6 Ways Baking Cookies Might Legit Be Good for You

Any way you bake it, mixing up Grandma’s oatmeal bars provides great brain benefits. Stringently following a recipe strengthens your procedural memory (a form of long-term recall that allows you to do something you haven’t done in years—you know, the “it’s like riding a bike” cliche). But going rogue—and, say, holding the raisins but adding in dried cherries—flexes your smarts and gives your strategic reasoning skills a workout. (Get more healthy-eating tips and recipes from Scratch, a new cookbook from our CEO, Maria Rodale.)

Try whipping up this overnight oats recipe while you’re in the kitchen: