Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

When we travel, I like to keep healthy snacks in the car to help those long boring miles go by .  Well, oatmeal, eggs, nuts and fruit are healthy - right?  Anyway, we recently made a trip to Las Vegas and those tasty 'healthy cookies' were mighty good and fresh from Grammy's kitchen.  When our boys were growing up, 3 dozen cookies was not enough to last a day so I always doubled this recipe.  They keep well if you put them in zip lock bags and hide them in the freezer.  We now have a monster that lurks in our freezer and eats cookies and ice cream (I think his name is John)!

                           

                                       OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES

                                       

3/4 cup Shortening

1 1/3 cups Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

1 teaspoon Vanilla

3/4 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg

1 1/3 cups Flour

2 cups Rolled Oats

2 cup Raisins or Dried Cranberries

1/2 cup chopped Walnuts

In a large mixing bowl, beat together Shortening, Brown Sugar, Eggs and Vanilla until creamy - use an electric mixer. Beat in Baking Soda, Salt, Cinnamon and Nutmeg. With mixer on low, mix in the Flour. Add the Rolled Oats, Raisins and Walnuts and fold them in.  Drop by heaping teaspoon or 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop onto greased or parchment paper covered cookie sheets.  Bake in 350˚ oven for 12 - 15 minutes - until light golden brown.  Leave cookies on baking sheet for 1 - 2 minutes to cool.  Remove from baking sheet to paper towels to finish cooling.

Makes 3 dozen cookies