I’m in a bread rut.

My husband has been taking sandwiches to work for lunch. I have poached eggs and a slice of toast each morning for breakfast. Sometimes he has a sandwich at home for lunch and still takes one to work for dinner. For the last few months I have averaged one loaf of 100% whole wheat bread per week. Every week. I can mix up the biga and soaker without consulting the recipe. Hell, I can mix up the final dough without consulting the recipe. To the gram.

It’s good bread! We both really like it. It’s soft for sandwiches, but still hearty, and makes a nice piece of toast. But I was getting a little bored. So I went back to the beginning. At least, the beginning of The Bread Baker’s Apprentice. The recipes are listed alphabetically, and “anadama bread” was the first one. The traditional New England bread is made with cornmeal and molasses and I had never made it before.

Unlike most direct-dough method versions, Peter Reinhart adds an overnight soak for the cornmeal to coax out the full flavor of the starchy grain. Mmm, cornmeal mush.

Not exciting.

After a little rest overnight, the cornmeal mixture is added to flour, yeast, and water for a quick sponge. An hour takes it from blech to bubbling.

Salt, molasses, and shortening round out the dough with the addition of the remaining flour. A little kneading, rising, and proofing, and we’ve got ourselves a loaf of bread!

The original recipe makes two loaves and I am low on freezer space, so I halved it. Reinhart recommends baking 24 ounces of dough in a 9-by-5 inch loaf pan, but despite careful attempts NOT to over-proof this loaf, it still got a bit wobbly on the top by the time it crowned the pan. I think next time I will try making it in an 8.5-by-4.5 inch pan and see if it’s taller.

The husband approved of it. It was a nice change (I mixed up another loaf of wheat bread yesterday) and still had some nice flavor and depth. The bread is quite fluffy and makes great toast! The cornmeal gives it a nice warm color, but the flavor is subtle and the corn adds sweetness more than a distinct taste. My only complaint was that the interior was so soft it made it difficult to spread refrigerated peanut butter on it without tearing. Yep, I am complaining that the sandwich bread is too soft and pillowy. Wah wah wah.

Anadama Bread

Adapted from Peter Reinhart’s Bread Baker’s Apprentice
Makes 1 loaf

The moisture content of molasses can vary widely, so don’t be worried if you need to add more flour to obtain a supple and tacky, not sticky, dough.

Ingredients:
Soaker
1/2 cup (3 ounces) coarse cornmeal
1/2 cup (4 ounces) water, room temperature

Dough
2 1/4 cups (10.1 ounces) unbleached bread flour
1 teaspoon (0.11 ounce) instant yeast
1/2 cup (4 ounces) water, 90-100F
3/4 teaspoon (.19 ounce) salt
3 tablespoons (2 ounces) molasses
1 tablespoon (0.5 ounce) shortening or unsalted butter, room temperature

Directions:
1.) (The night before) Mix the cornmeal and the water for the soaker in a small bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit overnight at room temperature.

2.) The next day, combine the soaker, 1 cup flour, yeast, and water in a mixing bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour or until it begins to bubble.

3.) Add the remaining flour, salt, molasses, and shortening or butter to the sponge. Mix on low speed with the paddle attachment (or stir) until the dough forms a ball. Add water if needed to make a soft, sticky mass.

4.) Switch to the dough hook or turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead by hand (about 10 minutes) or with the dough hook (6-8 minutes), adding flour as needed to form a dough that is tacky but not sticky which is “supple and pliable.”

5.) Form the dough into a ball and place in a lightly-oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for about 90 minutes or until doubled in size.

6.) When dough has doubled, turn it onto a lightly-floured surface and shape into a loaf. Place in a lightly-oiled loaf pan (recipe says 9×5, but I am going to try a smaller one next time), mist the top with spray oil, and loosely cover with plastic wrap. Allow the loaf to proof at room temperature 60 to 90 minutes until the loaf has fully crested the top of the pan.

7.) Preheat the oven to 350F with the oven rack in the middle. Remove the plastic wrap from the bread, mist the top of the loaf with water and dust with cornmeal.

8.) Bake at 350F for 20 minutes, then rotate the pan 180 degrees and continue baking for 20-30 minutes. Loaf should be golden brown on all sides, register 185-190F in the center, and sound hollow when thumped on the bottom. Remove from pan immediately and cool on a racj at least one hour before slicing or serving.

Submitted to YeastSpotting.

Nothing says “weekend” like what we call fancy breakfast. My husband has been work-work-working, so I decided to kick off the weekend early with a Friday morning pancake brunch! It got moved back to brunch since some people are really good sleepers and weren’t up very early.

It was only a matter of time before I made these particular pancakes as the recipe was stalking me. The original recipe was on Orangette, then I saw it linked several places, and the last straw came when Bridget made them with a more reasonable amount of butter and still deemed them good.

And she is right.

The oatmeal soaks overnight to soften. The recipe calls for buttermilk but, as usual, I don’t have any. Instead I used a combination of milk and vinegar, plus some plain yogurt. In retrospect, sour cream might have been nice, too. My pancakes were still delicious, so don’t let a lack of buttermilk stop you. The oatmeal gives the pancakes some added sweetness and a bit of texture, but the pancakes are still light and tender. The oatmeal flavor is subtle, so if you don’t like rolled oats as oatmeal, these are still worth a try.

They’re really good, just go make them.

Serve with a splash of maple syrup (thanks, Keach!) and enjoy the morning.

My photos don’t do this breakfast justice as I was rushing. If I hadn’t moved quickly, my husband was going to eat my share!

As is my habit, I halved the recipe for the two of us. The original says it yields 12 pancakes, but I got 12 pancakes with half as much batter following her instructions to use a “scant 1/4 cup” per pancake. Mine were about 4 inches across and I think I would have had trouble flipping anything wider.

Oatmeal Pancakes

Adapted from Orangette with suggestions from Crumbly Cookie
Scaled to 2 servings

Ingredients:
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup buttermilk (or milk+vinegar left to sit for 5 minutes, or plain yogurt)
1/4 cup (1.2 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2-3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
vegetable oil for the pan

Directions:
1.) (the night before) Combine oats and buttermilk in a mixing bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

2.) Whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add egg and butter to oatmeal mixture. Fold the flour mixture into the oats.

3.) Heat a cast iron or non-stick skillet over medium heat. Spray or pour in a slick of vegetable oil. Pour batter in scant 1/4 cupfuls onto the pan. The thick batter settles slowly, so give each pancake some room to spread. Cook 1-2 minutes per side until edges start to look dry and the bottom is golden brown. Flip and cook 1-2 more minutes until cooked through.

4.) Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree oven until ready to serve.

Recipes for kale chips are everywhere. Turn a weird leafy green into a salty, crunchy, snack food! Amaaaaazing!

The only type of kale I had eaten before was the flat lacinato kale (also called dinosaur or black kale), but this week in our CSA we got some gorgeous curly red monarch kale.

Its leaves range from light green to deep purple with purple stems. It’s pretty!

After I removed the tough stems, I chopped the kale up and tossed it in a large bowl with a glug of olive oil and a dash of vinegar. Before tossing, the oil pooled in the bottom of the bowl.

After tossing, the kale was evenly coated with oil. Then I spread it in a single layer on a large baking sheet and sprinkled it with kosher salt.

A little over 10 minutes later (turning the kale halfway through), voila! Crispy kale chips.

I’m not big on snacks, so these didn’t blow me away. They are satisfyingly crunchy, though, and are nice if you want to nibble on something fairly guilt-free if you’re not actually hungry. My husband said he wouldn’t go out of his way for them, but he would eat them again. This was after he said he would try a few and promptly polished off the rest of the batch. However, if this gets your kids to eat veggies as snacks, more power to you!

I think I’ll stick to my kale sauteed, mixed in to mashed potatoes, or in a salad, but making the chips was a fun experiment. If I had an abundance of kale and a potluck to attend, they could make a good conversation piece — if you could hear the conversation over the crunch.

Have you tried kale chips yet?

Crispy Kale Chips

Ingredients:
1 bunch kale
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

Directions:
1.) Wash and dry kale. Cut out center stems. Chop kale into pieces about 2 inches wide.

2.) Preheat oven to 350F. Place kale in a mixing bowl and add oil. Toss until kale is evenly coated. Turn kale onto a large baking sheet and spread in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt.

3.) Bake 10-15 minutes at 350F, flipping the kale after 5 minutes. Do not let kale brown or it will become bitter.

With all the visitors in town the last few weeks we ate out more than usual and have a small backlog of veggies. More still arrived on Tuesday, though! This week’s share had some fun and colorful new items.

Instead of a giant photo, I decided to take individual photos of all the veggies, just for fun. Unfortunately, the sun set on me so the lighting is terrible. Oh well, it was a fun exercise for me anyway! Two things not pictured: more beets (you’ve seen enough beets), and some scallions that weren’t cooperating.

Snow peas, destined for stir fry. What else do you do with snow peas?
Green leaf lettuce for salads and tacos.

Rainbow chard, some already used in a rice bowl. I still think the stems taste like dirt.
Red monarch kale is gorgeous and I am excited to eat it. Maybe some kale chips?

Clover sprouts are awesome. Some went on a veggie burger already. Sushi, maybe?
Flat-leaf parsley and sage are great. Did you know that 1 ounce of parsley has 47% of your vitamin A, 62% of your vitamin C, and 10% of your iron for the day? Plus 500% of your vitamin K! More garnish, please!

Heirloom tomatoes which I should have turned over for photos in retrospect. They’re much redder than this photo looks.
Buttercup squash which were planted fairly late and harvested to avoid water-logging during last week’s heavy rains. They’re so cute!

Celery, which may end up as mirepoix. Or maybe I need to start eating “ants on a log.”
Kohlrabi! It’s awesomely alien-like and I’m excited to try it.

Easter Egg radishes are gorgeous! I love the colors. The tops are also in great shape.

Purple carrots are still orange inside, but they’re pretty! They might get roasted or put into soup.

Not pictured: beets, green onions.

I’m getting much better at liking beets and have been eating them, roasted and sliced, with goat cheese.

And I’m pretty excited to take coleslaw to a Superbowl Party — along with a dairy- and gluten-free dessert, hopefully a lemon tart. Whee!

I’m over at Homemakers Who Work today being cheap and green and down with my hippie-self.

Now I’ll go compensate by cooking something needlessly complex.

A gripe I often hear about vegetarian food is when it tries to “replicate meat” and fails. Serious Eats just featured a veggie burger taste test with a little debate and some snark in the comments.

The idea of a veggie burger is not to attempt to replicate the taste and texture of a beef patty, it should simply be a flavorful protein patty on a bun with toppings. Does it taste like beef? No. It should just taste good. Do people condemn the salmon burger or turkey burger for not tasting like beef? Hardly. So why harp on the veggie burger? Ignore the tasteless preservative-riddled soy pucks from the freezer case (or at least stop overcooking them!) and make your own.

It takes maybe fifteen minutes to mix these patties up and about ten minutes to cook them, plus ten minutes of chilling time in the middle. If you start with the potatoes, they’ll be done at the same time as some oven-baked fries! Whether you’re vegetarian or just looking to cut back your red meat consumption for health/financial/ecological reasons, this is a good protein-packed meal. It’s also husband-approved!

We’ve eaten them a few different ways this week (I got 6 patties out of the recipe) — pictured is with mashed avocado on top and cheese underneath. Other styles include with caramelized onions and sliced pickles, and with mustard and sprouts. All were delicious and filling.

Veggie Burgers

Makes 6 patties
Inspired by TheKitchn

For beans, I used about equal amounts of black and pinto beans because they were in my fridge. I also had leftover canned chipotle in adobo, so I used that for flavor and moisture, and hoisin sauce. You could replace them with any combo of ketchup, tomato paste, or barbecue sauce. For flour, anything is fine except pastry flour or semolina. I used whole wheat.

Ingredients:
12 oz cooked beans (or canned, rinsed and drained)
½ cup pecans, diced
1/3 cup onion, diced finely
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 shiitake mushrooms, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon adobo sauce
1 ½ tablespoons hoisin sauce
½ cup fresh cilantro, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon flax seeds
1 tablespoon wheat germ
1 egg white
1/3 cup flour

canola or other high-heat oil for frying

Directions:
1.) Place beans a large bowl and mash about 15 times using a potato masher or a fork (you don’t want a paste, just to break the beans up a bit). Add the rest of the ingredients, flour last, and mix well. The patties should hold their shape when molded, so adjust flour or liquids as needed to obtain this consistency. Chill, at least 10 minutes.

2.) When ready to cook, heat a skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium-high heat. When water sprinkled in the pan sizzles add a splash of oil, enough to cover the bottom. Scoop out bean mixture, about 1/3-1/2 cup at a time, and form into a ball. Gently flatten into a patty, taking care that the sides don’t crack too much, about 3/4-inch thick. Carefully place in pan and cook 3-5 minutes. Flip and cook another 3-5 minutes until brown and crispy on both sides and heated through.

3.) Serve immediately on a sandwich bun with toppings of your choice. Side of fries, optional. While you could probably reheat cooked patties, I recommend keeping any extra bean mixture covered in the fridge and frying them just before serving.

It’s not often that I actually get tired of being in the kitchen. More likely I’m sick of doing dishes or deciding what to eat, but the actual cooking or baking doesn’t get old. Despite that, after two long days of work I was excited to get back in the kitchen to make real food (sorry, mac and cheese).

This happened to coincide with the first day my sourdough starter was ready for use. Inspired by this post at TheKitchn, I decided to mix up a starter last week. I did cheat a little in that I mixed up the starter in a container that I had just emptied of dough, so some commercial yeast remnants remained. However, wild yeast will eventually take it over, so I’m not too worried. The goal was not to make a wild yeast sourdough, it was to make a starter from which I could make bread. Mission accomplished!

After a few days, here is a terrible, awful, poorly lit photo of my bubbly starter:

Having also seen a recipe for veggie burgers (again, from TheKitchn), I decided to make hamburger buns using my starter. Because I couldn’t quite find a recipe that met my needs, I forged ahead recipe-less and mixed up dough! It worked, and turned out quite tasty, too.

They’re not really kaiser rolls because the tops are smooth, but they’re sort of in between a kaiser roll and brioche in that the dough is enriched. Because I made them with white flour, I added some wheat germ for flavor and fiber. Whatever you want to call them, they’re nice toasted and surrounding a protein patty of your choosing. Though I haven’t eaten a ham sandwich in over a decade, I would imagine that ham and cheese would also stack up quite well on one of these. Next time I will make them at least partially whole wheat.

They have a nice thin crust and soft center, but if you store them in a plastic bag, the exterior will soften to a more hamburger bun-like texture. Sliced in half, they were still a bit wide for the toaster, so I browned them in the toaster oven.

Sandwich Rolls

Makes 6 rolls

Because I used starter and no recipe, you may need to add more flour or water until the proper consistency is reached. The dough should be smooth, elastic and fairly tacky without being sticky.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup starter
2 cups unbleached bread flour
1/2 cup water, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons wheat germ
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon butter or shortening at room temperature
1 tablespoon honey
sesame or poppy seeds for sprinkling

Directions:
1.) Combine starter, flour, water, and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on low speed with the paddle attachment until dough comes together. Switch to dough hook and add salt, wheat germ, egg, butter, and honey. Dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom in the center. Add flour a tablespoon at a time, or dribble in water until this happens.

2.) Knead by hand or in the mixer for 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and tacky but not sticky. Lightly oil a large bowl, form the dough into a ball and place in the bowl, rolling to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for about 2 hours until doubled in size.

3.) Remove dough from bowl and use a bench scraper to cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (about 3 ounces each). Form the pieces into balls and place on a piece of parchment paper that has been misted with spray oil and dusted with cornmeal. Mist the dough with spray oil and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough rest for 30 minutes, then flip the rolls over and let rest for another 30-45 minutes until doubled in size.

4.) Preheat the oven to 425F with rack in the middle of the oven and a shallow pan on the bottom rack. Uncover the rolls and mist them with water. Sprinkle on sesame or poppy seeds, if desired.

5.) Place rolls in the oven on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Pour 1/2 cup of hot tap water in the shallow pan underneath and quickly close the oven door. After 10 minutes, rotate the baking pan and lower the temperature to 400F. Bake another 10-20 minutes until rolls are golden brown and register 200F in the center.

6.) Promptly remove rolls from tray and let cool on a wire rack at least 30 minutes before slicing or serving.

Submitted to YeastSpotting

The vast majority of groceries that enter our home are purchased by me. While my husband occasionally stops for ingredients on the way home or makes a grocery run, it’s not terribly often. This means that I am making a lot of food choices for both of us; he requests certain items, but when “fruit” is on the list, I am the one who picks out what kind of fruit from which store that was grown in what country. Having read Michael Pollan’s books and others, I try to make informed choices and vote with my dollar. After seeing Food, Inc. and getting some of the same information I already had, my husband is now more understanding (and actively supportive) of those choices.

In addition to our CSA, we are on our third year of a patio garden (mostly herbs and a few veggies, now with limes!). My goal for 2010 is to get us only using organic dairy from non-CAFO farms. We supplement the CSA with fruit which I try to make organic and local (not as challenging in California, I must say).

My latest effort involves ordering from Azure Standard, who “specialize in natural, organic, earth-friendly foods and products.” There is an established customer base here so a delivery is coming whether I order or not, and I can order some items in bulk or in larger containers than I have found locally to help reduce packaging. I just picked up my first order a few days ago and am overall quite pleased with everything.

My only disappointment was my order for “in-season apples.” Obviously they change varieties depending on what is in season, but there are very few apples I don’t like. We’ve been going through apples quickly these days, so I ordered nine pounds of in-season apples.

And I got nine pounds of Red Delicious apples. One of the only types I don’t really like, mostly because I think they taste like sugary cardboard. These organic ones seem to made of slightly more flavorful cardboard, but cardboard nonetheless.

Depending on what type arrived, my plan was to save some for eating in lunches and bake with the rest. So far, five pounds are turning into applesauce. I made a small test batch yesterday to make sure they cooked down into a decent sauce, and my husband took the end of the batch to work today he liked it so much. After I finish writing this post, a whole bag is getting cooked down.

Applesauce is so easy to make at home. You don’t need any equipment other than a knife, a pan, and a spoon. You can use a food mill, but it is not necessary. For this batch, I didn’t peel the apples. Later, I regretted it. I do like the pinkish tinge it lent the final product, however, so it was only mostly annoying.

So however you want, peel, core, and quarter your apples. I used I think two pounds, which was about 8 small-to-medium apples.

Toss the quartered apples in a pan that will hold them all. They’re going to cook down considerably so they just have to fit. Add the juice of half a lemon and about 1/2 cup of water. Add a few dashes on cinnamon if you want your house to smell extra amazing. Turn the heat on medium and cover the pan. Go check your email.

Come back in about 10 minutes and stir the apples with a wooden spoon. Breathe in the apple-y smell. Cover the apples back up, wander off and check your blog stats and Facebook. Update your status to say that you’re making applesauce. After 10 more minutes, go check the apples.

This time when you stir them, they should be getting mushy. Add more water if the pan is looking dry. Try to break up the apple quarters with your spoon. Cover and let simmer until stirring breaks the apples up easily. The time on this will depend on the type of apples you use.

If you want super smooth applesauce, you can feed it through a food mill, sieve, or potato ricer (especially if you were lazy and didn’t peel your apples). Usually I just break it down with my spoon and leave a few chunks for texture. Up to you!

Add a little splash of vanilla, and (if you’re feeling naughty), a glug of Grand Marnier. Give the sauce a taste and stir in a little sugar if your apples are too tart. The Red Delicious I used didn’t need any sugar. They did need Grand Marnier, though.

Voila! Applesauce. This is especially great for using up apples that are a bit beyond their prime. Sometimes I’ll just use two apples and make myself a little dish to go with lunch and eat it still warm. Delicious.

Applesauce

Yields 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sauce

Ingredients:
2 pounds apples (I used 8 small-to-medium apples)
juice of 1/2 a lemon (cut it lengthwise for best juice yield)
1/2-1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
optional:
up to 1 tablespoon sugar
up to 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

Directions:
1.) Peel, core, and quarter apples. Place in saucepan with lemon juice and water. Add cinnamon if using. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until apples can be easily mashed with a spoon, about 20-30 minutes. Add more water if needed.

2.) Stir apples vigorously with a wooden spoon until desired consistency is reached. Taste sauce and add sugar if needed. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and Grand Marnier (if using). Serve warm or cold, or use in baked good to replace oil. Store covered in the refrigerator, or freeze.

The past week has been a bit crazy. Since last Saturday, my husband has worked about 75 hours and still has two days to go.

Wednesday, I had a job interview (hooray!), and while I won’t know how that pans out for a while yet, it did lead to two days of overhire work in the prop shop Thursday and Friday.

Yesterday, my husband dropped me off at the theater on his way to work. After eight hours of crawling around, carrying chairs, painting, and more, I walked two miles (uphill) to the hotel to retrieve the car. A few hours later I went back to get him.

We collaborated on dinner. Especially when I’m not working, I do the vast majority of the cooking — not because my husband is incapable, he’s normally just tired and uninterested. So I did the veggie prep while he did the actual cooking.

Yep, I shelled peas from the CSA which we added to a box of mac and cheese.

It paired nicely with a glass of cabernet sauvignon shiraz blend. My spouse would disagree and say it paired even better with ketchup.

Ah, Friday night. Just keeping it real.

Do not make these cookies.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

I made these last night in a serious tactical error. Unless my normal stress baking circumstances, I was actually having a really good day and wanted to celebrate with some baked goods. It wasn’t time for dinner yet, so I decided that cookies would be quick to mix up, then I could send them with my husband’s lunches this week for a treat.

Except they were quick to mix up, and then I ate three on an empty stomach, felt woozy from the sugar bomb, then sugar crashed on the couch and never ate dinner.

It was so worth it.

This recent, constant rotation of recipes from Smitten Kitchen, Crumbly Cookie, and 101 Cookbooks is NOT intentional, I swear. They’re just so good! I’m trying to branch out, I promise.

This is not the Quaker Oats recipe. The cookies have delicate crispy edges, a chewy center, and dots of creamy white chocolate. Deb makes you promise to buy good quality white chocolate. I threw in Nestle chips, and while I’m sure they would have been better, I still scarfed down four.

This is not a claim I make lightly, but I may have improved on the original recipe. First, the cookies are really sweet, so I sprinkled considerably more than “two flakes” of salt on each. Second, I added fresh orange zest. I’ve been on a citrus kick, so I had an orange right there and I thought the flavors would work nicely. Boy, was I right! So good.

The oatmeal flavor comes through without being too chewy. They’re quite buttery and rich, so I may sliiiightly reduce the quantity next time (and there WILL be a next time). They’re also so sweet that I may cut down the sugar a bit and see if they’re still crispy enough. However, I’m on a veggies-only diet after last night’s sugar overdose. Wow.

Salted Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen and Cook’s Illustrated
Makes 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
zest of 2 small oranges (or whatever you have around)
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
4-6 ounces good-quality white chocolate bar, chopped
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt, for sprinkling (I used kosher)

Directions:
1.) In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. Combine butter and sugars in a mixing bowl and cream together until fluffy and light. Scrape down sides of bowl and add egg, vanilla, and citrus zest, mixing until combined.

2.) Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Gradually incorporate flour into butter mixture on low speed until all flour is added and mixture is smooth. Stir in oats and white chocolate until well-mixed.

3.) Use a tablespoon or cookie scoop to portion out dough into 24 equal balls. Roll the dough into spheres and place on the parchment-lined baking sheet about 2 1/2 inches apart. Gently flatten the top of each cookie with your fingers. Sprinkle salt on each cookie.

4.) Bake at 350F until golden brown, rotating halfway through, 13-16 minutes. Let sit on tray for a few minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.