What’s a double oatmeal cookie you ask? These cookies are made with oat flour and old-fashioned rolled oats and no white flour. Pastry chef Alice Medrich has mastered baking with non-wheat flours. Her recipes are my go-to for a wheat-free treat. The oat flour provides texture and flavor, without it tasting like just another gluten-free cookie. Xanthan gum is a stabilizer and a necessary addition to your pantry if you’re regularly baking gluten-free goodies. It adds volume, acts as a binder and a thickener. Both oat flour and xanthan gum are available at specialty markets, including Whole Foods.

Let’s talk about measurements for baking. Volume and weight are not always equal, especially for flours.  A cup of flour can vary in weight up to 50%, depending on how it is measured. Many professional bakers use scales to measure quantity of dry ingredients. In addition to making baking easier, it’s much more accurate.  A digital scale is an important kitchen tool. When I worked for Weight Watchers many years ago, I purchased one of their scales, and this is the scale I still use. I bet they would laugh if they knew I was using my scale for baking 🙂

• 1 1/4 cups (125 grams) oat flour
• 2 cups (190 grams) rolled oats
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1/2 pound (2 sticks/225 grams) unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup (150 grams) packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon  freshly grated (or ground) nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
•  1 cup (115 grams) coarsely chopped or broken walnut pieces (optional)
• 1 cup (140 grams) raisins

Combine the oat flour, rolled oats, salt, baking soda and xanthan gum in a medium bowl and whisk until combined. In a large bowl, mix the butter, sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs. Stir in the oat mixture and mix the batter briskly with a spatula for about 1 minute to activate the binding power of the xanthan gum. The more you mix the batter, the chewier the cookies will be. Stir in the nuts and raisins. Let the dough stand for at least one hour or cover and refrigerate overnight.

Position the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Scoop 2 tablespoons of the dough per cookie and place 2 inches apart on the lined (with a silpat) or greased baking sheets. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes, until the cookies are deep golden brown. Rotate the sheets from top to bottom and from front to back halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking. For lined pans, set the pans or just the liner on racks to cool. Cool the cookies completely before stacking or storing. They may be kept in a airtight container for several days. The cookies are delicious, so they may not last that long!

Source: Flavor Flours