Mulberry Muscovado Oatmeal Cookies

I am of the opinion that oatmeal cookies have a certain wholesome and comforting quality. This is especially so for my Mulberry Muscovado Oatmeal Cookies. The combination of oats, flour, butter, muscovado, salt, vanilla, eggs, and mulberries makes these cookies amazingly tasty with a crisp outer crust, a soft and chewy inner crumb, and a complex caramel flavour profile. These cookies are sweetened exclusively with a mixture of light and dark muscovado sugars — they do not contain any white sugar. The muscovado sugars impart depth and, in combination with the butter, beautiful butterscotch-like flavour notes to these cookies.  These cookies are sweet, but not too sweet. Moreover, the sweetness is offset by the salt crystals interspersed in the cookie. The nuttiness of oats and the amazing flavour notes from the vanilla extract are the perfect complement to the other ingredients. As for the dried mulberries, these provide not only little nuggets of caramelised deliciousness but they are also rich in nutrients and are reputed to have potential health benefits. Mulberries contain iron, potassium, and vitamins E and K. (Fresh mulberries are also high in vitamin C.) Mulberries contain plant compounds that are said to be beneficial to health. They are reputed to reduce cholesterol, blood sugar levels, and oxidative stress (with the potential of lowering cancer risk).

For these cookies, I have adopted David Lebovitz’ technique of tapping the cookies gently while still warm to flatten them.

If you are a fan of cookies, you should definitely try these.

Mulberry Muscovado Oatmeal Cookies

Makes about 24 cookies

Ingredients

227 g unsalted butter, softened

150 g light muscovado

50 g dark muscovado

1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs, at room temperature

200 g rolled oats

280 g all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

100 g dried mulberries

Method

Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter, salt, and sugars. Add the vanilla extract. Mix well. Add the eggs, one at a time. Mix well.

Add the oats, flour, and baking powder. Mix gently at low speed.

Add the mulberries. Mix gently.

Using an ice cream scoop or 2 tablespoons, scoop out balls of dough 5-cm apart onto the prepared baking sheets.

Bake one baking sheet at a time at 180°C for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, reposition the baking sheet, front-to-back. With a wooden spatula, gently tap the tops of the cookies to flatten them a little. Then, bake for a further 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven. Cool on a rack.

Repeat with the second baking sheet.

When completely cooled, store in an airtight container at room temperature for about five days.