Chef notes

Oatmeal cookies are a nostalgic treat for many. Maybe you grew up with a grandma who loved to sneak a handful of raisins into chewy oatmeal cookie dough. Or perhaps you used to bake thin and crispy oatmeal lace cookies during the holidays. These bite-sized drop cookies are likely to transport you back to your childhood. And good news — these cookies are packed with good-for-you ingredients like rolled oats, sliced almonds and coconut flakes. Even better news — they’re gluten-free!

Sometimes oatmeal cookies have supplementary ingredients mixed into the dough, like chocolate chips or dried fruit, but the number one ingredient is always rolled oats. In this recipe, we’ve replaced some of those oats with other tasty ingredients including nutty almonds and sweet bits of coconut. The coconut adds some chewy texture to the crispy cookies, while almonds add some crunch.

Once the dough is ready, plop spoonfuls of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets and use the tines of a fork to flatten the cookies into thin rounds. As the cookies bake, the aromas of the nutty coconut and almonds, as well as the zesty lemon extract, will fill your kitchen with the most delectable scent. Those few unique ingredients really make these cookies special. Anyone lucky enough to taste one of these confections will be shocked when you tell them just how healthy they are.

Ingredients

1 large egg
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2/3 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon lemon extract

2/3 cup uncooked rolled oats
2 tablespoons sliced almonds, crushed
3½ tablespoons dried coconut flakes, crushed
1/3 teaspoon kosher salt

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Preparation

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk the egg until light. Slowly add the sugar, whisking constantly, until well combined. Add the melted butter, vanilla extract and lemon extract, and whisk to combine. Add the oats, almonds, coconut and salt, and stir until well-combined.

Using a teaspoon measure, drop mounds of the cookie mixture onto parchment-lined sheet pans, spacing 1½ inches apart.

Using a fork dipped in cold water, use the tines to spread the mixture into a circular shape.

Bake until delicately browned around the edges, about 12 minutes.

Let sit for 10 minutes before carefully transferring the cookies to a cooling rack; cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Adapted from the "Boston Cooking-School Cook Book" by Fannie Merritt Farmer. Little Brown and Company, 1931.