Buttery Oatmeal Crisps

Thin, super-buttery, crisp oatmeal cookies that are somewhere in between lace cookies and shortbread. They have a delicate crunch and are lightly sweet with a touch of salt and vanilla. After baking, you can pipe some melted chocolate onto one side or use it to sandwich two together, but my favorite way to enjoy these cookies is plain, with a cup of coffee. Makes approximately 24 cookies.

Ingredients:

• 110 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (increase to 1/2 teaspoon for a saltier cookie)
• 60 grams powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
• 80 grams all-purpose flour
• 45 grams instant oats
• 80 grams semisweet or dark chocolate (optional)

Instructions:

1. Heat your oven to 180 Celsius (350 Fahrenheit).
2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl, combine the softened butter, vanilla, and salt. Mix until smooth.
4. Add the flour and oats and mix until fully incorporated. The dough will be very soft.
5. Place small dollops of cookie dough using a teaspoon onto your baking sheet, leaving space in between. Each one should weigh about 10-12 grams.
6. Flatten the cookie dough, pressing down with your fingers or a lightly greased spatula. The thickness of the cookie will be about the same after baking as it was before baking – so the flatter you press your dough, the thinner your final cookie will be.
7. Bake for 8-12 minutes, or until lightly golden. Keep a close eye on them in the oven, as different pans conduct heat differently.
8. Let cool.
9. Optional chocolate:
   1. Melt the chocolate in a small bowl or glass.
   2. Transfer to a piping bag.
   3. Cut off the tip and pipe chocolate onto the underside of each cookie.
   4. For sandwich cookies, pair up similarly shaped cookies and press together.
   5. For one-sided chocolate dipped cookies, place the cookies chocolate side down back on the parchment paper.
   6. Chill in the fridge for about 20 minutes to solidify the chocolate.
10. Enjoy! Plain cookies can be kept in an airtight container for a week, or frozen for longer storage. Chocolate-covered cookies should be stored in the fridge (at room temp, the chocolate is unlikely to set without being tempered).

Notes:

• Oats: I have not tested these cookies with old-fashioned rolled oats. If they’re all you have, run them through a blender or food processer for a few seconds to break them down slightly.
• Chocolate shortcut: For an even easier chocolatey oat cookie, simply top the baked cookies with a few chocolate chips or bits of chopped chocolate while they’re still warm from the oven. The residual heat will melt them slightly and adhere them to the cookies.