Cranberry Almond Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

3/4 cup flour

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 and 1/4 cup dried cranberries

1 cup sliced almonds, toasted

1/4 cup sliced almonds, crushed

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine

1 and 1/4 cups brown sugar

1 large egg

1 and 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1 and 1/2 tsp. milk

1 tsp. orange zest

1 and 1/2 tsp. orange juice

Directions:

Begin by toasting your sliced almonds. Evenly spread out 1 cup of almonds onto a frying pan, and place on the stovetop over medium-heat for 7-10 minutes. Be sure to stir the nuts around constantly and keep a close eye on them so that they do not burn. If you do happen to burn the nuts then throw them out and start over. Don't use the burnt ones anyway because they will ruin your cookie with a bitter taste! 

Place the other 1/4 cup of sliced almonds in a plastic bag and crush using your hands or a heavy object. Put in a small dish and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl whisk together the oats, graham cracker crumbs, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, cranberries, and toasted almonds. Set aside.

In a separate, large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar with a mixer. Add in the egg, vanilla and almond extracts, milk, orange zest and juice and mix until well combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a rubber spatula. Shape the dough into balls and roll the tops in the crushed almonds before placing on the prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and allow the cookies to cool for 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

*Recipe adapted from Oatmeal CookieBlog