GRANDMA’S COWBOY COOKIES
My grandma’s cowboy cookies
When I was a little girl, there was nothing better than walking into my grandmother’s house and discovering she’d made Grandma’s Cowboy Cookies. She knew these were our favorites and almost always had a tin ready for us when we came to visit. And yes, they were in a tin!
Jump to RecipeMama Nin, as we called her, was a wonderful cook, especially well-known for the desserts and cookies she took to church dinners and served to friends and families around her beautiful mahogany table.
What makes a real Cowboy Cookie?
I’ve seen a lot of recipes out there calling themselves “Cowboy Cookies,” including the famous Laura Bush’s Cowboy Cookie recipe. Most of them, including the former First Lady’s, call for cinnamon and (gasp!) coconut. Look, let’s be real. Do you think old-timey cowboys ate cinnamon and coconut?!! No, me neither.
Mama Nin’s cookies are the real deal — giant chocolate chip cookies with loads of pecans and oatmeal and vanilla. The absolute perfect taste, and a fabulously chewy cookie. I love these cookies so much, I told their full story in my first-ever blog post. Give them a try for real Cowboy Cookies!
GRANDMA’S COWBOY COOKIES
Course: DessertCuisine: CookiesDifficulty: Easy20
minutes40
minutesIngredients
2 1/4 cups butter, softened
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
5 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
4 1/2 cups flour
2 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
2 12-ounce packages chocolate chips
3 cups coarsely chopped pecans
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicon baking mats.
Cream together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until well incorporated. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Sift into the creamed mixture and mix well.
Add oats, chocolate chips and pecans. NOTE: You will probably have to do this by hand, because the dough will be very thick.
Drop heaps of dough — about the size of a small lime — onto cookie sheet. Be sure not to crowd the pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until edges of the cookies are brown and center is set.
Let cool slightly then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- MAKE AHEAD: You can freeze the dough for up to a month, taking out as much you like. No need to thaw the dough first.
MAKE AHEAD: You can freeze the dough for up to a month, taking out as much you like. No need to thaw the dough first.
