Cream-Filled Oatmeal Walnut Raisin Cookies with a Twist

The twist. Ahh the twist is the addition of Maple Extract. I don't bake with it often enough, and it's the perfect addition to so many fall and winter dishes (both sweet and savory).

I know some people are not fond of maple anything, and then some go wild over maple everything. Both my parents were fanatics about maple walnut ice cream and maple walnut coffee cake. So that was my inspiration when I decided to put this experiment together last night. There are a few steps to making these little darlings, but the results are so worth it. And as usual, I've tried to cut some calories and sugar. There might be some future tweaking, but for now...this is a yummy cookie your maple lovers will adore.

Cream-Filled Oatmeal Walnut Raisin Cookies
makes approximately 20-22 sandwich cookies

Filling
8 oz Neufchatel cheese softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter softened (1 stick)
1/2-3/4 cups confectioners sugar
1 T Splenda Brown Sugar Blend (or 2 T regular brown sugar)
1 tsp natural maple extract
1/3 cup finely chopped or ground walnuts

Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter softened (2 sticks)
1 cup Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (same amount if you're using granulated sugar)
1/2 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend (or 1 cup regular brown sugar)
2 large eggs at room temp
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp natural maple extract
1 tsp salt
1-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1cup rolled oats
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup finely chopped or ground walnuts

I like to make my filling first. In medium size bowl, combine your butter and Neufchatel. I use a hand mixer. Now add your sugars and maple extract.

And fold in your ground nuts.

Wrap filling in plastic wrap and set aside in your refrigerator to set up and let the flavors meld.

Let's make the cookies. Pre heat your oven to 350 and line baking sheets with parchment. In medium size bowl, combine salt, flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Whisk with a fork or spoon to incorporate. No need for any sifting. Set aside.

On to the batter. Place butter and sugars in a large bowl. With hand mixer combine sugars and butter until smooth. Add eggs and both extracts and incorporate.

 
Now add the flour mixture in two batches to the wet ingredients and combine. And fold in the oats, raisins and chopped walnuts.

I usually just plop my oatmeal dough by teaspoonfuls onto the parchment paper, but since I was filling these little beauties, I decided to make them into 1 inch to 1-1/2 inch balls, so they would all be pretty uniform in size.

Bake each cookie sheet 9 minutes. Let cool on cooling rack and remove cookies to paper towels to finish setting up. And amazingly enough, the cookies are all pretty much the same size. I lucked out on that one.

While cookies are cooling, remove the filling from the fridge, let it come to almost room temp so filling the cookies will be a snap. Lovingly pile a teaspoon to a tablespoon of the maple infused filling on to the bottom (flat side) of one cookie and top with a second. Keep going, and be sure to sample at least one (or two). They really are yummy.

Lemon Explosion

I love when a new cookie idea works, and this one did...like a dream. I had a jar of lemon curd in my pantry and wasn't sure if I was going to use it in an experiment that involved French toast, something savory or maybe another version of my famous cream-filled cookies. Well you know me, I dove head first into the cookie project. Let's make some creamy, dreamy, lemony cookies.

Lemon Cream Filled Lemon Cookies
Makes 16 2 inch sandwich cookies
 
Filling:
8 oz Neufchatel cheese softened to room temp
1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup prepared lemon curd

Dough:
3/4 cup unsalted butter softened to room temp
3/4 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
2 large eggs room temp
1/2 tsp pure lemon extract
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Zest of one lemon
2 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Confectioner's sugar for dusting

To make the filling: In medium size bowl combine all ingredients. I mix the cream cheese and butter first (mix about 2 or 3 minutes to get some air in the mixture). Then add the lemon curd and sugar. I use a hand mixer. Very important step here- wash your hands and dry them well. Now with your impeccably clean pointer finger, scoop as much of this creamy confection onto it and take a taste. Yummy, right?

cream

Cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge while you wash your hands again and make the cookies. By the way, you could also make the filling a day ahead, which due to time juggling, is what I did.

To make the cookies: Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In medium size bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt (I use a whisk). Set aside.

In large bowl, with hand mixer, combine butter and sugar and mix until smooth and airy (about 2-3 minutes). Add eggs, both extracts and lemon zest. When mixture is smooth, add half the dry ingredients into the wet and mix on low. Add the rest of the dry ingredients until incorporated. This is a sticky dough, so you'll want to cover it or wrap it with plastic wrap and let it sit in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Using a teaspoon or small cookie scoop, form dough into 1-1/2 inch balls and place on baking sheets.

Looks like a matzo ball, right? Leave enough room between cookies, as these babies spread. Bake in your pre-heated oven for 11 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly on cooling  rack, then remove to paper or kitchen towels to cool completely. Don't these look light and tasty?

And ready to be filled? You bet! Remove filling from the fridge. Take a hefty teaspoon of the creamy filling and place it on the underside/flat side of a cookie. Take a second cookie and cover the filling to make a sandwich. Keep going until all cookies have found their match. Don't use all the cream, as you'll want a few tablespoons to garnish the tops of the cookies.

Dust with confectioner's sugar. I like to dust through a sieve to make the sugar even finer.

And for a final presentation, add a dollop of remaining lemon cream to the top, then add a sprinkling of lemon zest to the dollop and serve in cupcake wrappers.

 

 

If fresh herbs looked good in my market, a pretty leaf of mint or thyme would have been the perfect garnish- right on top or next to my creamy dollop. With or without the herbs, this cookie is sure to please all the lemon lovers in your life.   

Pina Colada Cream Filled Cookies

 

Every year I celebrate my friend Jonathan's birthday with a new cookie. This year I did a take off on my Raspberry Cloud Cakes that I made at the 2013 World Food Championships in Las Vegas. Since Jon will be spending some time soon in the Caribbean I thought a coconut and pineapple combo would be appropriate. I didn't take any pictures to guide us through the baking process, but it's simple and I think when you make these you'll be as pleased as I was.

 

Pina Colada Cream Filled Cookies

 

Filling

8 oz neufchatel cheese at room temp

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp

1/4 cup sweetened coconut ground in spice grinder or food processor

1/4 cup confectioners sugar

1 tsp coconut extract

 

Dough

3/4 cup butter softened

3/4 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend- if you choose to use regular brown sugar double the amount

2 large eggs at room temp

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 cups AP flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup candied/dried pineapple rings chopped

Confectioners sugar for dusting

 

Garnish

Chopped candied/dried pineapple rings

Cream cheese coconut mixture

 

I always make the filling first: In medium size bowl combine your neufchatel cheese and butter. Now add your ground coconut, confectioners sugar and coconut extract. I cover this with plastic wrap and let it sit in the fridge while I'm making the cookie dough.

 

To make the cookies: Pre heat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In medium size bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir with a whisk or fork to combine and set aside.

 

In large bowl, with hand or stand mixer combine butter and brown sugar and mix until smooth and airy (about 3 minutes). Add eggs and vanilla and continue to mix. Add half the dry ingredients into the wet and mix on low. Add the rest of the flour mixture and mix until smooth. Fold in the candied/dried pineapple pieces. Cover with plastic wrap, and let cool in your refrigerator 20-30 minutes.

 

When dough is chilled, form into small balls about 1 inch in diameter. Place on baking sheets and cook 11 minutes. Cool slightly on cooling rack, then remove to kitchen or paper towels to cool completely.

 

Remove coconut filling from fridge and take a tablespoon (or maybe a little more) and place this creamy mixture on the flat side of the cooled cookie. Cover with a second cookie to make a sandwich. Keep going until you've matched up all the mates.

 

Sprinkle the top of all cookies with confectioners sugar, add a dab of coconut cream cheese on top and plunk in a piece or two of chopped pineapple. Nice presentation and a very sweet cookie.

 

I refrigerate these cookies and take them out about 30 minutes to one hour before serving. Happy Birthday Jonathan! Oh my, what am I going to make you next year?    

The Cookie Monster Strikes Again

Before Hurricaine Irene I posted a cookie recipe that I called "Cookies Before the Storm", and that recipe has taken me through many a trying experience, including no power for 4 days during said storm. Well this winter, I re-vamped those cookies and made them almost as crazy as Paula Deen's "Everything Cookies" and thank goodness I had the sense to leave out the M&M's. But this is a cookie that any cookie monster would want to experience. And due to the climate we've been having in the North East lately, I've decided to call this new batch Cookies Before, During and After the Storm. You'll yield about 40 cookies and they are yummy!  It's a basic chocolate chip cookie with a few extras thrown in. Today I added dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, crushed walnuts, raisins, coconut, rolled oats and sea salt. They're simple and deeelish!

Cookies Before, During and After the Storm

2 sticks butter softened
1 cup Splenda no calorie sweetener
1/2 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
2 large eggs (room temp if possible)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp salt
1-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup rolled oats
2-1/2 to 3 cups assortment of goodies- like chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, crushed walnuts, raisins, coconut and coarse sea salt for sprinkling on top before baking.

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees and line baking pans with parchment paper. Place butter and sugars in a large bowl. With hand mixer combine sugars and butter until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla extract and incorporate. Set aside.

In separate bowl combine flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Mix to incorporate (I just use a fork). Add the flour mixture in two batches to the wet ingredients and combine. Now add the rolled oats and the chips/raisins/nut mixture. Spoon tablespoons of the dough about 2 inches apart onto the parchment paper, sprinkle with sea salt and bake for 9 minutes. Crowd pleaser? YES! Just make sure to take a few for yourself before they are all gobbled up by your cookie monster friends. Hope you enjoy!

World Food Championships 2013, Part 3

 

The night before I was leaving for the WFC, packing clothes, emptying out my kitchen, getting my ingredients in order, and stressing to the max, I got an email from Lori- my sous chef extraordinaire and fabulous daughter (living 3,000 miles away from me) who reminded me she had some suprises in store. I usually don't worry about Lori because she is very down to earth. But her email included this picture.One is me and of one is her. And this was going to be part of our banner for the competitor's parade and the competition booth. I love the way she thinks. Just seeing her email made me giddy and I couldn't wait to see what she was planning, I was game for anything. Just to fill you in, this is a picture of each of us, one taken in 1959 and one in 1986. Yes, we were about the same age posing as Miss America. Well, when you're in a cooking competition as stressfull as the WFC, it sure is like a beauty contest except the best food wins. And when your favorite Miss America is cooking with you, it's home cooking at its' best!

 

On to the event: The two former pretend beauty queens got down to cooking Thursday afternoon and made Raspberry Cloud Cakes, our signature dish. To me it's everything that a dessert should be- creamy, rich, white chocolatey and fruity. This is one of my favorite recipes that I created over a year ago and just prior to the competition, I made them once a week for about 4-6 weeks. I made them in my sleep too. Here's the recipe, I think you'll enjoy.

 

White Chocolate Raspberry Cloud Cakes

makes about 36 filled cakes

 

Filling

8 oz neufchatel cheese softened to room temp

1/2 cup butter softened

3 T confectioner's sugar

1 T Splenda Brown Sugar Blend for Baking

1/3 cup Polaner All Fruit Raspberry Preserves

 

Dough

3/4 cup butter softened

3/4 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend

2 large eggs room temp

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 cups AP flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup white chocolate chips finely chopped

Confectioners sugar for dusting

 

Garnish

Fresh raspberries

mint leaves

 

Let's put this beautiful dessert together.

 

To make the filling: In medium size bowl combine all ingredients with hand mixer. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate while you prepare and make the dough.

 

To make the (dough): Pre heat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In medium size bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir with a whisk to combine and set aside.

 

In large bowl, with hand or stand mixer combine butter and brown sugar and mix until smooth and airy (2-3 minutes). We used a hand mixer at the show. Add eggs and vanilla and continue to mix. Add half the dry ingredients into the wet and mix on low. Add the rest of the dry ingredients until dough is smooth. Now add the crushed white chocolate and stir to combine. Use your clean hands if it's easier. The white chocolate is a fabulous addition to these little darlings. Who doesn't like a little white chocolate crunch with a cakey cookie?

  

Your dough will be very sticky so you'll want to refrigerate it for about 15-20 minutes. Up tp 30-40 minutes if you have the time. Form dough into small balls about 3/4 inch in diameter. Place on parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes and place on cooling rack to cool. After a few minutes you can place them on paper or kitchen towels to cool completely.

When mini cakes are cooled, the fun begins. Take a tablespoon of prepared raspberry cream and place on top of flat side of cake.

We're getting there. Now cover the filling with a second cookie cake to make a sandwich.

Keep going, you've got a lot more to make. When you cake sammies are assembled, sprinkle both sides of the cake with confectioner's sugar through a sieve. Add a dollop of the leftover raspberry cream to the top of these and garnish with a raspberry. Here is a picture that I took in my house before the contest. I was thrilled to be able to make these for the judges, with red wrappers, white plates and a sprinkling here and there of fresh mint (sorry no picture at the competition).

 

For those of you that want to give these a try, I have to warn you, they are growing raspberries bigger than you can imagine. Each garnish ended up being 1/3 of a raspberry. I cut the tops off, blotted them with paper towels to prevent bleeding and added them to the top raspberry swirl. Wish I had a picture of my final-hand in dish, but time was wasting and we were lucky to get these little cuties in on time.

 

 

And in case you were wondering, here is one of the two surprise signs Lori made. From what I could tell, we had the best "home cook" signs in the competition.

 

So the cook off is over and it's been over a week since I've been home. Will we do it next year? I'd like to think so and just hope we're invited back. To be able to do this for 2 years in a row and compete in a fierce competition like the WFC, I think our third time might be the charm. Fingers crossed!  

World Food Championships 2013, Part 2

The above picture was taken after round one of the dessert competition. I really don't look too frazzled do I? Just happy to have completed my two recipes on time, and in the dark no less. So are you ready for recipe#2? It's a dark mocha truffle cookie (very sultry and not too sweet), and they will make a nice addition to your Thanksgiving or Christmas dessert buffet. Perfect timing I think.

Dark Mocha Truffle Cookies
makes about 32

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperatue
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
2 tsp instant coffee powder
1/4 cup dark unsweetened cocoa (the dark cocoa really makes a difference)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1-3/4 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup finely chopped walnuts
Confectioner's sugar for dusting
Ground instant coffee for dusting

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl mix butter and sugar until well blended. Add vanilla, coffee, cocoa and salt and mix well.

Add flour and mix until dough is looking crumbly. Add the walnuts and incorporate.

I use my clean hands to mix the nuts and batter. A little messy I admit, but that's what I do. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate 15 to 20 minutes.

You can certainly refrigerate the dough longer, we were just under the gun, and I figured out before the competition that 15 minutes was the least amount of time the dough could be refrigerated and still make perfect little truffles. Working with half the dough, roll into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Place balls on parchment lined baking sheets and bake 15 minutes. Let cool on wire rack for about 5 minutes (ten if you're not in a cooking competition) and toss warm cookies in confectioner's sugar. Set cookies aside to cool and top with sieved ground coffee. Repeat with remainder of dough. Serve in mini cupcake liners. I was lucky enough to find some brown liners (no picture available, since we were scurrying around towards plating time and didn't even think of taking a photo) but they were very complimentary to the brown and white cookies.

I must give credit where credit is due...So a special thank you to Lori, my daughter and sous chef at the event who made these little darlings like a pro. And also, a big shout out to Diane Hopson Smith who tested this recipe for me and reassured me they were as good as I thought they were. Love you gals!

Raspberry Heaven

It's cookie baking season and every year I try to come up with a new cookie to share with friends and readers. Tonight I made a batch of creamy raspberry filled, white chocolate whoopie pies and OMG are they good!  They're a bit time consuming, but with the stereo blasting I could have made another batch or two, no problem. I have been making whoopie pies for quite a while, but this time I added white chocolate to the cookie dough, Polaner All Fruit raspberry preserves to the filling and  used Splenda Brown Sugar Blend. A few less calories, but the taste is full flavor for sure. I've been dreaming about these cookies and am so happy to share my recipe.

Creamy Raspberry Filled Whoopie Pies
makes about 16 servings

Filling:
8 oz neufchatel cheese softened to room temp
1/2 cup butter softened
3 T confectioner's sugar
1 T Splenda Brown Sugar for baking
1/3 cup Polaner All Fruit raspberry preserves

Cookie dough:
3/4 cup butter softened
3/4 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
2 large eggs room temp
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup white chocolate chips, chopped (I used my spice mill)

Confectioners sugar for dusting finished cookies

To make the filling: In medium size bowl combine all ingredients. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge while you prepare and bake the cookies.

To make the cookies: Pre heat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In medium size bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir with a fork or spoon to combine. Set aside.

In large bowl , with hand or stand mixer combine butter and brown sugar and mix until smooth and airy (2-3 minutes). Add eggs and vanilla and continue to mix. Add half the dry ingredients into the wet and mix on low. Add the rest of the dry ingredients until dough is smooth. Add the crushed white chocolate and stir to combine. The dough will be very sticky. Place dough in refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to let it firm up.

Form dough into small balls about 1 inch each. Place on baking sheets. These cookies spread a lot, so make sure there's enough room on your baking sheet to let them do their thing. Bake 11 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly on cooling rack, then remove to paper or kitchen towels to cool completely. You should get 34-36 single cookies.

Remove raspberry filling from fridge. Now the fun begins! Take a tablespoon or two of the filling and place on the flat side of a cookie.

Now take a second cookie and cover the filling to make a sandwich. 

Keep going, until you've matched up all the cookies with a mate. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and enjoy! I refrigerate them, take them out 30 minutes before serving and give another sprinkle of sugar.

Blue Ribbon Cookies

These Mini Cream Filled Delights recently won me a Blue Ribbon from the Just a Pinch Recipe Club and I couldn't wait to share it on the blog. I haven't felt this passionate about a recipe since my Asian Green Bean Salad for Cooking Light. These little morsels are really that good.

They're decadent, creamy and crowd pleasing. If you like a cakey, brown sugar cookie, filled with a creamy, yet crunchy, chocolatey filling, go directly to the ingredient list, get what you need at the market and make these cookies now.

Mini Cream Filled Delights
makes 45 delectable sandwich cookies

Filling:
8 oz neufchatel cheese softened to room temp
1/2 cup butter softened
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
2 T brown sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup semi sweet mini chocolate chips

Cookies:
3/4 cups butter softened to room temp
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
2 large eggs room temp if possible
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Confectioner's sugar for dusting

To make the filling: In medium size bowl combine all ingredients except the mini chips. Mix until combined. I use a hand mixer. Add the chocolate chips and fold to evenly incorporate. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge while you prepare the cookies.

To make the cookies: Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In medium size bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In large bowl, with hand mixer, combine butter and sugar and mix until smooth and airy (about 2-3 minutes). Add eggs and vanilla and continue to mix, remembering to scrape down the sides of the bowl. When mixture is smooth, add half the dry ingredients into the wet and mix on low. Add the rest of the dry ingredients until dough is smooth. Don't be surprised if dough is sticky, it's supposed to be.

Using a teaspoon or small cookie scoop, form dough into small balls about 3/4 inch each. Place on baking sheets, flatten slightly with a spoon and bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly on cooling rack, then remove to paper or kitchen towels to cool completely. You will get about 90 cookies.

Remove filling from the refrigerator and when cookies are cooled, take a teaspoon of the filling and place it on the flat side of a cookie. You can see I pile it pretty high.

Take a second cookie and cover the filling to make a sandwich. Now you only have 44 more times to do this. It is worth it.

Dust with confectioner's sugar. Now if 90 cookies seems a bit daunting, make the cookie balls a little bigger, about 1 to 1-1/4 inch in diameter and bake them for 12 minutes. I made them this way last weekend, and the work does go faster and the end result is just as delicious. I got 40 individual cookies and 20 sandwiches. And the portion is almost equivalent to 1 cupcake.

I store the cookies in the refrigerator wrapped in an air tight container and take them out about 20-30 minutes before I serve them. Try these, you'll be ever-so happy!

Whoopeee! It's World Nutella Day

February 5th is World Nutella Day (my favorite holiday) and this year I came up with a recipe that makes me say whoopee! every time I think about this Nutella filled, cakey little cookie that's slightly chewey and is a snap to make. I've decided to call these little darlings "Nutella Whoopie Pies".

Nutella Whoopie Pies

2 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cups butter softened
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Confectioners sugar for dusting
1 Jar (13 oz) Nutella

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. In medium size bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In large bowl, with hand mixer combine butter and sugar. Beat until smooth and airy (about 2-3 minutes). Add eggs and vanilla and mix, making sure to scrape down the edges of the bowl as you mix. When mixture is smooth, add half the dry ingredients and mix on low. Add the rest of the dry ingredients until dough is smooth. Don't over mix. And don't be surprised if the dough is sticky. It's supposed to be.

Form cookies into small balls about 1 inch to 1-1/4 inch. Place on baking sheets, flatten slightly with a spoon and bake 11 minutes. Cool on baking rack, then remove to paper or kitchen towels to finish cooling. You'll get approximately 40-42 cookies.

When cookies are cooled, take a big dollop of Nutella and place it on the flat side of a cooled cookie. Cover that mass of delicious chocolateness with another cookie.

Taste to see if it's decadent enough, and if not, add more Nutella.

Dust with Confectioners sugar and enjoy. You don't have to refrigerate these cookies. I think they're perfect when left at room temperature.

And don't just make these for World Nutella Day. They're perfect anytime.

Sometimes you feel like a nut

I normally wouldn't post a re-mix of my simple chocolate chip cookie recipe but I'm absolutely nuts about this revision. It's loaded with macademia nuts, has lots of oatmeal and is simply delicious. The cookies are rich. And chewy. And crunchy. And decadent. I suggest you try them if you're a nut like me.

Macademia Nut Cookies

2 sticks unsalted butter softened
1 cup brown sugar (I used 1/2 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend)
1 cup granulated sugar (I used Splenda no calorie)
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup AP flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1-1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup macademia nuts chopped
1 cup white chocolate and/or semi sweet chocolate chips-optional
Sea salt

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

In large bowl combine the butter and sugars with hand mixer. Mix about 2 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract and set aside.

In medium size bowl add flour, salt, baking powder and soda. Mix with a whisk to incorporate. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until combined. Stir in the oats, nuts and chips (if using). Spoon tablespoons of the dough onto the baking sheets, sprinkle with sea salt and bake until lightly browned on the edges. My oven takes about 10 minutes, but check the cookies after 8 minutes to be sure you don't over cook them. Let cookies cool a minute or two before transferring to wire rack or paper towels. Repeat with any remaing dough. This recipe makes about 45 cookies.

I've made this recipe with and without the chocolate chips. Either way they are delightful. If you decide to omit the chips, you can add an additional 1/2 cup of macademia nuts.