Happy New Year! I hope it’s off to a great start for all of you. In our house, we’ve had much cause to celebrate, with the birth of our new baby boy right before Christmas. He arrived a few weeks ahead of schedule which was a relief because we could hardly wait to meet him. His two-year-old big sister loves him already, doling out more hugs and kisses than he can handle. Oh we’re quite sleep-deprived and I’m not going to be able to cook quite as often for a little while, but right now we couldn’t be happier.

With family members flowing in and out lately to meet the new guy and help out I have managed to grab pockets of time in the kitchen – including a little baking session to make this Honey Oatmeal Bread recipe I found on a package of vital wheat gluten. It makes two loaves which is great because I could slice one up for breakfast toast this week and freeze the other to save for after all the help leaves.

The whole wheat flour and oats make the bread hearty, with a texture that is actually lighter than I’d expected. The gentle sweetness from the honey gives the bread great flavor on its own, but I’ve been topping it with a little honey cinnamon butter anyway. I figure I deserve it.

P.S. I’m submitting this recipe to this week’s Yeastspotting roundup.

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Whew! As much fun as Thanksgiving cooking was, I’m actually kind of glad to switch over to other late-autumn treats (if you’re looking for some good leftover turkey ideas, check out the leftover panini recipes on my other food blog – Panini Happy). Cookies call my name all year round, and as we enter part 2 of “the holidays” I find oatmeal cookies with dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks especially irresistible.

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Poor oatmeal raisin cookies. They’re kind of the Jan Brady of the cookie world. They’re sweet and all, but all everyone ever talks about is “Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip…”

Oatmeal raisin cookies really deserve more of the spotlight. What’s not to love? The oatmeal gives them that great nutty flavor and texture and the raisins appear at just the right time to provide a spark of chewy sweetness. And have you smelled the kitchen while these things are baking? That warm, homey aroma alone is worth keeping tablespoons of dough on hand in the freezer, ready to pop in the oven at any time.

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