Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others

Three days of incessant rain and unseasonably low temperatures have done wonders for my kitchen cupboards. With Al Roker forecasting that the rain is finally behind us, I took inventory and realized I went through massive quantities of food while waiting for the sun to appear. I'd like to say it was my sacrifice to the sun gods, but I know better than that. I always use rainy days as an excuse to cook and bake, eating much worse than anyone should.

Thankfully the streets of NYC are finally dry, the air outside is getting warmer with each passing minute, and until the next storm system rolls through, days of gorging on chocolate pudding, almond croissants, guacamole with tortilla chips, and cookies are behind me. I am left with the lyrics to The Smiths' song "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" running through my head. After a personal three day festival of food, I feel like a girl who is much bigger than others. As I set out to jog off what I can of the past three days' obscene caloric intake, I share with you my favorite, extremely simple, cookie recipe (adapted from Cooking Light magazine). Save it for a rainy day, it's well worth it.


Chocolate Chip Cookies With Oatmeal (yield: 2 dozen after eating approx. 3-4 heaping spoonfuls of the dough!)
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup oats (quick cooking or regular)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt (I love the taste of salt with chocolate, so I use a coarse sea salt)
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I like to use Ghirardelli)
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl combine flour with oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3. Beat butter and sugars until well blended.
4. Add vanilla and egg to butter/sugar mixture and beat until well blended, then combine with flour mixture.
5. Stir in semi-sweet chocolate chips.
6. Spoon dough onto cookie sheets and bake for 12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.