i always want to sneak in something healthy like oatmeal to the kids' cookies. #1son is wise to my sneaky ways and had been requesting a different type of sweet treat, but the two little ones wanted chocolate chip. i thought i'd make them with dried sour cherries which i picked up from trader joe's on our last food foray. i tried one and whoa did i pucker up! super sour! and i love sour. i decided to dump more chocolate chips than i'd planned on using to counter the sourness. and it worked! reminded me of black forest cake somehow--the cherries don't taste that tart in the cookie dough. we all loved it. or should i say devoured it.
Preheat oven to 375F. lightly grease cookie sheets with butter.
have all ingredients at room temperature.
in large mixing bowl, cream 1 & 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) of butter and 3/4 cup fine granulated sugar and 3/4 cup light brown sugar. add 1 egg and 2 tsps. of vanilla.
in small mixing bowl whisk 3/4 cup all purpose flour with 1/2 tsp. baking soda and 3/4 tsp. salt. add flour mixture to creamed butter and sugar mixture and beat dry ingredients are moistened. stir in 3 cups uncooked oats (i used McCain's Irish quick cooking oatmeal), scant 3/4 cup dried sour cherries, and 1 & 1/2 cups Ghirardelli double chocolate chips.
drop by rounded spoonfuls into prepared cookie sheets, 2 inches apart. bake about 10 minutes or just until edges of cookie dough are golden brown. let cookies stand in sheets for 2 minutes and gently lift to wire racks to cool completely.
optional: drizzle melted white chocolate over cookies and let set until firm. (*sigh* my kittens ran out of patience for that though...)
