BANANA NUT OATMEAL APPLE COOKIES

 Our vacation back in Ventura, CA is almost over and I'm sure you would not expect me to be in the kitchen baking something, but I couldn't help it. What is even crazier is I made up the recipe. I would never have guessed my brain would be so focused after I retired, but "it is what it is" as my friend Janice's husband Leon likes to say. 

When we arrived in Oxnard where we have been staying, after checking in, we headed to the store to get some bottled water and a few other items. We ended up at Big Lots and found $40 worth of things to buy that we felt we needed or would use while we were here for a week. 

One thing I saw, I didn't buy because I didn't know if we had a muffin tin furnished in the condo. I thought I would check first even though the package only cost 79 cents before buying it. Well, we weren't furnished a muffin tin or even a cookie sheet, but we had an aluminum round pan that Wayne got for his leftovers from lunch on Saturday that I could use. 

What I didn't buy was a 6.4 ounce package of  a Blueberry muffin mix that only required 1/2 cup of milk or water and  made 6 muffins. Well, the round pan wasn't going to make muffins, but with my crazy brain working, I decided I would try making cookies from the mix instead of muffins. I wouldn't be able to make many at a time, but that would be okay. I was more concerned that I didn't have anything to spray in the pan to keep them from sticking. I just solved that problem by washing the pan each time.

Later when we went by a Big Lots, I told Wayne I needed to stop because I wanted to get something.  At first I didn't think they had any because I couldn't find them...the store wasn't organized the best with their groceries. They did have them though. In fact they had the Blueberry ones and Banana Nut package. I decided to get the Banana Nut package instead and only had the one item to pay for.

Before I actually got to try it out, I decided I would add one package of the instant oatmeal I had bought and had been enjoying for breakfast each morning. I had found a box of Bob's Red Mill whole grain oats - gluten free Instant Oatmeal with apple pieces & cinnamon. I had forgotten how much groceries that Big Lots sold. I don't usually buy instant oatmeal, but was sold by the packaging and I have been really enjoying it.

I had to guess about the baking time and oven temperature, but after three "shifts", it seemed like 375 degrees worked out okay and about 13 minutes. I will be taking some of the instant oatmeal back home with us so will buy some more muffin mix and try them again at home. If I decide to change anything I will just come back and edit the recipe. I think the only change I will make will be baking the cookies on parchment paper or lightly spraying the cookie sheet.

BANANA NUT OATMEAL APPLE COOKIES

1     6.4 ounce package Banana Nut muffin mix that just needs water or milk added

1     1.23 ounce package instant oatmeal (I used Bob's Red Mill Instant Oatmeal with apple pieces & cinnamon)

1/2   cup milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray lightly a cookie sheet or use parchment paper.

Empty contents of the instant oatmeal in a small bowl and add the milk.

Stir and allow to set for 10 minutes to soften the oats and apple pieces.

Empty contents of the muffin mix in a small mixing bowl and add the oats and milk mixture.

Stir to mix up well.

Scoop our a heaping teaspoon and

place at least 2 inches apart on sheet.

Bake for 13 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

Cool a couple of minutes before removing the cookie to finish cooling. (You can see how mine "stuck" to the pan,

so I had to wash it before I could bake another four.) 

Made 13 cookies.

The thirteenth cookie was a little bigger so I cooked it 15 minutes.

These were so delicious and made just the right amount for us since we will be leaving in two days.

This post is my sharing with you a good example of "where there's a will, there's a way" idiom you may have heard from and also showing you how you can create your own recipe, if you are just willing to let your creative juices flow.