These Sourdough Oatmeal Cookies are cakey and delicious, a perfect comfort food.
The sourdough doesn’t act as a leavening agent here, but adds nuanced flavor and lends a unique breadiness to the texture. I doubt anyone would eat these and immediately identify they include a starter, but they would probably know something is different.
I added dried cranberries and walnuts to these cookies, but mix in whatever dried fruit, nuts, seeds, or chocolate chips that you want. Just don’t exceed 2 1/2 cups of add-ins. Or try to fool people into thinking dark raisins are chocolate chips. That’s just evil.
By the way, I baked up sourdough recipes like this one because I have maintained a starter for book research reasons: my next release, A House Between Sea and Sky, features a sourdough starter named Mother as an important character. Find out more (and preorder) here!
Bready or Not Original: Sourdough Oatmeal Cookies
Equipment
- parchment paper
- cookie scoop or spoon
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) softened
- 3/4 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sourdough discard (113 grams)
- 3 cups rolled oats also called old fashioned oats
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
- 1 cup walnuts chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar, and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla and sourdough discard.
- In another bowl, stir together rolled oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet, scraping the bottom of the bowl a few times to make sure everything is incorporated. Fold in the cranberries and walnuts to distribute.
- Use a cookie scoop or spoon to dole out the dough, spaced out, on the parchment paper. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes; the cookies should be golden at the edges and no longer glossy on top.
- Transfer cookies to a rack to fully cool. Store in a sealed container at room temperature. Cookies keep for at least 3 days.
