Salt & Stone: Oatmeal cookies with brown butter and dark chocolate

With the holidays approaching, it seems like there’s a new event or invitation popping up almost every week. Whether it is an end-of-season sports banquet, a dinner for employees or a company party, an invitation to a dinner from the neighbor down the street, a book club; the events are almost endless and my list doesn’t even cover half of them.

And it would be easy to feel a little overwhelmed about what to bring as a small gift to many of these events. Whether it’s a hostess gift or a white elephant exchange, or if a neighbor brings a Christmas gift and you need to think about what you can offer in return; I have the exact idea.

I call it my “back pocket recipe,” where I have a few tried-and-true recipes that I can make and share with confidence. Everyone needs a few recipes (I’m talking just the fingers of your hand) that you can make haphazardly with your eyes closed. Back pocket recipes are the things you make over and over again for family and friends that they love and request.

These recipes don’t have to be fancy. I’ve fallen into the trap of overwhelm Pinterest far too many times. I felt frustrated and a little defeated when the recipe I tried ended up looking nothing like the picture. I’m a big believer in leaning on those back pocket recipes, especially during the holidays.

If you don’t have a cookie recipe in your back pocket, this might be the one for you this year. Butter is fried until brown in a pan until it smells a bit like caramel. This small and easy extra step gives the cookies a rich, almost nutty flavor that is well worth the extra effort. Once the butter is brown, the dough is a quick mix of sugars, vanilla, eggs, flour and oats. The dark chocolate makes the cookies feel a little extra special, just like the pinch of salt that decorates the top.

Once baked, these cookies are the most decadent and special treat. Packaged in a beautiful jar and tied with a festive ribbon, you not only have a beautiful gift to give, but it is also thoughtful and beautiful. Anyone who receives a beautiful batch of these special cookies will be happy. I love how modest the cookies are and how surprisingly decadent and special they become once you bite into them.

I can almost guarantee that once you make a batch, this will be your favorite cookie recipe in your back pocket for years to come. There’s something special about a homemade gift, it’s such a fun way to give during the holidays. Maybe oatmeal cookies aren’t what you had in mind this year, but you still want something homemade. The Yakima Herald has many fun The Salt and Stone holiday recipes in the archives. There’s a sweet and savory nut mix, cinnamon roll containers, no-knead artisan bread, rhubarb simple syrup, chocolate molasses cake and probably a dozen different cookie recipes from over the years. My website, thesaltandstone.com also has a library of recipes to browse.

Brown Butter Dark Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

• 1 cup softened salted butter

• 1 cup packed brown sugar

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 2 large eggs, room temperature

• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• 1 1/3 cups of oats

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 2 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips

• Flaky sea salt for garnish

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until it boils. Stir occasionally and keep a close eye on it until the butter turns a caramel color and the milk solids begin to separate, usually about 6 to 8 minutes. Once the butter starts to brown, turn off the heat and remove the pan from the heat. Let cool for 5 minutes before starting the dough.

Mix the brown butter and sugars in a stand mixer. Mix on medium until the butter and sugar are smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla one at a time, mixing after each addition.

In a separate bowl, mix the flour, oats, baking powder and baking soda together with the salt. Mix to combine before adding the flour mixture to the butter mixture in two batches, mixing on low until just combined. Gently stir in the dark chocolate until it is incorporated into the dough, but do not overmix!

Remove the bowl from the mixer, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour or up to a day. Chilling the dough after it is made but before baking helps the cookie retain its shape and improve its flavor.

When it’s time to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Scoop out large spoonfuls of dough (about 3 tablespoons each) and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie. Stuff a chocolate chip into the top of each cookie and sprinkle the entire baking sheet with flaky sea salt.

Bake in the oven for 12 to 14 minutes, until the edges of the cookies turn golden brown. Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven, use a bowl slightly larger than the cookies and swirl it around and over each cookie to make them a little rounder and more uniform.

Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool. Once the cookies have cooled completely, place them in a nice glass jar with a lid. Tie a beautiful ribbon around the jar and garnish with a sprig of rosemary, dried orange slices, a small ornament or a handmade card.