YIELD: ABOUT 18 COOKIES
These oatmeal cookies (opposite page, bottom row), coated here with chocolate, can also be left plain. They are always welcome at my house, and are a good companion to poached fruit or other fruit desserts. Stored in an airtight container, they will remain crisp for days.

4 ounces unsalted butter (1 stick), softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup dried currants
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Put the butter, sugar, baking powder, and flour in the bowl of a food processor, and process for 5 to 10 seconds, until the dough begins to form a ball. Transfer to a bowl, and mix in the oatmeal and currants, mashing the mixture to incorporate them well.

Line an aluminum cookie sheet with a reusable nonstick baking mat. With your fingers, roll about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough into a log about 3 inches long. Place the log on the lined cookie sheet, and make additional logs with the remainder of the dough, placing them about an inch or so apart on the sheet. Press down on each of the logs to create elongated, oval-shaped cookies. Bake in the 400-degree oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from the sheet with a metal spatula, and coolon a rack.

Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler set over gently boiling water. When the cookies are cool, spread about 1 teaspoon of the melted chocolate on the underside of each cookie, and arrange the cookies, chocolate side down, on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper, pressing on them firmly so the chocolate becomes very flat and smooth. Alternatively, coat the flat side of one cookie with chocolate, then press it against the flat side of another cookie to create a "sandwich."

Refrigerate the cookies for a while, or place them in the freezer for a few minutes to harden the chocolate. Peel the paper from the cookies, and store them in an airtight container to keep them crisp.