Flu Fighter Cookies!

Well, flu season is technically over, but with the crazy weather we've still been having where I live, people are still feeling sick all the time.

This recipe came to us from our Food Network Magazine back in October 2009, and we made them winter 2010. Did they work? I can't say for sure, but neither my husband nor I had the flu that year. So, I guess all the healthy ingredients packed into these little cookies boosted our immune systems somewhat!!

They are kind of heavy cookies, but tasty. They are definitely not the kind of cookie you will eat 5 of in one sitting, at least in our opinion. I used to eat it in the morning between breakfast and lunch, for me, it seemed like a good mid-morning snack because they didn't really feel like treat cookies like chocolate chip do.

Anyway, they are easy to make, but this cookies seriously has a crap-load of ingredients. When we made them, we actually had all but 5 in the house, which wasn't too bad.

So, here is the recipe for these little immunity boosters - try them out!

Ingredients

* 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
* 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
* Pinch of ground cloves
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
* 2 large eggs
* 1/4 cup molasses
* 1/4 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt
* 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
* 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
* 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
* 1 1/4 cups golden raisins
* 1 1/4 cups dried cranberries
* 1 1/4 cups roughly chopped walnuts, toasted

Directions

Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt in a medium bowl.

Beat the butter and brown sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next.

Add the molasses, yogurt, ginger and lemon zest and beat until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture to make a sticky batter (do not overmix).

Fold in the oats and half of the raisins, cranberries and walnuts. Mix the remaining dried fruit and nuts in a small bowl and set aside.

Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of batter onto the prepared baking sheets. Top each with some of the reserved dried-fruit-and-nut mixture and chill for 30 minutes.


Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bake the cookies until dark golden but still soft, 10 to 12 minutes; cool on a rack. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.