Cherry Pecan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (and a Giveaway from America’s Test Kitchen!!)
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Ok, so maybe I did just make oatmeal cookies, but I got some dried sour cherries and pecans from Oh Nuts and then I happened to notice that my Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook has a recipe for cherry pecan oatmeal chocolate cookies. It was fate. I had to make them!
It’s no secret that I’m a die hard fan of America’s Test Kitchen (they also produce the magazine Cook’s Illustrated) so I just about lost it when I got an invitation to the launch party for The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook held smack in the middle of America’s Test Kitchen. Now I did get to go on a tour of ATK after the Boston Blogger Cookie Challenge, which was incredibly exciting, but this invitation was even more special. Not only would I get to eat food actually prepared in the Test Kitchen and schmooze with ATK staff and other Boston bloggers and media, but both Christopher Kimball and Julia Collin Davison were there. If you’ve never seen the TV show (aptly named America’s Test Kitchen), Christopher Kimball is host of the show and Julia Collin Davison is one of the regular cast members and just happens to be one of my favorites. Getting to chat with Julia Collin Davison was just about the coolest thing that I’ve done all year.
Another huge bonus of going to the party was getting a signed copy of the The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook, chock full of recipes that have been tested and fully vetted by the amazing folks behind America’s Test Kitchen. You may have noticed that this is the only cookbook that I singled out for my holiday gift guide. This monster cookbook has over 2,000 recipes including some of my favorites (like Thai basil chicken and perfect chocolate chip cookies), a new recipe that shocked me I liked it so much (their pumpkin pie has made me a believer!) and recipes I can’t wait to try (like mushroom risotto with pancetta and sage and their espresso truffle tart).
These cherry pecan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are one fine addition to the cookbook. And of course I’ve had dried cherries before, but I had never seen sour dried cherries until I perused Oh Nut’s online catalogue. They offered to send me some things for my holiday baking and I could hardly resist. I loved their dried blueberries so much that I really wanted to try more of their dried fruits and I just had to try the dried sour cherries. Pecans seemed like the natural accompaniment and clearly America’s Test Kitchen thought so too!
So which of these oatmeal cookies did I like better? As much as I loved the dried blueberries that I used in the first recipe, they just can’t compete with the dried cherries, chocolate, and pecan combo. The recipe calls for chocolate chunks, but I happen to have a three pound bag of Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips from BJs (hey, no judgement, it’s holiday baking season…), so that’s what I used. These cookies are phenomenal. What can I say? I like chocolate in my cookies and the chocolate paired with the tart cherries is outstanding.
So have I left you jealous and quietly coveting your very own copy of The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook? How about a signed copy? Well, you’re in luck because it’s the season for giving and Pixelated Crumb is doing its second giveaway in as many weeks! Because thanks to America’s Test Kitchen, we have a very special giveaway of a copy of The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook signed by Christopher Kimball himself!
Giveaway Details
This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Jessica for winning the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook giveaway and thanks to all who participated!!
One very lucky reader will win a free signed copy of The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook! This giveaway is open to USA residents and will be open until Wednesday, December 21st at 11:59 pm ET.The winner will be selected on random.org on December 22nd. The winner will be announced on Pixelated Crumb and I will send her/him an e-mail. Make sure your e-mail is correct, because you only have 48 hours to respond to claim your prize before another winner is chosen!
To enter the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook Giveaway:
Write a comment below telling me why you would like to win a copy of The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook.
For Additional Entries
For more chances to win, complete one or more of the following steps and write a comment below for each extra entry (e.g. “I follow @pixelatedcrumb on Twitter”). If you already do any of the following, just leave a comment letting me know. You get an extra chance to win with each entry!
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Follow @pixelatedcrumb on Twitter
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Tweet about the giveaway (be sure to include @pixelatedcrumb)
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“Like” Pixelated Crumb on Facebook
Note: I received the dried cherries and pecans from Oh Nuts and The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen for free. I was not asked to write positive reviews and all opinions expressed here are my own.
Cherry Pecan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (6 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups (3 3/4 ounces) old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup toasted pecans, chopped
- 1 cup (4 ounces) dried tart cherries
- 3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips or 4 oz. of chopped bittersweet chocolate
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), slightly softened
- 1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions
- Place an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another medium bowl, mix together dried cherries, toasted pecans, oats, and chocolate chips.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together butter and sugar until no lumps remain, about 1 minute. Add the egg and vanilla, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula if necessary and mix for about 30 seconds. On low-speed, slowly add the flour mixture until just combined. Then turn off the mixer and fold in the oats and cherry mixture with a rubber spatula.
- Roll dough into 1/4-inch balls and place on the baking sheet, lightly flattening each ball to 1-inch thickness. Place the balls 2 1/2 inches apart on the cookies sheets.
- Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 20-22 minutes, rotating the cookie sheet halfway through, until cookies are medium brown and the edges are set. Don't worry, the cookies will appear a little underbaked in the middle.
- Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.