The biggest mistake most home bakers make is the way they measure the flour. (Do NOT pack the flour into the measuring cup. That means, do NOT use the cup to scoop out your flour. Use a spoon to scoop the flour and sprinkle it into the cup, then use a knife to level off the cup.)

Okay, now that (part of) my lecture is out of the way, let's get down to the actual recipe stuff:

Many people prefer their oatmeal cookies with raisins. I like chocolate chips. I consider this a versatile chocolate chip cookie recipe with healthy oatmeal.

I like my cookies crunchy and crisp, but my daughter prefers them chewy, so I adapted this recipe so that we could bake them either way using the same recipe. The ratio of brown sugar to cane sugar gives them a subtle butterscotch flavor. If you prefer a stronger butterscotch flavor, reverse the amounts and use 1 cup of packed brown sugar and 1/2 cup granulated sugar instead. The cane sugar does help make the cookies crispier though.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup butter*
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated cane sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon real vanilla
1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sea salt***
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups oatmeal
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Cream the shortening, butter, sugars, and egg until they get that wonderful yellow color. Add the water and vanilla and process until mixed.
Sift the flour, salt, and soda together and beat into the butter-sugar mixture. Fold in the oatmeal. (Mixture will be stiff.) Mix in the chocolate chips.
Use the "drop" method to make the cookies, spooning out about a tablespoon of batter for each cookie onto a prepared cookie sheet. Leave the cookie mounds rounded for chewier cookies or flatten them slightly with a fork for crunchier cookies.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

Notes:

*Because it's less expensive, I usually use salted butter. (See note below re salt.) Unsalted butter usually has a higher water content than does unsalted butter, and this recipe takes that into consideration. When in doubt, only add about 2 1/2 cups of the oatmeal and then bake a test cookie. Add the remaining 1/2 cup or even more oatmeal, if necessary. (Stick margarine is even higher in water content and therefore it's difficult to predict how it will perform in any recipe. In my experience, Parkay performs best.)

***To my taste, sea salt tastes saltier than does regular table salt, so I can get by with using less. (If you insist on using yucky, metallic-tasting table salt, you may need to use 3/4 teaspoon. I recommend that you start with 1/2 teaspoon, do a test cookie, and then adjust, if necessary.)

For crispier cookies, omit the shortening and use all butter.

The cookies will spread out and be flatter if you do so, so take that into consideration when you place the dough on the cookie sheet.

If you add nuts (like pecans or walnuts), decrease the amount of oatmeal by the amount of nut pieces. Otherwise, your cookies will be too dry and crumbly.

To ensure chewier cookies, you can also add an extra egg. (You'll need to increase the amount of oatmeal a bit to compensate.)
 

Oatmeal Raisin Spice Cookies

For Oatmeal Raisin Spice Cookies, substitute raisins for the chocolate chips. Season by adding 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, and a pinch of nutmeg to the dry ingredients. (Spices are another thing that are subject to taste, so you may want to make a test cookie and then increase the amount of spices accordingly. It's best, of course, to err on the side of caution because you can always add more; it isn't that easy to pick spice pieces out of a cookie batter! Alternatively, if you prefer, you can substitute pumpkin pie spice for the cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.)

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Other Chocolate Chip Cookie recipes:

Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies