Crew Cookies

Jacob rows on his High School crew team.  The team participates in about 5 regattas a season.  They usually have to arrive on race day around 6 a.m. and don’t leave the race site until 6 p.m..  Feeding all those kids all day long is a serious production.  If you have ever been to a rowing regatta you know what I mean.  If not the only thing I can compare it to would be Woodstock.  There are tents set up all along the race course and each tent is crammed with more teenagers than you can count, most are in sleeping bags and asleep, that is unless they are in lawn chairs eating.  I know what you are thinking….. what about when they are racing.  An average rowing race lasts 7 minutes.  That’s right 12 hours at a regatta to watch your kid race for 7 minutes and really you can’t watch the whole race because its 2000 meters so it’s just the end which is more like 2 minutes.

So that being said getting food to a race and prepared takes up a lot of empty time.  There is usually two grills going throughout the day, scrambled eggs and pancakes in the morning and chicken fajita’s and grilled cheese for lunch.  I usually sign up for the baked goods – imagine that.  I love to make them muffins and cookies.

This cookie recipe is a crowd pleaser, you like oatmeal – raisin, check.  You like chocolate chip, check.  You like coconut, check.  You get the idea.

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
•  1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
•  2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
•  1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts, chopped (you could substitute walnuts or pecans)
• 1/4 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
• 2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2/3 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Line two baking sheets with parchment or Silpat’s.

In a bowl add flour, baking soda and salt.

Put butter and sugars in mixer and beat until creamy.  While mixer is running add eggs one at a time and then vanilla.

Add flour mixture to mixer and blend.

In a bowl add oats, nuts, coconut, chocolate and raisins.

While mixer is running on low add oat mixture just until blended.

Using a large ice cream scooper if you have, if not a 1/4 cup measure will work fine, scoop dough onto baking sheets. Only put 6 scoops per sheet.  These are big cookies.

Bake one sheet on top 1/3 and other on bottom 1/3 of oven for 7 minutes and then flip.

Cool on sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack.  Cookies will be soft in middle.

Related articles

• Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (challengeu2cook.wordpress.com)
• Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies (meatballsandmilkshakes.com)
• Adventures in Sunday Baking (quotidiennemoi.wordpress.com)
• April 30 – National Oatmeal Cookie Day (budgetcouponcooking.wordpress.com)