for me. The tea's flavor didn't disperse evenly in the cookies, and there was an unpleasant twiggy texture. Grinding up loose tea in a food processor took care of the twigginess, which helped, but the tea was still a little too grainy and unpleasant to eat.

The reason I use bagged tea in my cookie recipes is that I found bagged tea imparted a good flavor and was just the right consistency for eating. There are some really neat, funky loose tea flavors out there that aren't available in bag form, so I can understand why you'd want to use the loose tea in a cookie recipe.

The key to making cookies with tea is to make sure the tea itself is finely ground and absolutely free of twigs. Perhaps you could try grinding loose tea in a blender, which should give you a much finer grind than a food processor would. You might also try pulverizing loose tea with a mortar and pestle to achieve the right texture.

I hope that helps!

Reader Query: Which Recipe Should I Start With?

JS, a reader and a soon-to-be real-life recipe user, wrote in to ask where she should start on The List:

Hi CookieGuy,

Love the blog and I'm always anxious to see what recipes you come up with next. I have a question though, my fiance and I have yet to make any of your cookies and we're wondering what you think is the easiest most delicious recipe to make before trying our hands at making the more difficult stuffed ones? Thanks for your input and I'll let ya know how our first batch turns out.

Thanks for writing in, JS! I'd say the easiest cookie to make is my Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie. It's a classic, and it's sure to please. After that, I'd say you'd be ready to move on to any of the non-stuffed cookies. Give my Raspberry Graham Crunch Cookies a try or any of the state-specific cookies I've done: Hawaii Cookies, Florida Cookies, and California Cookies.

Once you've got a few batches under your belt, you'll see that the process is pretty easy and that the you can apply it to practically every recipe. The really fun part comes when you get to go hunting for funky ingredients. Have a blast! And let me know how your cookies turn out.

Reader Query: Packed or Unpacked Brown Sugar?

Jessica emailed me to ask about measuring brown sugar:

I often see fairly high amounts of brown sugar in your recipes, and I was just wondering if you meant for us to use "packed" cups of brown sugar, or if we should just scoop it out of the bag at the normal level of density. Since it can get slightly packed on its own, I wasn't sure how dense the cups of brown sugar should be.

Hi, Jessica. Thanks for writing in! Good question. I always firmly pack my brown sugar when I measure.

Reader Query: What's the Right Graham Cracker?

Sweetie, a reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in to say she wanted to make my Cranberry Crunch Cookies but didn't have my favorite graham crackers:

hi there, i'm going to give these a try next week. in your product placement post on graham crackers, you showed the cinnamon honey maid crackers. if i use plain honey maid crackers in the recipe, should i increase the cinnamon added later on in the recipe? do you ever use the plain graham crackers for your other recipes?

Thanks for writing in, Sweetie! If you don't have the Honey Maid cinnamon graham crackers, that's OK. Go ahead and use whatever brand of graham crackers you have on hand or that you can find easily at your grocery store. To more closely replicate the flavor of the cinnamon grahams, add another 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon to the dry ingredients. I tend to use the cinnamon grahams in my recipes that call for ground graham crackers, but there have been a few times when I used another brand because that's all my grocery store had. Feel free to experiment! Another reader even used chocolate graham crackers to make a choco-version of my Golden Girls recipe.

Reader Query: Shipping Golden Girls Cookies?

Linda, a reader and real-life recipe user, made my cheesecake-stuffed Golden Girls Cookies and loved them. But she had a question about shipping these safely, as they have a cream cheese-based center:

I love these, and so did everyone at work! I'm always looking for good cookies to send to my son in college. Can these be mailed, or do they need to be refrigerated?

Thanks for writing in, Linda. The Food Safety and Inspection Service, a department within the U.S. Department of Agriculture, states that cream cheese (and, by extension, cream cheese-filled products) should be shipped refrigerated and kept cold. Check out the mail order food safety chart (cream cheese is about halfway down).

In addition, FoodSafety.gov's info for food safety during power outages states that you should discard any cheesecake that has been above 40º F for more than four hours. I'd say those conditions would would apply to cookies en route to your son.

So, for safety's sake, I don't think you should ship these guys. Here's an idea: You should talk these cookies up to your son so that he has no choice but to come home in order to try them!

Reader Query: Oatmeal Pancake Cookies?

Stephanie emailed me recently about coming up with a recipe for oatmeal pancake cookies:

Saw this today -- haven't tried it, but thought you might be interested in coming up with a pancake flavored oatmeal cookie. Heavy on the butter and real maple syrup flavor? Maybe using some maple flavored chips?

Hi, Stephanie. Thanks for writing in! The oatmeal pancake cookie is a good idea...definitely one I'll try. I really love the flavor combo of butter and maple syrup. So good! I've done a cookie that's a slight variation on the standard pancake. In New England, "johnnycakes," or pancakes made with white cornmeal, are pretty common. I did a johnnycake cookie a while ago, but I don't think I've done a "Picturing" post for it yet. I just might do that soon. In the meantime, though, checkout my recipe for Heeeere's Johnnycake!

Reader Query: Copycat Momofuku "Compost Cookie"?

Lauren emailed me to ask about coming up with a version of the famous "compost cookie" from Momofuku Bakery & Milk Bar here in New York City:

hi! your recipes look great! i actually stumbled upon your blog in my frenzy to duplicate momofuku's "compost cookies". i know the basic flavors, but i wasn't sure where to start. since you seem to be in the business of making unusual cookies, i thought i'd see if you had some insight.

i'm not sure if you've tried the momofuku compost cookie--its a pretty flat cookie, very chewy, dense and sweet. not crispy at all. it tastes like it is probably very unhealthy. the pastry chef describes the cookie thusly: potato chips, pretzels, coffee grounds, chocolate chips, graham crumbs, butterscotch chips, and a little bit of flour.

i saw you used graham cracker crumbs in your s'more cookie, maybe something like that? any suggestions for a base?

Thanks for writing in, Lauren. Believe it or not, this isn't the first time someone asked me about doing a version of this cookie. (Yup...I'm talking about you, Nina!) I've had a chocolate-covered pretzel cookie in mind for quite a while now, but I haven't had the time to play around with the recipe. "One of these days," I kept telling myself. But your email has convinced me to give it a try.

Instead of a "compost cookie," I'll do a "leftovers cookie" that includes all the leftover and unmeasurable bits of coconut, chocolate chips, graham crackers, and Nilla Wafers I have in little sandwich-sized baggies in my cabinets. And I'll throw in some salty bits with broken pretzel sticks and corn chips for good measure. Stay tuned!

Update: Check out my Copycat Momofuku Compost Cookies.

Reader Query: Measure Then Grind or Grind Then Measure?

SJgoofy emailed me to ask about how to measure the ground oatmeal in my Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies:

“I just have a question about the ground oatmeal. Do you measure it before or after it is ground?”

Hi there, SJgoofy! You should grind then measure. If you have extra ground oatmeal, you can freeze it in a Zip Loc bag and save it for another batch of cookies. (Hooray!) But, to prevent grinding more oatmeal--or any other "grindable"--than I need, I tend to process the equivalent of only a few handfuls at a time. I then measure what I have and grind more if I need it.

Reader Query: A Copycat Magic Middles Filling?

Jenni wrote in to ask about creating a copycat Magic Middles chocolate filling for a stuffed cookie:

“What is the best kind of chocolate to use to stuff cookies with. I desperately want to recreate a Magic Middles! do you have a good recipe?”

Hi, Jenni! Thanks for writing in. If you're interested in doing a chocolate-filled cookie, I think you should check out the filling part of the recipe for my Inside-Out Peanut Butter Cups. (It's a cookie with a peanut butter exterior and a soft, chewy chocolate interior.) To get the right flavor and texture for the filling, I used cream cheese, melted semisweet chocolate chips, cocoa powder, milk, and a little bit of salt. I think this will approximate that Maggic Middles center you're looking for.

Reader Query: Raisin Replacements?

Melissa, a reader and real-life recipe user, made my Better Than Grandma's Oatmeal Raisin Cookies but had a question:

“I just baked these, they are very good. However, DH despises raisins. Can you come up with an equally good cookie without raisins?”

Hi, Melissa. Oh no...a raisin hater? I think you could replace the raisins in this recipe with any other kind of dried fruit: cranberries, cherries, dates, etc. Or you could replace the fruit with your favorite kind of chip: chocolate, white chocolate, butterscotch, peanut butter, etc.

The base recipe is really simple, so you can customize it just by swapping out the add-ins--in this case, the raisins. Check out my article on improvisational baking to see how easy it is to tweak a recipe.

Oh...but what does DH stand for? I thought designated hitter at first, but that doesn't sound right. Is it dumb husband? Just wondering.  :-)

Reader Query: Stuffed Date Nut Cookies?

Reader leeleemarie left the following question on my Toffee Figgy Pudding Cookies post:

“What about a really dark rich cakey date nut cookie stuffed with cream cheese? As a kid we would have date nut bread slathered with cream cheese. I have not had it in years but for some reason the figs made me think of dates and then date nut bread, and then I thought what about a cookie?”

Thanks for writing in, leeleemarie. That's an awesome idea. Up until this point, all my stuffed cookies have been smooth and "chunkless," meaning that they don't have any chips or nuts or any other sort of mix-ins in the dough. This is because I was afraid that the chunks would make holes in the cookie dough shells and allow the filling to leak out during baking.

But you have really inspired me, leeleemarie. I'm going to cross the chunky stuffed cookie barrier! And what better way to do so than to make a date nut cookie stuffed with a schmear of cream cheese. Mmmm...yummy. Stay tuned!

Reader Query: Large, Flat, and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies?

Lorelei asked the following question on my Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies post:

“Hey, my dad loves chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, but he likes them large, flat and crispy. Do you know how to do that. I am an avid baker (hobby) but haven't been able to make him the ‘perfect’ cookie, that he gets at this bakery in Oakland, CA.”

Hi, Lorelei. Thanks for writing in! I like large, flat, crispy (LFC) chocolate chip cookies (CCC) as well. They're the perfect cookie for dunkin' in milk. In general, I think the secret to achieving this texture is to use white sugar instead of brown and to increase the wet ingredients--maybe add an extra egg yolk. I'll do some research and testing and will try to have a recipe for some LFC CCCs soon. Stay tuned!

In the meantime, though, check out this section from the Quamut guide to baking cookies. There's some useful info on how to tweak cookie recipes.

Reader Query: Is Juice an OK Extract Substitute?

Laurel, a reader and real-life recipe user, is an ex-pat living in Belgium, where it can be difficult to find flavored extracts at the grocery store. She wanted to make my Lime in the Coconut Cookies but wanted to know she could replace the lime extract in the recipe with lime juice:

“I wanted to know if you thought that I could just substitute lime juice for the lime extract or do you think it wouldn't be as strong. Again, me and the extract problem...you know I have issues when it comes to getting my hands on extracts.”

I think it will be fine to replace the extract with juice. There's nothing wrong with improvising a little and using what's either on hand or easily at your fingertips.

The lime extract gives the cookies a real kick of lime flavor and aroma, so to increase the presence of lime in an extract-free cookie, try adding a one tablespoon more each of lime juice and lime zest. That should do the trick!

Reader Query: Baking Time for a Mini Cookie?

A reader named Kenneth emailed me to ask a question about baking times for mini versions of my cookies. Here's what he had to say:

“I was browsing across your oatmeal cookie blog and I think the recipes are wonderful. However, most of your recipes make big sized cookies (tablespoon sized drops) and I prefer mine to be small bite sizes (3/4 teaspn size). How much time should I scale down from each recipe to accommodate to the size change?”

Thanks so much for writing in, Kenneth. Wow...3/4 teaspoon really is bite sized.

Ovens can be funny things. Some run hot and bake really quickly; some run cool and bake really, really slowly.

I think the best way to determine the perfect baking time for a smaller version of the cookies is to experiment. Let a batch bake for five minutes, then take out the cookie sheet to see how the cookies are progressing.

If the cookies are dark brown and hard, they're overdone. Try baking another batch for three minutes. That should be the perfect amount of time in the oven. Leave the cookies on the sheet for about a minute and then remove to a cooling rack.

If the bottoms are brown and the edges are firming up, I'd say they're just right. Leave the cookies on the sheet for about a minute and then remove to a cooling rack.

(Technically, the cookies are still a little underdone at this point, but they'll finish baking on the hot cookie sheet. This is called carry-over cooking. If you were to put the cookies back in the oven until they were completely firm all the way through, you'd end up with really hard, dry, overbaked cookies.)

If the bottoms of the cookies are still pale and the edges are still soft, put them back in the oven for another two minutes. Repeat this process to determine the best baking time.

I hope this helps!

Reader Query: Gingerbread-Eggnog Cookies?

On my Poll Roundup XIII post, Mandy asked the following question:

Any chance of a combination eggnog and gingerbread [cookie]?

What a great question, Mandy. And what a great way to combine two popular Christmastime flavors!

At first I wasn't sure if spicy ginger and rich eggnog could work together in harmony. And then I saw gingerbread eggnog at my grocery store. Whodathunkit? (Hello...peace on Earth!)

So if you're looking for a truly unique Christmas cookie, try swapping out the standard store-bought eggnog in my Eggnog Cookies with some flavored eggnog. It looks like there are quite a few varieties out there.

Reader Query: Granola, Candied Maraschino Cherries, and Milk Chocolate Cookies?

Sandra, a reader from British Columbia, Canada, emailed me to ask about replicating an old Christmas cookie recipe for her:

"Ok Cookie Guy,

I come to you, the expert...

I'm looking for an oatmeal cookie recipe that I had about 12 years ago. It was a Christmas recipe, and the cookies had granola, milk chocolate chips, and candied maraschino cherries in them. The recipe I had was a photo copy, probably from one of those little little recipe books you get from Kraft or Nestle or the like.

I remember subbing with cranberries and white chocolate chips and they were equally delicious.

I'm curious if you can come up with something! Thanks for your help."

The original recipe you described sounds almost like an oatmeal-chocolate chip-fruitcake cookie. Hmmm. Very interesting. I'll do some investigating, and then I'll have to take a stab at this.

If you're looking for a cookie with oatmeal, cranberries, and white chocolate, you might want to try my Cranberry Crunch Cookies or my XXX Cranberry Cookies. I think these would come close to your variation on the original maraschino cherry and milk chocolate version of the recipe.

Thanks for writing in, Sandra...and stay tuned for what I come up with!

Reader Query: Boston Cream Pie Cookie?

Em, a reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in to ask the following question:

“OCG, have you ever thought of doing a Boston Cream Pie/Cake version of a cookie? Could it be done?”

Hmmm. That's a good one, Em! But you just gave me the worst craving for a Boston cream doughnut.

This is something I'm definitely going to experiment with. I've already got some ideas for making this a reality. Stay tuned...I'll try to have something ready after Thanksgiving.

For those of you who've never experienced the bliss that is a Boston cream dessert (BCD), here's the formula: a baked product + custard filling + chocolate topping = BCD.

Reader Query: What Kind of Tea?

Noel wrote in and asked the following question about my Dark Earl Grey Cookies:

“Hi Greg, Very cool and unique cookies. I'm very surprised about including the actual tea leaves in the cookie though. How small were the leaves inside the bags? I'm afraid of trying with the loose leaf Earl Grey tea I have because I think it might end up with large leaves in the cookies, giving them an unpleasant texture.”

Hi, Noel. That's a really good question! When I first tried out this recipe months and months ago, I used loose-leaf tea (pictured here), and--as you guessed--the finished cookies had an unpleasant, twiggy texture. For my second test batch, I tried grinding the loose-leaf tea and the other wet ingredients in a food processor. This helped make the cookies less twiggy, but they were still too grainy. (These two batches would have made primo Oops! postings.)

I then decided to use tea from tea bags because tea-bag tea is finely ground and is practically a powder. The cookies came out with just the right texture. (I would have taken a snap of a cut-open tea bag, but I used my last one to make these cookies.) Definitely go tea-bag tea instead of loose-leaf tea.

Reader Query: Christmas Cookie Recipes

Alicia, my blog buddy, wrote in to ask:

“Can we get the Dulce de Leche and Almond Brickle ones in time for Christmas? I love those flavors.”

Most certainly, Alicia. I know you asked about the Dulce de Leche Cookies before. Stay tuned. I promise I'll do these cookies--and my other season-specific cookies--in time for everyone's holiday baking. Not to pat myself on the back or anything, but my XXX Cranberry Cookies and Eggnog Cookies are really, really good.

Reader Request: Rosh Hashanah Cookies (Apple 'n Honey)

Jessa, a new reader (hey there, Jessa!), emailed me last night ask about my Rosh Hashanah cookies:

“I stumbled across your blog last night while looking for exciting cookie recipes to try, and have been scrolling through endless back-entries ever since!

I've been perusing The List, and your recipes look amazing--I can't wait to try some! In the meantime, I wanted to ask you about the Rosh Hashanah cookies mentioned, but not detailed, on the blog. I'll be visiting my family for the holiday next week and I've been looking for a good recipe containing apples and honey, because I want to contribute cookies to the celebration. Is there somewhere I might be able to read the recipe?

Thanks, and I look forward to reading more!”

Thanks for stopping by. I'm so glad you like my blog! I'll post the recipe for my Rosh Hashanah cookies tonight...I promise! And I'll also post the "Picturing" post that shows the process step by step.

Tools of the Trade

I got a couple questions recently about cookie scoops, so I figured I'd do a combo scoop-and-other tools post. Here goes:

Half-sheet baking pans: If I remember correctly, Cook’s Illustrated magazine rated the Williams Sonoma Goldtouch pans highest, but I think any half-sheet pan will do because their thicker bottoms conduct heat better and more evenly than standard cookie sheets, and half-sheet pans have a raised edge with a rolled lip, which makes them sturdier than standard cookie sheets.

Silpats: These are silicone baking mats. Silpat is the best-known brand, thanks to Martha! But there are a bunch of brands available, so you can be sure to find one at a price that’s right for you. I absolutely love these guys. They’re dishwasher safe and reusable, and I’ve never had a problem getting cookies off of them. In fact, rested cookies literally pop off of a Silpat with a slight twist of your wrist. You don’t even need to use a spatula.

Cookie scoops: What’s the secret to getting perfectly round and perky cookies every time? Simple...a cookie scoop. But not just any cookie scoop. Steer clear of those shiny, retro-looking aluminum guys with visible springs in the handles. They’re expensive, they pinch your hand, and even worse, they break. Trust me. I’ve had a lot of luck with scoops that have plastic handles and mechanisms. Any cookie baker needs one.

You can find these tools at any home/cooking store. Don't feel like you have to spend a fortune: there are tons of brands available, so you'll be able to find stuff for the price that's right for you. I really like the King Arthur online store because it has a great selection and reasonable prices. Best of all, I can do my shopping in my pajamas...and who could complain about that?

Reader Query: Caramel-Stuffed Cookies?

Alicia, a longtime reader and fellow blogger (over at The Slacker Kitchen), wants to try flavor variations on my stuffed Golden Girls cookies. She asked:

“Have you thought about filling the Golden Girls with caramel?”

Caramel's a difficult ingredient to use as a cookie filling. If the caramel is really liquid (like a jarred caramel sauce), it will get absorbed into the cookie. If the caramel is too hard (like a Sugar Daddy candy), the stuffed center of the cookie will be really, really crunchy (and could potentially ruin any dental work you might have). But fear not! I have a trick for those of you jonesing for a caramel-stuffed cookie.

I haven't tried those individually wrapped caramel cubes/chews, but I think they might be a little too tough to work as a cookie filling. Rolos are chocolate-coated caramel candies that stay soft yet semisolid at room temperature, and they work really well. I've used Rolos successfully in my The Girl Scouts Are Gonna Be Jealous and Chocolate & Salted Caramel cookies. So I'd stick with the Rolos.

I haven't done a caramel-stuffed version of my Golden Girls. Give 'em a try, Alicia, and let me know how they turn out!

Reader Query: Discovering Cocoa Pebbles?

Anne from The City Sage asked the following question on my Cocoa Pebbles post:

“What miracle of nature led you to discover that Cocoa Pebbles are the secret to all chocolaty goodness?”

Hey, Anne! The idea to use ground-up Cocoa Pebbles in my chocolate cookies really comes from using ground-up Peanut Butter Cap’n Crunch in my peanut butter cookies, which is a tip I read in Cook’s Country magazine a while back.

I use a lot of ground-up stuff—graham crackers, ginger snaps, Nilla Wafers, etc.—to add flavor to my cookies. Using cereals like Cap’n Crunch and Cocoa Pebbles just seems like a no-brainer to me because ground-up "mix-ins" pack a flavor wallop and keep the cookies moist and delicious.

Ironically, if you add too much peanut butter to a peanut butter cookie, it comes out dry and kind of bland. Likewise, with a chocolate cookie that includes too much chocolate, the cookie will be kind of hard at room temperature--just like a solid Hershey bar.

And, of course, being a huge Pebbles fan doesn't hurt. It's amazing how much chocolaty goodness is in there! It's a good thing my grocery store doesn't stock Pebbles regularly because I'd be eating cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Oh...who am I kidding? I'd be eating it 24/7.

Tip: Try some Cocoa Pebbles sprinkled on top of vanilla ice cream. It's crazy-good.

Reader Query: United States of Oatmeal Cookies?

Reader Jenny emailed me last night to ask this question:

“You did cookies for a few states....Florida and California, etc....what about other ones? What would you do for the rest of them?”

Hi, Jenny! Thanks for writing in. I do have a few state-themed cookies on my list, for example: Hawaii, Florida, California, and Texas.

I think that doing individual cookies for the remaining 46 states would definitely be a project to keep me busy for a while, but it's something that's definitely doable.

To make a state-specific cookie, all you've got to do is find out what produce/product the state is famous for...like Georgia and peaches.  Some other ideas: Maine = blueberries (or lobster!), Massachusetts = cranberries, Mississippi = Tupelo honey, Michigan = cherries. Boy...that's a lot of M states! But you get the picture.

I promise that I'll post some more state cookies soon.