Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped pecans, optional
• 1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut, optional
• 3 cups rolled oats

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 2 large cookie sheets, or set them up with silicone mats or parchment paper.
2. Put the sticks of butter into a thick-bottomed, medium sized stainless steel saucepan, or use another pan with a pale, reflective inside so you can actually see the color change. Set it over medium heat and let the butter melt, whisking as you go so it melts evenly.
3. Keep cooking the butter. It will foam first, and then that foam will start to settle down. Whisk often so you can peek underneath the bubbles.
4. Once you see browned bits collecting on the bottom and the butter smells nutty, stay close. This is the tiny window where browned butter can decide to become burnt butter, which is not the goal.
5. As soon as those browned bits start showing up, take the pan off the heat. Scrape the melted butter, browned bits and all, into a glass or metal bowl, and let it cool slightly while you get the rest ready.
6. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cinnamon together really well.
7. Transfer the browned butter, including all those browned bits, to the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the brown and white sugar, then beat on medium-high until the mixture is smooth, about 3 minutes.
8. Add the eggs and vanilla, and beat again on medium speed for 3 more minutes, until the mixture looks smooth and lighter.
9. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir the flour mixture into the batter.
10. Stir in 2 tablespoons of water. If you’re using jumbo eggs instead of large eggs, you probably won’t need that much extra liquid.
11. Mix in the chocolate chips, plus the pecans and shredded coconut if you’re using them. Stir in the rolled oats. At this stage, you can make the dough up to 1 1/2 days ahead and keep it in the refrigerator.
12. Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the lined cookie sheets, leaving about 2" of space between each one so the cookies have room to spread a little as they bake.
13. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes, until the edges are just browned and the centers are still soft. They’ll set as they cool. If you want a crisper cookie, bake them for 12 to 14 minutes, but 10 minutes gives you the chewier version.
14. Remove the cookies from the oven and leave them on the hot baking sheet for 2 or 3 minutes. Then use a metal spatula to gently move the still-warm cookies to a wire rack. They’ll stay soft until they’re fully cool. Once completely cooled, store them in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days.