Trail Mix Cookies

I have been baking oatmeal cookies for years now and slowly they have morphed from boring ol' oatmeal raisin to the masterpiece now set before you. By taking my tried-and-true oatmeal cookie recipe and adding something as simple (yet brilliant) as my favorite trail mix, I've created this bangin' little treat that'll make even the most decadent dessert self-conscious. #PossibleOverstatement 

I've made these cookies for parties, I've packed them up in cute little boxes and given them away as gifts, I've used the excuse that they're riddled with oatmeal then scarfed down 3 or 4 for breakfast. (Don't judge me. I said they're riddled with oatmeal people, what more do you want from me?)

Look at all that amazing stuff packed in there!

To get your Trail-Mix-Cookie-On, start by preheating your oven to 375 degrees.

Ingredients Needed (makes 12 large cookies):

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar (white sugar)
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed (that means stuff it in there!)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (don't be cheap, splurge for the pure stuff)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (do NOT skip this step, trust me)
• 3 cups uncooked Old Fashioned Oats
• 1 cup of your favorite trail mix (You're not a hippie. Go for the unhealthy the trail mix, it makes better cookies.)

And if you are, in fact, a hippie, then please accept my sincerest apologies. But don't you ruin this for me with that bird-food you call trail mix.

The pictures below are of a DOUBLE BATCH I recently made - I assume you'll notice this all on your own.

Sugar & Butter - I could stop with this step and just eat it like this. 

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and both types of sugar. For a single batch I'll typical use my stand mixer but because this double batch was gonna be a monster, I just used my hand mixer. Part of being a responsible stand mixer owner is knowing when not to use it (and also when not to brag about owning one).

Remember, these photos are of a DOUBLE batch - 

so you'll only be cracking 2 eggs.

Beat in the eggs and vanilla on medium speed.

Switch your hand mixer speed to medium-low and blend in the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and baking soda. 

Now put your mixing device aside and get a good grip on that bowl - you'll be stirring by hand from here on out.

Pour out a generous, slightly heaping cup of your favorite trail mix and give it a nice rough chop. You don't want to chop the pieces up too small or they'll just blend all together into the cookie. But you do want to hack apart the bigger pieces somewhat or somebody's gonna chip a tooth.

Add in the oats and trail mix...

...and fold it all together until it starts to resemble this. Take your time and really incorporate all the oats and trail mix into the cookie dough.

To view a quick video of me folding this all together, see below:

I use one of the large tablespoons from my silverware drawer to scoop out big, heaping mounds of dough and then roll them into large balls. (If you just snickered then... grow up.)

Place the cookie balls (stop giggling) onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake cookies at 375 degrees for 11 - 13 minutes. 

If you want really chewy cookies, then bake NO LONGER than 11 minutes. (They will look under-cooked off the bat, but cookies continue to bake a bit after they've been removed from the oven.)

Cookie making tip: When you remove ANY sheet of cookies from the oven, slam them down on your counter top. It's crazy loud (you'll startle everyone in your house) but slamming them down creates a super moist, dense cookie that's chewy and perfect. 

Remove cookies from the cookie sheet (after you've slammed them, of course) immediately to stop the cooking process. Allow cookies to cool, at least somewhat, before cramming them into your mouth.

Got a cookie recipe that's gets you super geeked?

I would love to hear about it!

Share your stories (and photos if you have them!) with me at

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Blair Clark is a wife, teacher, dog-mother, mentor, wanna-be-chef, recipe collector, crafter, painter, novice photographer, thrifter, writer, marriage ministry leader, Sunday school teacher and blogger. In short, she's a busy girl! Blair lives and blogs from the suburbs of Detroit with her handsome hubby and perfect Chocolate lab.

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