Oatmeal Toffee Cookies

Health.  Happiness.  Love.  All of these are blessings in my life right now for which I am very thankful.  It has been a magical year with the promise of a lifetime of magical moments ahead.  Life may not be perfect, but it is very, very good. 

One of the current imperfections in our life is living far from our families, but thankfully this year Alex was able to get enough vacation time that we will be able to spend Thanksgiving at home in Michigan with family and friends.

However, the 4.5 hour drive and late Wednesday night arrival do present some challenges when it comes to making a contribution to the holiday dinner table.  For the first time, I have the interest, ability, and cooking appliances necessary to make something.  But not much transports well in a car for several hours to sit in a fridge overnight and several hours more the following day before finally being consumed...

Dilemma, dilemma...

I thought about bringing ingredients and making something on Thursday, but I have a feeling that my mom's kitchen will be chaotic enough and, nice idea that it is, in practice would be less than helpful.

My mom suggested I bring the sweet potato casserole (yum!), cooked and frozen, so it would just need to be reheated on Thursday.  But we don't have a cooler, and I don't have one of the cooking appliances necessary for making the topping.  Fail.

I thought about making grandma's homemade rolls.  But they need to rise for several hours, and I just don't have the space for that.  I barely have enough counter space for the mixing bowls and cookie sheets required for two dozen cookies, let alone that whole process....

Cookies!  Not exactly the most exciting contribution, but they can be made ahead of time, will sit fine in the car, and won't take up limited resources in the turkey day kitchen.  Besides who doesn't like cookies?

Recipe: (from food.com)
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg
1/3 cup toffee bits
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.  Stir with a whisk.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl.  Beat on medium speed until well combined.

Add vanilla and eggs.  Mix until smooth.

Add flour mixture.  Mix until just combined.  Stir in toffee bits.

Using a tablespoon, spoon dough onto sprayed cookie sheets.  Cook for 11 minutes or until golden brown.  Allow to completely cool on a wire rack.

Verdict:
Well, I liked them.  I had to make sure they weren't poisonous or something before I served them to family.  So it's not a result of lack of willpower.  Right.

But I won't let anyone else, including Alex, have one until Thursday, so we'll have to wait and see what the verdict is...

Happy Thanksgiving!  I'm sure I'll have tales of delicious food and be back to more regular cooking exploits next week...