Giant Cherry Oatmeal Cookies
These colossal cookies taste best when golden around the edges and moist and chewy in the center. With a glass of milk, they're polished off in no time by my grandchildren.
-Irene McDade, Cumberland, Rhode Island
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
- 1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons apple pie spice
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups dried cherries, chopped
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
Reviews
These cookies are big in size and big on flavor! You can use any dried fruit you have on hand!
I'd prepared these cookies and I did adjust the recipe to suit my tastes! I'd used pumpkin pie spice as the seasoning and I purposely substituted 3/4 cup dried cherries or Craisins & 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips. I also dropped the dough by teaspoonfuls onto greased baking sheets and the recipe made 4 dozen smaller cookies. I DID like this recipe, too! Thank you, Irene McDade, for sharing the recipe with Taste of Home! DELowenstein
Very good cookies! I'm starting a little bakery business from my home and catering a few meetings for my office. I provided these cookies as an afternoon snack choice and the few that made it to the afternoon were excellent, but most people ate a big cookie as ther breakfast! No matter when they're eaten, they're delicious and I will definitely be making these again. I've substituted the dried cherries with cranberries with excellent results.
I buy dried cherries in bulk quantity just to make these cookies. Using the old fashioned oats makes the cookies more subsstantial, like a breakfast bar. I didn't have apple pie spice so I exchanged it for 1 teaspoon each of cinnamon and allspice. I have make these cookies often! Thank you, Irene, for submitting it to TOH>
My variation is my husband's favorite cookie. I substitute the shortening with butter (tried it with shortening the first time I baked them and all butter is much better), I use Craisins and substitute the apple pie spice with 1 teaspoons cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ginger and about 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg.