Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1. Stage

Prep the oven and the baking sheets: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter two large cookie sheets, or line them with silicone mats or parchment paper.

2. Stage

Brown the butter: Place sticks of butter in a thick-bottomed medium sized stainless steel saucepan or other pan with a light, reflective interior. Otherwise you won't be able to see the butter browning. Heat on medium. Melt the butter, whisking so that the butter melts evenly. Continue to cook the butter. As it cooks, the butter will foam up, and then the foam will subside. Whisk frequently to check underneath the bubbly surface. At some point, browned bits will form at the bottom of the pan and the butter will begin to smell nutty. Watch carefully—it's easy for the butter to go from browned to burnt. When the browned bits begin to form, remove the pan from the heat. Pour the melted butter, with the browned bits, into a glass or metal bowl. Allow to cool a bit while you prepare the other ingredients.

3. Stage

Mix the dry ingredients: Vigorously whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cinnamon together in a large bowl.

4. Stage

Make the dough: Place the browned butter (along with the browned bits) in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the brown and white sugar. Beat on medium-high until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat for 3 more minutes on medium speed until smooth and light.

5. Stage

Stir in flour mixture and some water: Using a wooden spoon, stir the flour mixture into the batter. Stir in 2 tablespoons of water (note that if you are using jumbo eggs, and not large eggs as the recipe calls for, you will probably not need this much extra liquid.)

6. Stage

Stir in chocolate chips and oats: Stir in the chocolate chips, and the pecans and shredded coconut (if using). Stir in the rolled oats. Up to this point you can make the dough up to a day and a half ahead and store in the refrigerator.

7. Stage

Spoon cookie dough onto lined cookie sheets: Spoon out heaping tablespoons of cookie dough and lay them on lined cookie sheets. Make sure you have about 2" of space between each cookie, as they will flatten a little and spread on the cookie sheet as they bake.

8. Stage

Bake: Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes, or until they are just brown around the edges, but still soft in the center. They will firm up as they cool. (If you want them crispier, you can bake them from 12 to 14 minutes, but 10 minutes will yield a more chewy cookie.)

9. Stage

Cool: Take the cookies out of the oven and let them cool for two or three minutes on the hot baking sheet. Then, using a metal spatula, carefully transfer the still-hot cookies to a wire rack to cool. They will continue to be soft until completely cooled. Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days.