I always pay attention when King Arthur Flour announces their recipe of the year. It’s always a winner–they are an admirable bunch of bakers! This easy cookie recipe is delicious and simple, and the perfect after-school or dinner snack. The little bit of oats helps give the cookies some yummy texture, and I’m also happy to report that chilling it doesn’t improve the shape that much, so if you’re like me and hate chilling dough because you want the cookies fast, you can just pop them in the oven without feeling bad.

Chocolate Chip Oat Cookies

1 c. (16 T.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 c. light brown sugar, packed
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
1 T. vanilla extract
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. kosher salt or 3/4 t. regular table salt
3 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line several cookie sheets with parchment paper, or lightly grease with non-stick vegetable oil spray.

Beat together the butter and sugars until smooth. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla one at a time, beating well after each.

Whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and add to the butter mixture in the bowl. Mix until everything is thoroughly incorporated. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and mix briefly, then stir in the chocolate chips.

Decide what size cookies you want to make. A muffin scoop (1/4 cup) will make 20 large, palm-sized cookies. A tablespoon cookie scoop (4 teaspoons) will make 50 medium (2 3/4″ to 3″) cookies; and a teaspoon cookie scoop (2 teaspoons) will make 100 small (2 1/2″) cookies.

Scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 1/2″ to 2″ between cookies, and bake the cookies for 12 to 17 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown, with slightly darker edges. Their middles may still look a tiny bit shiny; that’s OK, they’ll continue to bake as they cool on the pan. Remove the cookies from the oven, and as soon as they’re set enough to handle, transfer them to racks to cool.

Yield: 20 to 100 cookies, depending on size.