I don't tend to make cookies very often. Even if I enjoy the results, I just don't enjoy the process. I find it tedious. But I've been eyeing this recipe for months. And I was craving a dessert last night. And I even still felt like I had a bit of energy left after dinner. So I figured, why not?

Unfortunately, I think there must be a typo in the original recipe. Because when prepared as written, the cookies spread like crazy and utterly lack any sort of structural integrity. TF commented that the last time she had cookies fail like that, it was because she'd accidentally put in twice as much butter as the recipe called for.

I definitely put in the specified amount of all the ingredients. But I now suspect that there was an error in the recipe and it was actually meant to call for 1/2 c. of butter, rather than the 1 c. actually listed.

If making these again, I'd definitely halve the butter. I might also try omitting the granualted sugar and just make it with brown sugar. Obviously this would make the cookies significantly less sweet, but I think they'd still be sweet enough. (And I'd feel a little less guilty eating them.)

I'm also debating whether it might be nice to swap out half of the chocolate for some sort of dried fruit. I know raisins are traditional for oatmeal cookies. But with the chocolate and almonds, I'm wondering if either cranberries or cherries would be a good choice.

I've given some options and suggestions below. (As well as adjusting the butter and sugar quantities.) All of these changes are, as yet, untested, so use at your own peril. That said, I can definitively confirm that the recipe as originally written does not work very well. So hopefully these changes will offer at least some improvement.

Photo goes here.

Chocolate Chip-Almond Oatmeal Cookies

Adapted from Dessert of the Day by Kim Laidlaw

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 c. brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 2 c. rolled oats
• 190-380g dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 c. slivered almonds
• 1 c. dried cranberries or cherries (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
2. Cream together the butter and the sugar.
3. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
4. Sift in the flour and baking soda, add the salt, and mix well.
5. Stir in the rolled oats.
6. Add the chocolate, almonds, and dried fruit (if using) and stir to combine.
7. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets.
8. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 10-12 minutes.
9. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring to plate or rack to finish cooling.
10. Repeat baking process with remaining dough.