Blog Cowboy Cookies

This week's recipe is a rolled-cookie take on the chocolate chip-oatmeal cookies known as cowboy cookies. Though the recipe's origins and the reasons for its name are unknown, it has been around for at least half a century, and even has a small role in our nation's political history. Every four years since 1992, Family Circle magazine has run a cookie recipe contest pitting the wives of presidential candidates against one another, and until the most recent election, the winning cookie accurately predicted the winning candidate. In 2000, Laura Bush's Cowboy Cookies easily bested Tipper Gore's Gingersnaps. A look at the ingredient list and it's easy to see the reason behind the victory—a foundation of toasty oats sweetened with brown sugar and studded with chocolate, pecans, and coconut, hearty enough to sustain any cowpoke. Bake a batch of these satisfying cookies in cowboy shapes, set them out with a pitcher of milk, and you will have no trouble rounding up your herd.

My favorite shapes for Cowboy Cookies include the Cowboy Hat cookie cutter, the Cowboy Boot cookie cutter, and the Horse cookie cutter.