I received a collection of cookie recipes for Christmas, and this one looked good. It had some of my favorite ingredients (dried cranberries, oatmeal, chocolate) and had a cute name.

Cranberry Hootycreek Cookies
from the 2007 we energies cookie book

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 egg (or 1/4 cup egg substitute)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup uncooked quick oats (or old-fashioned)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips (see below)
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream butter; beat in egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour, oats, baking soda, salt and sugars; gradually blend into butter mixture. Stir in cranberries, chips and pecans. Drop heaping teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges start to brown. Cool on wire racks. Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

I didn’t have the white chocolate chips called for, so I substituted semi-sweet morsels and topped the cookies with the last of the chocolate brown jimmies from the annual family cookie-decorating experience. They turned out absolutely delicious. I’ll put white chocolate chips on my next shopping list; I can’t wait to try the original version!
But what is a hootycreek, anyway?