The Sugar Bar

It feels like centuries since I had homemade cookies or been on the non-receiving side of these aforementioned cookies. I think the last one I had was consumed a little after Christmas, storebought, as good as Divine cookies get but didn’t quite ring the bell for me. The realization that there’s only another 24 hours and counting before the weekend vanishes once again made the need for cookies all the more intense. Felt kinda like being almost on the verge of a life-changing moment that would write itself down in history. Weekends for me, since I began baking, have always been Cookie Weekends. At the end of every week, my family would begin to get slightly queasy from having to face burnt, underbaked, queer-shaped cookies. Every baking attempt was a batch of oddly shaped masses of sweetened batter, to me at least. To the rest of the family, it was either sugar highs or experiences of unpleasant experimentation.

Getting up at about half 7 this morning – groggy and smelling of sleep, I trudged down in scruffies and knee-high woollen slippers – to bake, without first having breakfast or a cuppa coffee, really brought me back to those days. I haven’t felt this good on a Sunday for some time now. I mean, dissertations, seminar preparations and thoughts of the impending future always leave me Sundays a little empty, a little grey, kinda moribund. But a foodie pal once reminded me that baking is one of the best cures and I agree, although I put that a little after shopping. Eating comes next. I’m not anywhere near done with my dissertation, and I haven’t prepared nearly enough for my morning seminar tomorrow but I’m determined to spend my Sunday in a different way. Besides, I have a phone interview with Birkbeck University for my masters application in a little over 2 weeks. EEEK! I can’t afford to lose my life force right now, can I? Did someone say get psyched with cookies?

So cookies it is. And with one of my best-loved ingredients. I’m on Lent, and I’ve given up quite a lot this year – chocolate included. Therefore, nope it is not chocolate. But oats!

I have a real weakness for oats. I have oats at least twice a day – for breakfast, sometimes lunch in granola, muesli or flapjack form. And sometimes I can’t help sneaking a little as pudding after dinner. It’s just soo good. I love the crunch if they’re granola; love the smell of oat porridge with honey and bananas; and have a habit of nibbling each bit of oat very slowly, squirrel-style. Irresistible. I went in search for an oatmeal raisin cookie recipe because I don’t actually have one on me. When it comes to baking, I have a select few of foodblogs and food websites I go to for inspiration and very trusty recipes. Smitten Kitchen is a place I love to get recipes from because they’re always reliable and gosh, the pictures just drive you mental! I’m just a little gaga over this foodblog.

This recipe was very easy to follow and the ingredients uncomplicated. It was actually a half-recipe and I found it just right as I too didn’t want to be swimming in a cookie-filled kitchen. I like making just enough. Overdoing really isn’t necessary (so says the over-achiever, snort!). I’m definitely keeping this recipe for life – it’s just perfect. Crispy on the outer edges, and soft chewy on the inside. It’s got the right thickness. It looks like proper homemade cookies. I’m in love! I might, however, up the amount of salt and rolled oats in the future. I like my cookies a little salty and for this particular type, I love having a truckload of oats in these. Might possibly try this in the future with oats (the non-rolled type) for extra bite. I can so imagine myself going into shock aka oaty-heaven from just a bite of that. Bring on Cookie Sundays – that’ll definitely chase away any sort of impending Monday Blues.

(recipe link below)

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies recipe from Smitten Kitchen. Recipe yields about 2 dozen regular cookies. Thank you Smitten Kitchen, these were great!!

*p/s. You might’ve noticed that the layout has changed. Please forgive any messy bits as I’m still in the process of editting the template and so forth. It’s about time The Sugar Bar upgraded and matured!

Update: Comments now working. Apologies for the delay in fixing the blog layout, etc. but it’s all up and running now (I hope) so do feel free to leave me a message!