I'm surprised no one posted Ann T's recipe. It's wonderful. At the request of my DSIL, I add chocolate chips now, so he gets to eat both of his favorite cookies at the same time. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Oatmeal - Best Oatmeal Cookies ============================== 1 Cup butter (2 sticks) 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1 egg 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 2/3 cup flour 3/4 Teaspoon baking soda 1/8 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon dash nutmeg 1 1/2 cups rolled oats 1 cup golden raisins 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips Optional: cranberries, nuts, or whatever appeals to you. Preheat oven to 350° Cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat until smooth. Add vanilla Combine flour, soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir into butter mixture. Add rolled oats. Gently mix in raisins/chocolate chips, etc. Roll into small balls (golf ball size) and flatten with glass dipped in sugar. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until bottoms are golden. Cookie should not get brown. Cool on wire rack.

This recipe is from King Arthur flour and it's the only one I use now. Blueberry Muffins 6 tablespoons butter 3/4 cup sugar 2 eggs 2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup milk 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 1/2 to 2 cups blueberries, either fresh or frozen, wild Maine berries preferred 1 tablespoon sugar mixed with 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional) Preheat your oven to 375°F. Grease 12 muffin cups generously; a vegetable oil pan spray works well. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until they're light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in the milk and vanilla. mixing only until smooth. Quickly stir in the berries. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 to almost full, using all of the batter. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar. Bake the muffins for 30 minutes, until they're light golden brown, remove them from the oven, and place the pan on a rack to cool for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, run a knife around the edge of one muffin, and try to lift it out of the pan. (These muffins are very tender, and if they don't cool long enough, they'll crumble when you try to remove them from the pan.) If the muffin lifts out of the pan without crumbling, remove all of the muffins and cool them completely on a wire rack. If the muffin sticks or the top peels off, allow them to cool an additional 10 minutes, then try again. Yield: 12 muffins

Kim, you really should explore the world of seafood, as it is ideal for fast meal prep. The whole secret with cooking shrimp, scallops, and other shellfish is to make sure you don't overcook it. But the particular critter usually gives you a clue. Shrimp turns pink when it's done. Scallops turn opaque. Clams and oysters curl at the edges. The hard ones are calamari and abalone. But even they give you clues. To clean shrimp you need to remove the shells and the mud vein that runs down the back. This can be done before or after cooking, depending on recipes. Hint: Shrimp cooked in their shells are more flavorful. There are special tools for prepping shrimp. But a regular table fork works just as well. Stick one tine into the shell from the head end, pointing into the mud vein. Then push the shrimp onto the tine. The shell and vein will pop right off. If you look at the Nuts & Bolts thread I've posted a simple recipe for Shrimp & Sausage Carbonade that you might want to try. Finned fishes, too, can broaden your choices. Fish does not require a long cooking time in any recipe (the rule of thumb is to cook ten minutes for each inch of thickness). Virtually any cooking method---from poaching to deep fying, baking to barbecuing---can be used for fish cookery.

I love twice baked potatoes, so I'll be saving this entire thread! LOL Her's a favorite of ours. We often have them as a meal, served with just a salad or side of vegetables. Andouille and White Cheddar Over-Stuffed Baked Potatoes Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2000 8 large baking potatoes, like Russets Drizzle olive oil Salt Freshly ground black pepper 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 cups thinly sliced onions 1/2 pound andouille sausage, ground 8 tablespoons butter 1 to 1 1/2 cups cream fraiche 1/2 pound white cheddar, grated 1/4 cup chopped chives 1/4 cup chopped parsley Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Season the potatoes with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and bake until tender, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and cool. In a saute pan, over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until caramelized, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool. Meanwhile, in a saute pan, over medium heat, add the 1 tablespoon of oil. When the oil is hot, brown the sausage, about 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the sausage and drain on paper towels. Set aside. Using a sharp knife, remove the top 1/4 of each potato. Using a spoon, remove the flesh from each potato, leaving about 1/4-inch border on each potato. Set the hollowed potato shells, aside. In a mixing bowl, combine the potato flesh, butter, and cream fraiche. Season with salt and pepper. Using a hand masher, mash until smooth. Add half of the cheese, onions, sausage, chives, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well. Fill each hollow potato with the potato/sausage mixture. Top each potato with the remaining cheese. Place on a baking sheet and bake until the potatoes are warm and the cheese melts. Remove from the oven and serve. Linda