Cowboy cookies
My plan had been to write about baseball this week. But then the Astros didn’t do so well on Opening Day and I got word about an award this blog won so, well, I decided to bake cowboy cookies instead. I hope you don’t mind.
Cowboy cookies probably have very little to do with cowboys, but this doesn’t mean they’re not good. Typically, a cowboy cookie is defined by the presence of brown sugar, cinnamon, oats, chocolate, and nuts. And some people doll them up even more by throwing in some coconut and raisins as well.
My assumption is that the recipe for cowboy cookies was probably originally found on a package of oatmeal or brown sugar. I couldn’t find proof of this, but a little digging did reveal that the recipe has probably been around for at least 60 years as I read a document written in the early 1980s that said one woman’s recipe had been in her family for over 40 years. And yep, it was the same one we all use today.
I also found a recipe for cowboy cookies in a 1959 edition of the Toledo Blade, though this one was completely different. This cowboy cookie called for molasses, coffee, and boiling water, along with eggs, butter, and flour. Perhaps there’s a hint of authenticity to that recipe as those ingredients are more likely to be found on a chuck wagon than chocolate chips and oatmeal. I didn’t make those cookies, however, as I wasn’t in the mood for a cookie made with coffee—I wanted the cowboy cookie I’d grown up with, full of oats, chocolate, and nuts. And my, these did not disappoint.
Now, about that award. Well, I don’t want to sound boastful, but I have to say that I am over the moon that Homesick Texan was recognized in the First Annual Saveur Food Blog Awards as best regional cuisine blog. A Texas-sized congratulations to all the winners and nominees. And also, many thanks to both Saveur and you for your support. Now go enjoy these cookies—I baked them for you!
Cowboy cookies
Ingredients
- 1⁄2 cup pecans, chopped
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 3⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
- 3⁄4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
- 3⁄4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3⁄4 cup rolled oats
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Lightly grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper. While the oven is heating, place the pecans in an oven-safe skillet and roast in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove from oven.
- Cream the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until fluffy.
- Mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, and add to butter, sugar and egg mixture. Beat until well incorporated, and then stir in oats, chocolate chips, and roasted pecans.
- Roll dough into walnut-sized balls, place the sheet and bake for 14-17 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.
I make those cookies too! And I use pecans instead of the walnuts it lists. They don't last long!
I first made them when I was teaching preschoolers and for the letter C we made the Cowboy cookies. Went well with the cowboy theme of the week. They loved it and I have been making them at home ever since.
LOVE your blog and thanks for the reminder of these cookies! I had Cowboy and Ranger cookies, but in both instances, I'm pretty sure they also had a handful of rice crispies in them as well…
Congrats on the honor, and I love your blog as well! Keep up the good work — and the good cookies.
My great-grandmother made these and always called them Ranger Cookies, too. I never got the recipe from her before she passed a decade ago, and there are so many conflicting recipes online. Yours sounds most like what I remember. Woohoo!
I suspect these may actually be named after the old west- cowboys and the (non-baseball) Texas Rangers are not all that disimilar with their horse ridin', hat wearin' and gun totin'. I've seen these called "kitchen sink" cookies online as well and cowboys were known for putting together meals with what they had. It sounds plausible to me, at least. I could be making things up, though. Wouldn't be the first time I've been wrong. But it sounds good to me and my great-grandma was a little western ways.
I wonder what the next recipe is going to be… Congrats!!
I have to chime in with the others who are calling these Ranger cookies…I think my mom's recipe calls them Texas Ranger cookies, but definitely with the coconut and raisins added.
And a big YEEHAW! for your win.