Nostalgic Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Oatmeal raisin cookies remind me of my grandmother. We call her Ousie (a nickname I coined as a toddler, because I couldn’t pronounce Alice Louise). This isn’t her recipe, doesn’t even come close, but it’ll do for now until I can dig out the recipe my mom has stashed away at home. Still, there’s something about the combination of oats and raisins, cinnamon and dark brown sugar that even in this recipe feels both nostalgic and comforting, old-fashioned but always sweet and warm, just the way a grandmother’s recipe should be.

I make oatmeal raisin cookies when I feel like someone needs a little bit of warmth and comfort in their lives. This time, they were for Zach’s dad, who lost one of his fishing partners and best friend this past week. He’s going on a fishing trip tomorrow, so I hope they cheer him up a little bit around lunch time, even though he won’t have his buddy there with him.

Old-fashioned Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (from the Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 ½ c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon 
¼ tsp. salt
½ c. unsalted butter
1 c. firmly packed dark brown sugar
½ c. sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
½ c. old-fashioned rolled oats
2 c. raisins

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two baking sheets or line with parchment paper. If you don't have parchment paper, line your baking sheets with aluminum foil and spray it with Baker's Joy cooking spray. Makes clean-up SO EASY! I hate having to wash pans, so I'm all about the aluminum foil.

2. In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside. I wasn't paying attention and accidentally doubled the recipe.Since I doubled the recipe, I didn't have enough raisins, but the recipe turned out good anyways. The more raisins the better, in my opinion.  I also used 1 tsp. of cinnamon instead of 1 tbsp. More cinnamon here is better. My cookies didn't have as much of that cinnamon-y warmth and spice as I thought they needed.

 

3. In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed. Add eggs and vanilla and beat on low until well-blended.

4. Add dry ingredients and rolled oats and stir until just incorporated. Mix in the raisins. If you're like me, sample the dough "to make sure it's good."

5. Drop by heaping tablespoons spaced 3 in. apart onto the baking sheets and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Cookies are done when they are evenly light brown and firm when lightly touched.

6. Let the cookies cool for approximately 5 minutes on baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely. Make sure you sample a cookie. I recommend baking them mid-morning and having one with a second cup of coffee like I did. Grumpy puppies will beg for treats while you are doing this, but you know what they say, "if you give a mouse a cookie, he's gonna want some milk," so you might as well not even go down that road.

This Is My Bedroom

Shopping at thrift stores, garage sales, and even in my relatives’ attics or storage sheds, is one of my absolute favorite things to do. I love finding overlooked treasures, things few others have appreciated for their beauty. Even though many people see these thrifted items as junk, I’ve found that with just a little bit of cleaning and refurbishing these objects can take on a new life. With their uniqueness, they make beautiful, one-of-a-kind decorations or functional pieces for your home. Most of my found treasures have managed to accumulate in my bedroom.

These windows that I've displayed behind my bed came from the storage shed of a house my grandmother bought. They were old, mildewed, falling apart, but after cleaning them up with a little bit of Windex and a lot of elbow grease, they came out beautifully. I've hung several scarves I've found at thrift stores and on clearance behind the windows for color. I think the lights give it character, and I still feel young enough for that to be acceptable. Since my bed is right next to my dresser, I've used pushpins to hang up some of my favorite jewelry on the right window. Pretty and functional.


I love glass bottles. Everywhere I go, I seem to come back with a few of them. You can put flowers in them, decorate them with a few strands of beading, or place a few necklaces or glass beads inside them to give them even more character.


I think solid color bedspreads are the way to go when decorating a bedroom. That way you can buy lots of fun pillow shams and blankets in different patterns and colors and mix and match them without worrying so much if it will look good with the comforter - as long as all the colors look good together, of course.

See what I mean about the necklaces/beads in the bottle on the left? A great, functional way to display and store your jewelry at the same time. The little figurine on the right is one of my favorites. Given to me by the lady who took care of me as an infant, I've had it since I was probably 8. I used to collect dog figurines, and this is one of the few that survived the years.

This awkward bookcase with only one shelf was left by the people who lived in the condo before us. I've been meaning to buy more shelves for it since we moved in, but I never got around to it. I loved this poster I got at a conference so much (dorky, I know), I hung it up to cover the blank space. A great idea by the way, if you're trying to fill blank space in an empty bookcase - just cover it with fabric or wallpaper that matches your decor, and it's an instant pop of color in what would have just been a blank, empty space.


I've always loved books. Growing up, I had two overflowing bookcases in my room and one in my closet. Although I left quite a bit of my collection when I moved, I always come back from my parent's house with a few more. I especially love hardback books, and I've even started buying them from the thrift store. $1 or $2 for a book that would have cost me $25 at the book store. Can't pass up a deal like that! And, they look so lovely on a bookcase, or displayed on a side or coffee table, or even just laying all around your house like mine usually are.

This beautiful music box was my great grandmother's. Enough said.


The winking cups are from the same lady who gave me the figurine on my bed. She loved yard sales, estate sales, garage sales, and I think that's where I got my love of thrifting. When we lived in New Orleans a long time ago, she would always take me with her. I think I was probably less than one when I went to my first yard sale. I haven't looked back since.

I have two of these matching vintage lamps in my room. I found them at my favorite thrift store in Baton Rouge. They are one of my favorite thrift store finds ever! Even though they were $25 together, I couldn't pass them up. When I saw them, I knew it was meant to be.

This chair came from my great grandmother's bathroom. I can imagine her sitting on it, looking in the mirror and putting on her lipstick. When I see it, I always feel such a sense of connection with her, even though I barely remember her. I found this chair when I was going through her house with my grandmother. It was covered with red velvet - not cute at all. All I did was cover it with some fabric I bought from Hobby Lobby, and voila, a whole new chair!

We've gone to Florida for vacation every year since I can remember. I love beach-combing, looking for sea shells and beach glass. These are a few of the best shells I've collected in recent years. More to come shortly, as we're leaving for Florida tomorrow! Also, I love this glass Ball Jar I found at the thrift store. If you look in the background, you can see some of favorite perfumes and the lamp that matches the other one.

Finally, a perfect picture of my sweet, sleeping puppy. So innocent. Don't let it fool you. We just realized he had managed to escape outside. When I realized he was missing, we found him looking in the door, waiting to get back in. He had "decided" to take himself on a walk. His form of payback for me giving him a bath and haircut this morning, I guess.