Best oatmeal cookies in the land

Who makes the best oatmeal-raisin cookies ever? My mother, of course.

Her not-so-secret, secret: the recipe found on the inside of the cover to most Quaker Oatmeal cansisters. She adds some chopped walnuts and she tweeks the recipe here and there to my liking, but her cookies are essentially the same as those baked in homes across America. What makes her cookies so special? Do not underestimate years of kitchen experience and TLC.

Here's the recipe for Quaker's Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies:

ingredients
- 2 sticks of softened margarine or butter
- 1 cup of packed brown sugar
- 1/2 of cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups quick Quaker Oats
- 1 cup of chopped walnuts
- 1 cup raisins

instructions
1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. In large bowl, beat margarine and sugars until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla; beat some more.
3. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats, walnuts and raisins; mix some more.
4. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
5. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown.