Oatmeal Ginger Chocolate Chunk Cookies

You know what sucks about everyone around you getting the flu? Getting the flu yourself. Dr. Fiance got sick last weekend right before the super bowl party and all week long I stood strong and seemed to have missed it. Even the dog came down with a wicked case of the nasties last weekend and I still stood strong. And then this weekend … well, lets just say that my stoic resistance to the bug failed. Gar.

Because of hectic shooting schedules, planning a wedding and generally having a social life (thanks to all of my awesome friends) I find that I have less and less time to cook and bake. The nice part (thinking glass half full here) about getting sick is that I stayed at home all weekend long. Saturday, before I became completely bedridden on Sunday I whipped up a batch of yummy, chocolately oatmeal cookies with candied ginger.

I had a pack of candied ginger on hand for a while, which were either a gift from someone or I bought them to try in some cocktail or other. The pack had been sitting there for a while, so I figured it was high time that I use it up. These cookies have the strong ginger flavor that you’d get from a ginger snap, but with a much more aromatic quality because of the strong bits of candied ginger in them (plus they are soft and gooey as opposed to hard and crunchy).

They didn’t stave off my bout of the flu, but I attribute the fact that I’m back up and running today to the restorative power of baking and ginger. Enjoy!

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Oatmeal Ginger Chocolate Chunk Cookies Recipe

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Ingredients

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups (packed) brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
6 ounces semisweet chocolate
1 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped

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Method

Preheat oven to 375F.

Place rolled oats, all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, salt and soda in a food processor and pulse until the oats are coarsely chopped. This took me six or seven one second pulses. Set aside. Cream the butter and brown sugar in an electric mixer until fluffy, then mix in the egg, honey, and vanilla. Once the everything is mixed together, add in the oat mixture and mix on a slow speed just until combined. Don’t overmix or the cookies will get tough. Add the chocolate and ginger and mix by hand until combined.

Drop rounded tablespoons of the cookie dough onto parchment lined baking sheets, about two inches apart (they won’t expand much). Bake for a total of 14-16 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Edges should be crisp and brown and the middles still soft. Cool for several minutes on the trays, then transfer to wax paper-covered dish towels to cool completely.