For My Poppy

Christmas and Fruit Cake. Easter and Colored Eggs. Thanksgiving and Turkey.

Halloween and Candy Corn. March 18 and Oatmeal Cookies.

You are probably wondering what the connection is...well, let me tell you.

Everyone associates some kind of food to holidays or special events.

March 18 happens to be my dad's birthday and my dad makes

really good THE BEST Oatmeal Cookies in the world!

So naturally I connect the two things...the best dad and the best cookies.

The two together make an excellent day, don't you think?

An excellent day to make cookies and celebrate!...today. We were with Jason's family yesterday (WELCOME HOME SARA!!) and so I am making these delightfully,

never-get-tired-of-them cookies a day late.

But First...A Story (as always)

 

 

I have always been a Daddy's Girl...

For most of my life, my dad owned a print shop and some of my earliest memories are being there, helping him with whatever he would let me do. One of my first "when I grow up I want to be" was a mechanic, because I was always "helping" my dad fix the cars. And every chance we get we always have a dance...

I'm not good at it, but they are all treasured moments.

These cookies are something else that we have shared together...I remember when he was working on this recipe, trial after trial I told him I wanted the recipe when he got it finished. One day I came home from school and there was a copy of it taped to my bedroom door. I'm not sure why it was such a huge deal to me, but it was. I felt so cool to have my own copy! Since then, I have been super protective of this recipe. In my mind it was a sacred family recipe that needed to be hidden from the world. But really...if you have something good, shouldn't you want to share it? This is the conclusion I came to, just recently. So in honor of my Poppy and his aging awesomeness I am passing this delicious gift on to anybody who is lucky enough to be reading this.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY POPPY!!

 Okay, Okay! I'll stop talking...Behold! The Cookies!

This is what you need to get started:

Butter, Eggs, Sugar, Brown Sugar and Vanilla.

 

Cream it all together...

Next, add:

Flour, Oatmeal, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Cinnamon, Cloves and Ginger

Now, do yourself a favor, pick up a chunk and eat it...yum! Taste those spices!

Next, lick the beaters clean...that's what I did

Scoop it out on your cookie sheets,

throw it in the oven and inhale its baked goodness.

Enjoy! Enhance the cookie with a cold cup of milk

Poppy's Oatmeal Cookies

Cream Together:

1 1/2 cups Butter

2 cups Brown Sugar

1 cup Sugar

2 tsp. Vanilla

3 Eggs

2 tbls Molasses (I omit this...I don't really know why.)

Add:

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp Cloves

1/4 Ginger

4 cups Flour

4 cups Oats

Spoon onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Let them sit on your cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. (My oven hates me, so I have to bake mine at 375 degrees for about 11 minutes...fyi, just in case your oven hates you too). Makes about 4 dozen 2 inch cookies.