This Caramel Apple Oatmeal Cookie Recipe is what Fall Dreams are Made Of

It's time once again for our semi-regular feature, The Hungry Games!  For this week's post, I baked up five different recipes for Apple Oatmeal cookies, and made them battle for supremacy.  I keep wanting to go all Highlander on you guys and declare "There can be only one!" but that's mixing references, so I'll try to contain myself.

This recipe, one of my own devising, ended up being the winner.  But it was a very close race, with this recipe from Joy the Baker coming in a very close second.  It was a blind taste test, so I know people weren't voting for me because I was standing there.  But I really think it could have gone either way.  Joy's cookies were good.  

The Winning Apple Oatmeal Cookie Recipe:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups brown sugar, packed
• 2 eggs
• 2 t baking powder
• 1 t salt
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/4 t nutmeg
• 1 t vanilla
• 2 cups oats
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup fresh apples, peeled and diced
• 1/2 cup dried apples, cut into small bits

Start by mixing together softened butter and brown sugar.

How to Soften Butter Quickly:

• If you need to soften butter quickly and don't want to risk the microwave, cut it into small chunks like the picture above.  It'll be softened in a fraction of the time it would take to let a whole stick come to room temperature.

Add eggs and beat.  Add vanilla, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix.  

Add oats and flour and mix.  If you really want to gild the lily, throw in some of the Kraft caramel bits available during the fall.  YUM.  Some chopped walnuts would also work really well in this recipe, but since I was trying to reach as many taste-testers as possible, I didn't include any nuts.

Add the apples and caramel bits last, mixing just until incorporated in the batter.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and bake cookies on a parchment sheet.  Well, I doubt the parchment is necessary with this recipe, but it sure does make cleanup easier.  

Bake 13-15 minutes and let cool.  

That is, if you can possibly make yourself wait until the cookies are cool to gobble them up.

It's the perfect fall cookie recipe.  Soft, spiced, and full of apple flavor.  It's like eating an utterly delicious apple crisp, except I don't need a bowl.