I’m sure every baker knows of someone who will not share their recipes. It might even be YOU! I totally understand the motivation behind not giving out recipes that have been passed down in the family for years. These recipes become unique and personalized. I know the time & effort that goes into developing a recipe and the reluctance to then share it freely after all that work. Not to mention the frustration of bringing your special dish to an event and having someone you shared the recipe with also bring it! That’s comparable to showing up in the same outfit as someone else. Nobody likes that feeling of redundancy! But preserving “secret” recipes is hard to do with easy & widespread access to the Internet. I recently read of a woman who would reply, “Over my dead body!” when asked to share her special cookie recipe. When she passed on, her family honored her wishes. They printed that recipe on her gravestone. Literally, over her dead body! While it may be an urban legend, I love that her words were taken verbatim!

As in most families, we have family heirloom recipes. Some, like Aunt Pauline’s Chocolate Cake with Fluffy White Icing, I have shared in this forum. Others, I hope to share in the future. But there is one cookie recipe I developed that I have been very reluctant to share, although many have asked for it. I usually side step the issue of giving out the actual recipe by sharing a batch of the cookies, making up the cookie dough or putting together the cookie mix for them. While there are similar recipes out there, this one is special! Here & now, I am giving up my recipe hoarding tendency. At least for this cookie recipe!

White Chocolate & Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

White Chocolate & Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies (an original recipe by Linda J Heuser)

Prep time: 30 minutes  Cook time: 10-12 minutes  Makes 5 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 4-serving size package vanilla instant pudding
• 2 eggs
• 3 1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
• 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
• 2 cups (11-12 ounce bag) white chocolate chips

Directions:

Mix the flour with the baking soda in a small bowl and set it aside. Combine the butter, sugars, and pudding mix in a large mixing bowl, beating them together until smooth and creamy. Beat in eggs, combining thoroughly. Gradually add the flour mixture. Stir in the oats, cranberries and chips.

The dough will be very stiff. Drop the dough by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies at 350˚ for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool on the baking sheets on wire racks for 5 minutes before removing them from the sheets to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Variations: Traditional Oatmeal Raisin Cookies – omit the cranberries and white chips. Add 1 cup of raisins to the dough.

Dark Chocolate & Cherry Oatmeal Cookies – omit the cranberries and white chips and add 1 cup of dried cherries and 2 cups of dark chocolate chips to the dough.

I usually end up making 3 versions of oatmeal cookies for the holidays!

Tips: The raw dough can be shaped into balls and frozen for future baking. Freeze the balls in a single layer on a baking sheet until solid then place the balls in a freezer bag and store for up to 3 months. To bake: thaw desired number of dough balls at room temperature for up to 1 hour or in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours. Place an a baking sheet, 2 inches apart and bake for 10-12 minutes at 350º.

My secret recipe oatmeal cookies are no longer a secret!  ~Linda

White Chocolate & Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies (an original recipe by Linda J Heuser)

Prep time: 30 minutes  Cook time: 10-12 minutes  Makes 5 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 4-serving size package vanilla instant pudding
• 2 eggs
• 3 1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
• 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
• 2 cups (11-12 ounce bag) white chocolate chips

Directions:

Mix the flour with the baking soda in a small bowl and set it aside. Combine the butter, sugars, and pudding mix in a large mixing bowl, beating them together until smooth and creamy. Beat in eggs, combining thoroughly. Gradually add the flour mixture. Stir in the oats, cranberries and chips. The dough will be very stiff. Drop the dough by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies at 350˚ for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool on the baking sheets on wire racks for 5 minutes before removing them from the sheets to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Variations: Traditional Oatmeal Raisin Cookies – omit the cranberries and white chips. Add 1 cup of raisins to the dough.

Dark Chocolate & Cherry Oatmeal Cookies – omit the cranberries and white chips and add 1 cup of dried cherries and 2 cups of dark chocolate chips to the dough.

Tips: The raw dough can be shaped into balls and frozen for future baking. Freeze the balls in a single layer on a baking sheet until solid then place the balls in a freezer bag and store for up to 3 months. To bake: thaw desired number of dough balls at room temperature for up to 1 hour or in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours. Place an a baking sheet, 2 inches apart and bake for 10-12 minutes at 350º.