iced oatmeal cookies with roasted walnuts and milk icing

It's been a long time since we had a snowstorm - not that I'm complaining! Just above you can see the busy traffic to the birdfeeder, along with some litter from the trees after a windy day. At 6 am I was in the kitchen ( of course), sipping on coffee and thinking about how good a cookie would taste. At that hour, I'm not usually thinking about chocolate, but a bowl of oatmeal or an omelet. Oatmeal/cookie, oatmeal - oh, oatmeal cookies!

The second photo shows what I usually make: oatmeal cookies with raisins, which are delicious, but somewhat plain. I roasted some walnuts and added a drizzle of milk icing and voila! Fancy cookies .

This makes about 10 large cookies.

Adapted from the Silver Palate Cookbook

Line two baking sheets with parchment or foil.

Preheat oven to 350F.

1 1/2 sticks unsalted, room temperature butter

1/2 cup white sugar

1 cup light brown sugar

1 egg

2 T. water

1 t. vanilla

2/3 cup King Arthur flour

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. baking soda

3 cups rolled oats ( not instant)

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted in the oven briefly

Milk icing:

3/4 cup confectioner's sugar

milk

Add milk slowly by teaspoons, whisking smooth. Using a fork, scoop up icing and drizzle on cooled cookies . The texture should be not too thinned, not too thick.

To make cookies:

In mixer bowl, cream the butter and both sugars until creamy.

Add the egg and mix again, then add the water and vanilla.

Add the flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda and mix again.

Add the oats, the raisins, and the toasted walnuts and mix until well combined.

Using a regular sized ice cream scoop, scoop out cookies, 6 to a sheet.

Gently press balls of dough to flatten slightly.

Bake in 350F oven for around 20 minutes, baking one sheet at a time in the upper third of the oven.

Let cool slightly, then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Ice with drizzles of milk icing.