Chocolate-Oatmeal-Walnut Cookies

My best friend gave me the Tartine cookbook for Christmas last year. To repay his generosity, I made him the Chocolate-Oatmeal-Walnut Cookies. I made a few modifications, like toasting the walnuts, and chilling the dough overnight to hydrate the oats. They are moist, chewy, and absolutely scrumptious!! Adapted from Tartine.

Chocolate-Oatmeal-Walnut Cookies
Makes 36 to 42 cookies

1/2 cup walnuts
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate (chopped roughly)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup rolled oats
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 large egg, room temperature
1 tablespoon whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat the oven to 350F. Toast walnuts 5 to 7 minutes until fragrant. Coarsely chop and set aside.

Chop chocolate into 1/2 inches and place in the freezer until ready to use.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and oats. Set aside.

In a large bowl of an electric mixer with speed set to high, beat the butter until it is creamy. Add the sugar, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the molasses, then beat in the egg about 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the milk, salt, and vanilla, until thoroughly combined. Set the mixer speed to low. Gradually add the flour mixture, until just incorporated. Stir in the chocolate and walnuts. Chill 4 hours or overnight to hydrate the oats and make dough more firm.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Use a medium cookie scoop (#50), drop balls of dough onto prepared sheets, spacing about 2 1/2 inches apart. Flatten cookies to 1/4 to 1/3 inch. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are brown but centers are pale. Cool 1 to 2 minutes on pan. Remove cookies, still on parchment, to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store cookies in an airtight container, layered between wax paper, at room temperature, for up to 1 week.

Baker’s Note: The original recipe does not call for chilling. However, I found the dough too soft to work with and find chilling oatmeal cookies gives them a moist, chewy texture.