Mother's Oatmeal Crispies

My mother frequently had one or more rolls of this basic oatmeal "slice 'n bake" cookie dough in the freezer so that when company came, she could have home-baked cookies ready in minutes. Delicious with a bowl of ice cream!

Ingredients

• 1 cup margarine OR shortening
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans)

Instructions

1. Cream margarine, brown and white sugars, eggs and vanilla extract. Stir in dry ingredients and nuts until well mixed.
2. Form dough into long rolls, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap rolls in waxed paper or plastic wrap. Refrigerate or freeze until firm. (If freezing, make sure they are well wrapped).
3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Slice dough 1/4-inch thick, arrange on baking sheets, leaving room for cookies to spread slightly.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.

Notes

Mother taught us NOT to eat the cookie dough because of the raw eggs. But, it was not beyond my brothers to sneak down to the freezer and cut off a slice or two of dough from the roll(s) mother had "hidden". Apparently, the dough was something they found too tempting to resist, because I can remember Mother becoming very frustrated when she'd go down to the freezer to retrieve the "hidden" roll, only to find that all that remained was a pathetically small chunk of dough in a wad of waxed paper!

Attribution

Vintage recipe from my mother, Effie R; written and shared by LuAnn B., a.k.a. "Tofu Queen."