lace cookies

Recently I found a post about lace cookies with a recipe which can best be described thus: "A pain in the ass, but they look deceptively easy."

Sigh. I'm a big fan of baking and cooking, but I've never really tried baking cookies before (I know, right?) and I'm so dying to try it one day. For now, I'm writing this recipe from the Fannie Farmer Cookbook for safekeeping. It has added commentary and notes, if you're interested, since the book isn't so elaborate and it might end up in a disaster. :D

1 1/2 cups uncooked oatmeal
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup melted butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (You can add more if you want, but be careful not to add too much. Too much vanilla is icky in my opinion.)

1) Preheat your oven. 350°F.

2) Then melt the butter first for convenience.

3) Mix the oatmeal, brown sugar, flour, and the salt in a medium to large mixing bowl that is NOT wood because it gets sticky, seriously. Add the melted butter and mix. Then add the egg, and the vanilla, then mix. Voila, the cookie batter!

4) Use a cookie sheet and put parchment paper on it. Do not use an ungreased cookie sheet. You want decently-shaped lace cookies, not sad, broken cookies! :(

5) Spoon the batter onto the cookie sheet by the half teaspoon, about two inches apart (Disclaimer: do not use those jiggly rulers if you do not know how to measure, trust me.)
a) You would get approximately eight to nine cookies on a single sheet. That enough? Oh and, FYI, it's convenient to bake lace cookies one sheet at a time, especially if you're a beginner.

Wait for five minutes. Yes, five minutes. Then take them out, set the cookie sheet on top of the stove, and ignore it for three to four minutes. After that, remove them with a metal spatula (mental note: do not use a plastic spatula because plastic isn't sharp enough to get under the edge and remove the cookie without breaking it). You have to be extremely careful because the cookies haven't entirely set yet, and they're delicate. No to sad cookies! D:

6) Put them on the cooling racks and allow them to stiffen for a while.

For storing:
They're best stored in layers with either parchment or wax paper in between. That should keep them from sticking to each other, you really don't want that.

I found this photo on the internet, so come take a look if you haven't had a lace cookie before. You can add almonds and honey too, whatever you want. :D

Anybody interested enough to try it out? Let me know if you are, and tell me how they taste. Have fun with it. \o/!