Oatmeal Cookies

Oatmeal cookies are good. I have printed the basic recipe and below have listed optional ingredients. This basic cookie is good with additional ingredients to make them distinctive. The recipe is a recent one. When I was a child, cookie recipes said to drop by the teaspoonful onto the cookie sheet. In more recent times, we like bigger cookies, so we are told to drop dough by the tablespoon instead. It's all about person preference.

Oatmeal Cookies
1 1/4 cups butter- softened
3/4 cup brown sugar- firmly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups uncooked oatmeal

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, salt and spices. Add to the butter mixture. Mix well. Stir in oats. Drop by rounded spoonfuls (tablespoon for big cookies, teaspoon for smaller cookies)onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8-9 minutes for chewy cookie, 10-11 minutes for a crisp cookie. Smaller cookies may take less time. Cool cookies on paper towels or drying rack.

optional ingredients- add any or none to taste to make it your own recipe (if you add everything here it will not taste good. Choose your flavors 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1 cup pecans or walnut pieces or any nut you like, 1 cup raisins, 1 cup chocolate chips, 1 cup of an dried fruit (such as cranberry or pineapple) or candy pieces (such as crushed candy cane or m&m's)