Oatmeal Date Smash Cookies

I am a big fan of King Arthur Baking, and have even taken a couple of classes from them at their location in Skagit Valley. They came up with a list of fall bakes and I noted down quite a few of those recipes! One was this oatmeal date cookie, and I hadn’t baked with dates in a while. I wasn’t familiar with “smash” cookies, but you partially bake them and then smash them down with a spatula and then finish baking.

While I didn’t change the ingredients in these cookies, I did change the size of the cookies. The original recipe called for making the cookies 80 grams, and the entire recipe only made 8 cookies. Those would be really huge cookies! I knew I wanted to make more regular sized cookies, so I made the cookies 25 grams, which yielded 28 cookies. 

Changing the size also impacted the baking time, which initially was to bake for 15 minutes, then smash the cookies, then return them to a turned-off oven for 5 minutes. Well that works for 8 cookies, but not in my case. I kept the oven on the entire time, baked for 8-9 minutes, smashed them, then baked for a couple more minutes, which made for lovely golden cookies. The combination of oats and dates is perfect for this time of year, when the weather starts to turn (and all you want to do is stay home and bake).

Oatmeal Date Smash Cookies
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
3/4 cup coarsely chopped dates

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add the egg and stir to combine. With the mixer running on low, add the flour mixture and stir until the flour almost disappears. Stir in the dates, making sure the dough comes together.  

Shape the cookies: divide the dough into balls, each weighing about 25 grams. Place on a parchment-lined tray. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least several hours.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats. 

Place the chilled dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving room between each cookie. I found that placing 10 cookies on each sheet allowed for plenty of room. 

Bake for 9 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and smash/flatten the cookies with a spatula. Return the cookies to the oven and bake for an additional 2-3 minutes, until golden. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from King Arthur Baking