About a month ago we hosted my sister-in-law’s bookworm baby shower. We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our nephew, he will be here soon! We kept the desserts rather simple for the party showcasing the cake, having some individual Oreo dirt cups, and a cookie/milk bar. The cookie/milk bar was well-received since we had put those out early and people were able to munch on them throughout the present opening process. My mom, sisters, Granny, and I all contributed different types of cookies. I made my chocolate chips and soft frosted sugar cookies.
My older sister made these, she had told me about them before and how much she loved them, but it wasn’t until the shower that I got to try them myself. I have seen the idea of “everything but the kitchen sink” cookies on many of my favorite blogs. The idea behind them is that you are adding so many different ingredients into the cookie base, everything but the kitchen sink, get it? The ingredient list may seem daunting, but if you are an avid baker, then you probably have most of the things already in your pantry. The only thing I didn’t have was a bag of dried cherries. The wonderful part about these cookies is you can mix and match the additions to your heart’s content. That is one reason why these cookies should be loved. Another is that if you are a sweet-salty combination fan then these are perfect for you, there is just the right balance of both. We loved them so much, that I held back on the baking and froze cookie dough balls for emergencies later. You just never know when that cookie craving will hit you, mine happened to be yesterday on one of the hottest days of the summer.
Everything but the Kitchen Sink Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light-brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 3/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 3/4 cup toffee bits
- 3/4 cup roughly chopped dark chocolate
- 3/4 cup dried cherries
- 3/4 cup roughly chopped pecans
- 3/4 cup roughly chopped salted pretzels
- Nonstick cooking spray
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and both sugars. Beat in eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition. Add in the vanilla.
With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Continue mixing until well combined. Add the oats, coconut, toffee, chocolate, cherries, pecans, and pretzels and mix on low as you do not want to crush all those goodies.
Using a 2-inch ice-cream scoop, drop scoops of batter onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Spray the bottom of a glass with cooking spray, use the bottom to slightly flatten the cookies so they are even. Transfer baking sheets to oven and bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes.
Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
