Triple Chocolate-Double Espresso Oatmeal Cookies

Needless to say, the Covid-19 world combined with the local and national unrest of the past 10 days has been pretty stressful.  Baking helps me when I'm stressed--probably something about exerting control on a small part of the world around me--so I made cookies tonight.  Now my house smells super good: rich chocolate and coffee.  Oh, and I have cookies.   

The first time I tried the Quaker Oats double-chocolate oatmeal cookie recipe I made only two changes:

1. I used the new Nestle Espresso chips (they're more like mocha, actually) for the 1 cup that is stirred in at the end.
2. I made them using the recipe's official "Bar Cookies" variation instead of individual cookies.
   
   Note: I used old fashioned oats,  margarine, and dark brown sugar.   

The bars were good, but kind of flaky/crumbly.  I was a fan and the folk's seemed to like them, too.  So obviously when I made them a second time I did a bunch of different things!

What did I do?  Well, I...

• Made them as cookies, not bars
• Swapped some flour out for cocoa powder
• Added coffee extract
• Added extra mini chocolate chips stirred in
• Used Scottish oatmeal 

Recipe Makes: 44-48 cookies (Depending on how much dough you sneak and how generous your hand is with the heaping-Tablespoon-fulls.  I got 46. )

Ingredients:

• 1 cup regular semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 1/4 cups minus 3 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 3 teaspoons cocoa powder
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• scant 1/4 tsp. salt 
• 2 sticks margarine (or butter), softened (I used margarine this time)
• 3/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar (I used dark brown sugar, 'cause that was what was open)
• 1 egg 
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract (I used my baker's vanilla on this one, rather than the pure vanilla or double-strength.  There are other forward flavors in there, the vanilla is just to add that warm mellow to it.)
• 1/2 tsp. coffee extract (I used Watkins, because I live in Minnesota and we love our Watkins spices and extracts up here!)
• 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips 
• 1 cup Nestle Toll-house Espresso Morsels*
• 2 cups oats uncooked (I used Bob's Red Mill Scottish Oatmeal, but the original called for either quick-cook or old-fashioned)

*If you don't have these, just swap in regular sized chips that you would like (milk, semi-sweet, dark, white...they'd probably all be pretty good)

Directions: 

1. Heat oven to 350°F. 
2. Melt 1 cup chocolate chips.  I did this in the microwave in 45 second intervals on 3 power, but you could definitely do it on the stove.  Set aside to cool while doing the rest of the steps.   
3. In medium bowl, stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.   
4. In large bowl, cream together margarine and brown sugar with electric mixer. 
5. Blend in melted chocolate, egg, coffee extract, and vanilla. 
6. Gradually add flour mixture and mix until well combined. 
7. Stir in oats, mini chocolate chips, and espresso chips. 
8. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. 
9. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until set. 
10. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheet and then remove to cool. 
11. Store tightly covered.