1/2cupunsalted buttersoftened (armpit, if necessary)
1/2cupgranulated sugar
1/2cupfirmly packed brown sugar
1teaspoonvanilla extract
1egg
1cupall-purpose flouryou can substitute 1/2 cup with White Whole Wheat, if you like
1teaspoonground cinnamon
1/2teaspoonbaking powder
1/2teaspoonbaking soda
1/4teaspoonsalt
1cupquick-cooking rolled oatssee Tip 1 below*
1cupsraisinssoaked, see Tip 2 below**
1/2cuprawunsalted sunflower seeds
2Tablespoongranulated sugaroptional
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375°F with two racks dividing the oven into thirds. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl place the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Break the egg into a small bowl and add it into the large bowl. This way, any stray bits of shell can be easily removed from the small bowl, avoiding "crunchy" cookies. With the mixer on medium speed, beat until the mixture is smooth and well blended.
With the mixer off, add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on medium speed, beat until all the ingredients are well combined. Turn the mixer off.
Drain the raisins and pat them dry on a paper towel. Add the oats, the raisins, and the sunflower seeds to the dough. Beat just until all the ingredients are combined.
Put the 2 Tbsp sugar in a bowl, if you'd like to dip the cookies in it before baking. This gives a sparkly, slightly crunchy finish to the cookies.
Scoop out the dough. (My daughter chose the Tablespoon scoop for dainty cookies. My son chose the muffin scoop for monster cookies. I divided the dough in half and let them each fill a cookie sheet.) If you'd like to, dip the cookies in the sugar. Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet, sugar side up.
Using a light tapping motion to make a flat circle, about 1/2 inch thick for monster cookies, thinner for dainty ones.
The dough will spread, so leave space between the cookies, more for the monsters than the dainties.
Using hot pads, carefully open the oven door and place the baking sheets in the preheated oven. (This is a job for older children or a parent.) Bake until the cookies are very light golden brown, about 10 minutes.
Using pot holders, remove the baking sheets from the oven. Set each on a rack to cool. When the cookies are cooled, remove them to a cooling rack with a spatula.
Notes
When you're baking with raisins, the first thing you should do is set the specified amount of raisins in a bowl and cover it with warm (preferably filtered) water. Allow the raisins to soak while you do the rest of the dough preparation (15 minutes, up to an hour). The raisins will plump up wonderfully. Drain them and set them on a paper towel to dry off before adding them to the dough. When they're baking, they will have some excess moisture to give up in the heat and still be juicy and delicious in the finished cookie.TIP #1:If you don't have quick-cooking oats on hand, you can make them easily. Place a cup of regular rolled oats in a food processor and pulse it a few times.TIP #2:One of the most common items that kids complain about in cookies is raisins. I have a theory about this. It's the fault of dry raisins. In the heat of the oven, they have no choice but to become hard and black. If you've ever had a burned raisin in a cookie, you'll know what I'm talking about. They're nasty. But they don't have to be.