There is no dessert more basic than cookies, and because I feel especially basic this week, it was only fitting to bake the circle-shaped goodies. Playing with and eating cookie dough was probably a childhood pastime for many and 15 years later, I am still in the kitchen licking my fingers.

Begin by preheating your oven to 325 F. While the oven heats up, place one stick of butter in the microwave for 30 seconds so it softens and becomes easier to mix. In a large bowl, mix together the butter, one cup of brown sugar and half a cup of white sugar until the mixture is smooth. Add two eggs, one at a time. Next, add two teaspoons of vanilla extract for extra flavor. Combine 1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and one teaspoon of salt and stir into the butter mixture until completely blended. Depending on how salty you like your cookies, you can add in a pinch of salt instead of the full teaspoon. Then add three cups of quick oats and one cup of semisweet chocolate chips to the mixture. I prefer Quaker Oats and Ghirardelli chocolate chips, but feel free to use white chocolate or dark chocolate chips for variety. Stir the batter until the chocolate chips are evenly distributed, then place spoonfuls of the dough onto an ungreased baking sheet and place it in the oven. Do not forget to taste the dough first, though!

Bake for 12 minutes and then let cool for five minutes before eating. Once cool, enjoy and impress your mom or roommates with your newfound baking skills and tremendously tasty treats.

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups quick oats

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 F.

2. Mix butter and sugars in a bowl. Add eggs and vanilla extract.

3. Combine flour, baking soda and salt. Blend into mixture and add quick oats and chocolate chips.

4. Drop spoonfuls of batter onto ungreased baking sheet.

5. Bake for 12 minutes and let cool.