Oatmeal Cookies

• 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cider or white vinegar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats, quick cooking or old-fashioned
• 1 cup golden raisins, optional; I used craisans
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets, light-colored preferred.
2. Beat together the butter, shortening, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and vinegar until fairly smooth; a few tiny bits of butter may still show.
3. Beat in the egg, again beating until smooth.
4. Add the baking soda and flour, beating until well incorporated.
5. Add the oats (and raisins or craisins), stirring to combine.
6. Drop the dough in 1 1/4" balls onto the prepared baking sheets; a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here. If you're measuring, this is about 2 level tablespoons (using a tablespoon measure, not a dinner spoon). Space the cookies 2" apart; they'll spread.
7. Bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes, reversing the pans halfway through (top rack to bottom, bottom to top). For softer cookies, bake the lesser amount of time; for crunchier, the longer amount. At 12 minutes, especially if you're baking on a dark pan without parchment, a few of the cookies on the edge should just barely be showing a pale brown around their edges. At 14 minutes, they should be starting to color all over.
8. Remove the cookies from the oven, and let them cool right on the pan.
9. Yield: 20 cookies.
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