Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookies, Oatmeal Style

This post and recipe is in remembrance of Michelle Mead-Salley R.N., who first introduced me to this method back when we worked together in the ER of Beaumont Hospital – Royal Oak, Michigan.

Meet my husbands regular cookie.

These are the “hey, take these up north with you” cookies. They’re also my “Honestly! I only forgot to get the only two things you asked me to pick up from the grocery store. Peace offering?” cookies. I know that if I present these cookies to him, all will be well.

Many years ago, a nurse I worked with Michelle brought these cookies in to share. I of course accepted (who passes up free cookies?) and took a bite and then died right there in my scrubs at my desk. These are genuinely REALLLLY good cookies. They are soft and chewy, with crispy candy-like edges!

Now I know some of you who aren’t huge fan of coconut may turn your nose up at these. So did a regular at dinner, that is until I held him down and shoved one in his mouth. Oh would you look at that?! He loves them and now he claims these are his regular cookies! Crazy how that works. To be honest, I don’t think there’s an over whelming coco-nutty flavor, and neither does Pat. Promise.

These oatmeal chocolate chip toffee cookies have so much going on in them you won’t know which ingredient is your go-to. Will it be the chocolate chips? The toffee bits? Oatmeal (probably not)? Or will it be the love-to-hate ingredient coconut?

To Make These Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookies Gather:

• unbleached all-purpose flour – The base for the cookie dough.
• baking soda– Creates a gas while baking which helps the cookies rise.
• cinnamon (ground) – Lends a distinct warm and woodsy flavor.
• fine salt – Use either sea salt or pink himalayan.
• softened unsalted butter – Lends richness, tenderness and structure to cookies.
• dark brown sugar – Lends a richer, more complex flavor.
• pure vanilla extract – Adds warmth and enhances all of the other flavors in this dish.
• eggs – Add structure, leavening and flavor.
• chocolate chips – We like milk chocolate in ours but use what you like!
• toffee bits-o-brickle – This is made by Heath.
• speedy cooking oats – I do not suggest using old fashioned oats in this dish.
• coconut flakes – for this method I use sweetened coconut.

To start, preheat your oven to 375° and line two rimmed baking pans with either parchment paper or silicon baking mats.

Then in a small bowl, whisk together 1-3/4 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon each ground cinnamon and baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Once combined, set this off to the side.

Meanwhile in the bowl of your stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, throw in two sticks of room temperature unsalted butter. Mix on low until creamy (30 seconds or so) then add in the 2 cups of dark brown sugar. Continue to mix until incorporated and the butter/sugar mixture is light and creamy, about 2 minutes.

Measure and pour in 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract.

Crack and add one egg in at a time, mixing well after each one.

Gradually add in the flour mixture and mix on low speed until only incorporated.

Next, gradually add in the 3 cups of short oats, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go.

Fun Fact:

You can easily turn old fashioned oats into speedy oats by pulsing (old fashioned) rolled oats in your food processor. However, 3 cups old fashioned oats DOES NOT equal 3 cups speedy cooking oats. Because the oats are blitzed into smaller oats, gather more old fashioned oats to get 3 cups speedy cooking.

Now is the time, I highly suggest you turn to your most sturdy spatula or wooden spoon. I have broken a cheap, plastic-handled spatula on this cookie dough before. And I’m afraid that the motor on my kitchen aid can only handle so much.

Trust me on this.

Add in the entire bag of toffee (bits o’ brickle), 1 cup of sweetened coconut flakes and the bag of (semi-sweet or milk chocolate) chocolate chips.

If using regular chocolate chips, use a 2 tablespoon scoop. Therefore, if using chocolate chunks, I recommend a 3 tablespoon scoop to measure the cookie dough. Place the cookie dough onto the prepared pans, leaving an inch or so in-between each cookie.

Lastly, bake in your preheated 375° oven for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the pan to ensure even baking. Once baked, remove the cookies and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes before removing.

THE DEPENDABLE.

Finely it’s time to enjoy one of these oatmeal chocolate chip toffee cookies.

Now, look at the bottom of this cookie! Because toffee has melted and then cooled, it gives these oatmeal chocolate chip toffee cookies a candy-like crunch to the bottom. Which is my regular part. Normally no one would care about the bottom of their cookie, but when it comes to these however, it’s a thing worth noticing.

Enjoy! And if you give this Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookies recipe a try, let me know! Snap a photo and tag me on twitter or instagram!