Bountiful Pantry Cookies

I usually clean out, sort, and reorganize my pantry once a month. When I do, I make Bountiful Pantry Cookies! Basically, this cookie consists of whatever I have on hand that can be thrown into an oatmeal cookie base. Today, I have dried organic blueberries, dried organic cherries, and raw slivered almonds. This is what our cookies are going to have in them! The wonderful thing about this recipe is that it can use almost any dried ingredient that you have a little extra of (i.e. raisins, cranberries, walnuts, pecans, coconut, peanuts, dried apples, etc.). Obviously, fruits and nuts are better in cookies, but feel free to experiment!

You have to have a good cookie base, and this is my favorite recipe:

• ½ pound (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
• ½ c. granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1½ c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
• ½ tsp. salt
• 3 c. oats
• Up to 3 cups of your preferred dry ingredients (chocolate, nuts, fruits, etc.)

**For this recipe, I used 1 cup almonds, 1 cup blueberries, and 1 cup cherries** 

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars until creamy. 

                                                   

 Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.

 Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon (optional), and salt; mix well. 

 Add oats and dried ingredients. 

 Continue to mix well, until combined.

 Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

 Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown.

Enjoy!