Carol, a longtime reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in a while ago with a question about the kind of coconut I used in my Coconut, Walnut, and Chocolate Cookies. After the holidays, she was able to try out the recipe. Here's what she had to say:
Whoa, these are good! Worth the wait until my new Kitchen Aid arrived (how did I live without it?) The texture is fabulous, and the flavor combination is great! I did make some modifications, based on what I had in the house - no milk chocolate, so I used two kinds of dark chocolate instead. While I love that, I would include the milk chocolate next time. I think that must add more depth and variety to the chocolate taste (I know you did it for a reason!) I doubled the vanilla instead of coconut extract, and used unsweetened coconut with a little stevia added. And I even messed up and forgot to put the enplumpened coconut in until after the dry ingredients! No harm done, it seems. Another winner, Greg! You keep outdoing yourself. I will be proud to share these gems!
Hi, Carol. Thanks so much! I'm so glad you got a Kitchen Aid (I can't live without mine) and that you liked these guys. And good for you for putting your own spin on the ingredients, too. There are at least a handful of my recipes that started out in one direction but veered off in another direction when I saw what ingredients I actually had on hand.
Enjoy that new mixer of yours and have fun baking!
Marya, a longtime reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in to say that she made the most of the recent blizzard by baking up a batch of my Nutella-Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies:
Hi! My roommate and I decided to make nutella stuffed peanut butter cookies after deliberating between all your nutella recipes. She went to the store in the snowmocalypse we're experiencing here in ATL and I cleaned the kitchen. We made half the cookies (a double batch, I should add, because if you're going to make some, make a whole bunch for later!) already, and they are SO GOOD. My roommate bought peanut butter/chocolate chip combo chips (by accident), and we think they were a good addition. Thanks for another amazing recipe. Can't wait to make more (after a good long 10 mile run to work this off!!!)
Hi, Marya! Thanks so much for stopping by, trying my recipes, and letting me know how they come out. I love it! I'm so glad you like these guys. Nutella and peanut butter make an excellent combo, if I do say so myself.
We're getting walloped by another blizzard, so I hope you're warm, dry, and finishing off the rest of those cookies.
B, a reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in with some blog-love and some follow-up info about Lisa's oat flour query:
I've used both in the Oatmeal Snickerdoodle recipe (one of my favorite cookies EVER!). I got the oat flour from the bulk bins at Whole Foods and used it the first time I made them. The end result is just as delicious and slightly less...gritty? Maybe? No matter how long I grind my oatmeal I can't get it as fine as the oat flour. However, I've made them half a dozen times since then with ground oatmeal and I have zero complaints about them. They still disappear just as quickly as they did the first time!
Thanks for writing in, B. Wow. That's some high praise for my Oatmeal Snickerdoodles. Thank you so much! And thanks also for adding to the conversation. So there you have it, everyone: Ground oatmeal and milled oat flour are perfectly interchangeable. Feel free to use whichever you have on hand!
JS5981, a reader and real-life recipe user, made a batch of my savory Parmesan & Black Olive Cookies and had this to say:
Hi CookieGuy, Thanks again for another great recipe! I made these for my wife (an avid olive lover) as part of a Christmas gift. We both can not stop eating them. Thankfully I made extra because the relatives devoured them as well. I can't wait to tackle the next recipe. Have a safe and wonderful holiday!
Hi, JS5981. Merry Christmas, and thanks for writing in! I know savory cookies sound a little strange, but these guys are really good! They're perfect with a glass of red wine or as an accompaniment to a hearty pasta meal. I'm so glad you, your wife, and your relatives enjoyed these and that you made them a part of your holiday meal and celebration.
My BFF Ken is a huge fan of my Coconut, Walnut, and Chocolate Cookies, and he sent an email to make it official:
As you know, I have tried out a few of your recipes, which have never disappointed, and you even inspired me to create one of my own recipes (Peppermint Pattie-stuffed).
Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago and the Coconut, Walnut & Chocolate Cookies you brought to Bill & Jim's party. Now, I've had my share of cookies, but boy oh boy did you knock it out of the park on these babies! I stand up and salute you, sir, for making such a great cookie.
Thanks, Ken! I made my third batch of this recipe for another get-together at Bill & Jim's last Saturday. Four dozen--yup, that's right four dozen--cookies disappeared. They're that good.
Teddi tried my Oatmeal Snickerdoodles recipe recently and this to say:
Absolutely delicious! My hubby really likes cinnamon, so the extra cinnamon was a GOOD CALL.
We didn't even grind up the quick oats, and they still turned out great. Daddy and the kids made these while I was out, and I came home to a wonderful treat.
Thanks for posting this!
Hi, Teddi. Thanks so much for writing in. I'm so glad you and your family liked these guys. Hats off to your in-house baker and his staff!
Hi, everybody! Thanks so much for your interest in my 12 Days of Christmas Cookies posts. A few real-life recipe users wrote in recently with some raves about my Cranberry Crunch Cookies.
Sheri said:
Love them and so happy and proud to have my hubby bring them to his High School's teacher cookie exchange. Will give you credit and even post your web page for all to enjoy. Happy Holiday Season.
Carol said:
These are so fantastic! Absolutely delicious, and unusual enough to stand out in a crowd of cookies. These made me fall in love with Oatmeal Cookie Guy. :-)
Thanks, Sheri and Carol. Happy holidays...and keep baking!
Sarah wrote in with a really interesting--and seasonal--addition to my Mulled Apple Cider Cookies:
I made them with roasted chestnuts. Delicious!
Hey, Sarah. Thanks for writing in. And what a great idea to include roasted chestnuts! Hmmm...that's got me thinking.
Brittany, a reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in to say she made my Stuffed Red Velvet Cookies and customized them with a twist of her own:
OMG I made these today, but with my own stuffing. I omitted the nuts and added peppermint extract and melted white chocolate...absolutely to die for. I will be taking them to a cookie exchange tonight. Thanks!
Hi, Brittany. Thanks for writing in. Hmmm...I'm making cookies for friends' open house in a few weeks. I'll have to give that peppermint extract and melted white chocolate a try. Good on you for experimenting!
My friend Gary requested a special cookie he could snack on in the lead-up to the NYC marathon, and so I developed my Marathon Cookies especially for him. Here's what he had to say:
Love love love these cookies. They were delicious.... I probably ate too many but carbo loading was all I've been doing pre Race day..... Thank you again for these wonderful cookies and I'm certain They will make me faster!
Yay, Gary! Congratulations on finishing the marathon...in really good time, I might add. I'm so glad these hit the mark.
And then Skye wrote in to say she baked up a batch of these guys for some friends:
Made a batch of Marathon Cookies for some friends who were going backpacking and they said these are "dlshhss". At least I think they said "delicious"; it was hard to tell because their mouths were stuffed with cookies. Thank you for creating these wonderful cookies!
Thanks for the blog-love, Skye! I'm so glad your backpacking friends liked this recipe. Try to save some for yourself next time!
Anne Marie wrote in recently to say she found my blog and was in the process of trying my Mulled Apple Cider Cookies:
I stumbled upon this blog because I was searching for apple cider & oatmeal cookies. Normally what I do when I get a vision is find a recipe that's similar to what I want and tweek it, but this was exactly what I was looking for, I'm not changing a thing. I am giving this a try today for the first time, right now my cider is reducing and I can't believe how good it smells in the house. I hope this works out because I'm supposed to bring them to a party tonight.... Talk about waiting till the last minute!
And then she sent a follow-up message:
I know I am a few days late, but those cookies went over SO well! Everyone at the party just loved them and people have already asked for the recipe!
Hi, Anne Marie. Thanks so much for writing in! I'm so glad you found my site and that those Mulled Apple Cider Cookies were such a hit. They really do taste great and make the house smell amazing. Thanks again, and I hope you try out some more of my recipes.
Connie picked up some of the Cranberry Crunch Cookies I donated to the fair last weekend. She emailed me to say she's a real-life cookie taster (and, now, a reader) and really liked my cookies:
Thank you for offering a donation of your yummy cookies to the fair. I happened to purchase some, and my goodness were they fabulous. I can see why you won a prize. Do you cook/bake professionally? People have tried to get me in the cookie business for years, but I always thought that once it became a "job" it would lose it's fun for me. I find it a great stress reliever. Good luck with new ideas and contests.
Hi, Connie. Thanks so much for your email! It really makes my day to hear that people like my cookies. Each piece of blog-love pushes me a little closer to turning my baking hobby into something more.
Amelia, a reader, real-life recipe user, and fellow food blogger, tried my XXX Blueberry Cookies recently and had some blog-love to share:
You're right Greg, these are amazingly obscenely good!! Did a little blog about it today. Super happy I made these /=D
Yay, Amelia! As always, I'm so glad you and your boys liked this recipe. You had a really good idea to swap out dark chocolate for the white chocolate. Hmm...I might have to try that!
Sarah (a.k.a., PurpleRacoon), a reader, real-life recipe user, and fellow food blogger, did a little riffing on my super-tasty, super-seasonal XXX Strawberry Cookies and had this to say:
Have been following your blog for ages, but never has a recipe coincided with an opportunity until a few days ago. Made without (Nilla) wafers or dried fruit, and with dark instead of white chocolate, they tasted fab!
Thanks, Sarah! With the abundance of berries we have this time of year, this recipe is a star. I'm so glad you like these guys...and that you did some tweaking to fit your ingredients.
Speaking of berries in the summertime, I think I might do some experimenting with blackberries or raspberries...or maybe even black raspberries, which is one of my all-time favorite ice cream flavors. I think I might have a busy weekend ahead of me.
Angela, a reader, real-life recipe user, and fellow food blogger, commented on my Killer Chocolate Cookie post with some blog-love and a product placement:
"I'm not a huge chocolate fan....But I do love me some Cocoa Pebbles"
I could have written that! I totally agree ;)
By the way, have you seen the new (ish) Cupcake Pebbles cereal? Oh, it's pretty bad for you, probably more sugar than you should have in two days. But it's so delicious and full of vanilla flavor! I actually used Cupcake Pebbles on your Cherry-Vanilla Crispies and it made for some adorable cookies, but I forgot to take photos =(
Love it, keep it up.
Hi, Angela. Thanks for writing in. Ooh! I haven't seen Cupcake Pebbles cereal before, but I'm definitely going to look for it now. I love the texture of Pebbles. It's crunchier and has a much more satisfying mouthfeel than Rice Krispies. Thanks for the product-placement and the heads-up. Who knows how many other recipes this Cupcake Pebbles discovery will lead to.
Here's the recipe for my Killer Chocolate Cookies in process.
Cream the creamables. Butter, dark brown sugar, and cocoa powder.
Combine the wet ingredients. An egg, vanilla, and milk.
Add the wet ingredients to the creamables.
Grind the Cocoa Pebbles and the oatmeal. Grind first, then measure.
Grate the dark and milk chocolate. Combine with the rest of the dry ingredients.
Combine the dry ingredients. Then add the dry ingredients to the combined creamables and wet ingredients. Mix.
Scoop and bake. Chocoholics steer clear!
Em, a reader and real-life recipe user, tried my XXX Blueberry Cookies and had these wonderful words to share:
Made these last night. And they just kept jumping into my mouth so I ate about 15 of them, no joke. Very tasty. Just ate another one now, and I think they're even better the next day.
Hey there, Em. Yay! I'm so happy you liked this recipe. Not to be all pat-myself-on-the-backy, but these cookies did come out really, really good. And don't feel bad for eating so many. There's oatmeal, which has tons of fiber, and blueberries, which have all sorts of antioxidants and berry-goodness in them. If you squint when you eat them, they're practically health food!
Emma, a real-life recipe user, made a batch of my Orange Creamsicle Cookies and some blog-love to share:
I made these the other day and I was a bit hesitant because my family is not apt to trying anything other than a plain old chocolate chip cookie. Well let me tell you, they were a hit! Aside from looking a bit ugly.. which I guess was probably error on my part, they were delicious! They were totally reminiscent of my childhood! Keep up the good work! You are truly a genius! I am always telling all my friends to look up "The Oatmeal Cookie Guy" on the internet!
Thanks, Emma! I'm really glad you and your family liked these guys. The good thing with this recipe is that the white chocolate topping is very forgiving and can hide any kind of imperfection in the finished thumbprint cookie.
And I should probably take this opportunity to do some 'splaining about the the quality of the pics in my last recipe and "Picturing" post. The settings on my camera were all funky, and I didn't realize it until I published the pics. It was too late to go back and recreate them. Oops...my bad! But not to worry. Photo quality is back to normal.
Janet emailed me a little while ago with some blog-love and a recipe of her very own:
Hi! I really enjoy your website and your recipes--thank you so much for them!!!
Attached is a recipe for a cookie that I grew up making with MY grandmother--and I am much older than you!!! Every time I make them it takes me back to when I was a little girl!!! From the way the recipe is written (hot oven), you can tell that it is an old recipe.
I have searched and have never found a similar recipe, using bananas. The bananas really make a moist cookie.
I'm sure that you can and will probably make some changes/improvements to this recipe (however, I'll probably keep making the original version!)--I hope that you enjoy these cookies as much as I have!
Hi, Janet. Thanks so much for kind note and for sending your grandmother's banana oatmeal cookie recipe. How sweet of you to share it with me!
I've tried a banana-based cookie before. I dubbed it "Elvis" because it was inspired by The King's favorite snack: fried banana, peanut butter, and bacon sandwiches. Unfortunately, though, that cookie was a big old flop. I'm sure I could learn a lot from your grandmother's recipe. Who knows...Elvis just might make a comeback.
Aimee, a reader and real-life recipe user, wrote in to sing the praises of my Better Than Grandma's Oatmeal Raisin Cookies:
Stumbled across your ORC [oatmeal raisin cookie] recipe and tried it out - kids and hubby loved them! Loved the crunch the raw sugar gives! So I wrote the recipe down and stuck it (somewhere....) and couldn't find it. Had to make ORC again for a school thing so tried another recipe. UGH! Didn't even come close! This recipe is going into our 'family favorites' recipe folder! Thanks!
Hi, Aimee. Thanks for writing in! I know it sounds cheesy, but it really does bring a smile to my face to know that people try my recipes and like the finished cookies. I'm so, so glad these guys have become a favorite for you and your family.
Katelynn emailed a little while ago with some blog-love love for my Sin-a-Buns Cookies and some career suggestions for the Oatmeal Cookie Guy:
Yum these cookies are so good thanks for the recipe!! I looked them up on you website and I'm eating them right now as I'm writing this and they are like heavenly goodness! ha ha ha ha ha ha. You should have your own cooking show or something. lol. You should also definitely make more recipes and write you own cook book.
Thanks, Katelynn! So glad you liked these cookies. This recipe was the first thumbprint cookie I ever made. Yup...it's an oldie-but-goodie. And thanks for the suggestions. I've got a few irons in the fire and hope to have some news to announce soon. Stay tuned!
