Very quick and easy oatmeal crisps

I'm always on the lookout for quick and easy recipes to make in the kitchen.  Sometimes, you just don't have the time or feel like making cupcakes from scratch or a two layer cake.  So I was going through my Martha Stewart Cookies app the other day and saw some simple oatmeal-almond crisps I wanted to try.  I guess I'm on an almond kick lately but frankly, I wanted to find a recipe to use up the leftover almond slices I have from baking the macaroons.

I figured it was pretty safe that I would like these crisps.  I love oatmeal (ok, maybe love is too strong a word for how anyone feels about oatmeal but I do like it a lot) and almonds.  It basically just uses a little bit of butter and egg to bind the two together, along with some brown sugar to sweeten it.  It's a very simple, quick mix-together recipe that you might want to consider if you are looking for a healthier alternative and something easy to whip up for yourself or your kids.

The result is a somewhat delicate crisp...not very crunchy since the oatmeal give it a nice chewiness and just mildly sweet with a hint of caramelized flavor.  It's like granola and also reminds me of my favorite Kashi cereal.  This might be the reason why my son asked if he could have some for breakfast.

This is everything you'll need to make the oatmeal-almond crisps: some old-fashioned rolled oats, sliced almonds, melted butter, brown sugar, egg, and a bit of vanilla extract.  You can find the proportions in the recipe that follows.  I made a half recipe once again, which was perfect given I had 1/4 cup of sliced almonds on hand.

The first step is combining the melted butter, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla together.  Make sure to melt the butter just before using so it's warm enough to melt the sugar. 

When the mixture is smooth, add in the oatmeal and almonds.  Gently stir until combined and the oatmeal and almonds are thoroughly coated.

You can now drop level tablespoons of this mixture out onto parchment lined baking sheets. 

One last step before baking, spray the back of a metal spatula with some cooking spray (or just rub some oil on the back of the spatula if you don't have cooking spray) and flatten the crisps out a bit so that they are about 2" wide.

These make a nice light snack.  My son likes them and there's nothing like hearing that "mmmm..." sound that comes out of your child's mouth when he tastes something he likes.  And there's no guilt with this recipe.

The recipe:

The recipe for these oatmeal-almond crisps are here.  Don't skimp on the brown sugar.  I thought these crisps could actually use a touch more sugar.  You can also add a pinch of salt to the butter/brown sugar mixture before adding the oats and almonds.  Salt wakes everything up and enhances the flavor of baked goods.