There was once a time when I thought I would make Toll House cookies from the grocery store FOREVER.

I didn’t know diddly squat about baking. And when I rolled up my sleeves to make my first cookies from scratch… I forgot to grease the baking sheet and they were a hot, burnt mess that fused to the pan. RIP to that pan. Apparently you shouldn’t use the random baking soda that deodorizes your fridge for your batter either. Hey, I’m no Christina Tosi yet, so bear with me here.

This is for a double batch, so you can enjoy some FRESH and freeze the rest. Go big or go home. You’re already doing the work, might as well get double the cookies!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups salted butter (4 sticks)

• 2 teaspoons baking soda

• 3 cups brown sugar, packed

• 4 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 4 large eggs

• 3 1/2 cups flour

• 2 cups oats

• 1 cup butterscotch chips

• 1 cup chocolate chunks

• 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes

• 1 cup chopped walnuts

• 1 cup mini M&M’s

• 1-2 crushed handfuls of Trader Joes peanut butter filled pretzels, salted

INSTRUCTIONS

Makes ~6 dozen cookies (yeah, you’re gonna want that many)

1) Mix room temperature butter and sugar (2-3 minutes with hand mixer)

2) Add eggs and vanilla (beat for 1 minute)

3) Combine flour, baking soda, and oats in separate bowl

4) Add dry to wet, mixing one cup at a time until all mixed

5) Add extras, mix again

6) Use a cookie scoop to dole out onto a greased sheet pan

7) Bake at 350 degrees for ~10 minutes (every oven is different so just watch them ok)

TIPS

• Don’t forget to grease the flippin’ pan! Or use parchment paper!

• Dough is best baked when refrigerated, so after making the batter, either put the whole bowl in the fridge to scoop later, or scoop them all out onto a sheet pan immediately and chill those babies for minimum 1 hour, best 12-24 hours

• I like to bake in bulk, so I save one batch for now and the rest for later in labeled freezer bags. Then, when I’m feeling like a delicious homemade cookie ASAP, I can pop them straight from the freezer into the oven WHAT A LIFE HACK FOLKS

• If you use unsalted butter, add 2 tsp salt to the batter. If you use salted butter, don’t add extra salt #thanksjayme

• Feel free to get creative with the toppings. Add your own mix-ins, do less of some and more of another, etc. I honestly forget SOMETHING every time I make these, so don’t worry, they’ll survive a little experimentation

• The best way to store extra cookies its in a tupperware container with a piece of BREAD. Yes I said bread! White bread, wheat bread, bulkie roll, whatever. The cookies retain moisture from the bread and are even softer the day after you bake them. Replace the bread every 1-2 days as it gets hard. This is my all time favorite bake hack for sure!