Cowboy Cookies are loaded with a little bit of everything you could ever want in a cookie — chocolate chips, crunchy Frosted Flakes, oats, cinnamon, coconut, and our favorite…peanut butter chips!
I got this cowboy cookie recipe when I was first married, didn’t make it for a good 5-6 years into marriage and almost 16 years later am FINALLY sharing the recipe. I don’t know why I’m so slow sometimes, I guess it’s just that when something is good you sometimes miss it staring you in the face!
Apparently Laura Bush’s Cowboy cookies became a nationwide obsession years and years ago, but I have an altered recipe here. This one calls for peanut butter chips, though you could use butterscotch if you prefer.
These cookies originally were made with pecans, but we don’t add them so you will not see them in the photos. We’ve added them in the recipe though, but they are totally optional.
There’s something for everyone in these homemade oatmeal cookies and they are big, thick, and chewy. My favorite part about these cookies are all the contrasting flavors and textures. There’s crunchy and chewy, there’s sweet and salty — I highly recommend eating them warm with a tall glass of cold milk!
Ingredients for Cowboy Cookies
You’ve heard of kitchen sink cookies I assume. They have everything in them except the kitchen sink, which is why they are so delish! These cowboy cookies are the just-as-loaded cousins of kitchen sink cookies. Here is what you will need:
- Butter (unsalted)
- Sugar
- Brown Sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla
- Flour
- Salt
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Cinnamon
- Oats (old fashioned)
- Frosted Flakes (or Corn Flakes)
- Coconut Flakes
- Pecans (optional)
- Peanut Butter Chips (or butterscotch chips)
- Chocolate Chips (semi-sweet)
Head down to the recipe card for all the exact measurements.
How to Make Cowboy Cookies
These cookies are going to come together just like all other cookies. Wet ingredients, dry ingredients, and then you’re going to add all the flavors and textures by folding and mixing in all the add-ins.
Here are the basic steps for making the BEST EVER cowboy cookies:
- Beat the butter and sugars in a large bowl until it is light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and mix again.
- In a separate bowl mix all the dry ingredients.
- Add the oats, cereal and coconut to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients with add ins to the wet ingredients and fold it together so the cereal doesn’t get too smashed.
- Now it’s time to add the last two ingredients: chocolate chips and peanut butter chips.
- Mix them into to dough and don’t over-mix.
- Place large scoops of the dough to a cookie sheet lined with a silpat.
- Place the cookie sheet into the freezer for 20 minutes.
- Bake the cookies until golden around the edges.
- Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool slightly before devouring.
How to Store These Cookies
These homemade cowboy cookies should be stored in an airtight container at room temperature. They’ll last up to one week.
Can You Freeze These Cookies?
Yes, these loaded oatmeal cookies are great cookies to freeze. You can freeze dough in individual balls and bake from frozen (just add a couple of extra minutes to the baking time), or you can bake the cookies and freeze them to eat later.
Allow them to cool completely, place them on a baking sheet and freeze them. Then place the cookies into a ziploc bag. The cookies will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Why Are They Called Cowboy Cookies?
There seems to be a couple of possible reasons for the name “cowboy cookies,” but nobody knows for sure. Some say that these cookies are so hearty that cowboys would pack them to eat while out working. Others claim that these cookies originated in Texas, which is home to all sorts of cowboys. Whatever the reason is, I’m just grateful someone decided to stuff a cookie full of everything delicious!
Tips for Making the Best Cookies
We have a few tips that will help you make the best cowboy cookies:
- Those 20 minutes in the freezer are crucial to getting those thick chewy cookies. It helps solidify the butter to prevent spreading in the oven.
- Using old fashioned (or rolled) oats gives the cookies great texture, but if you want the oats more blended into the cookie, feel free to use quick or instant oats.
- Use a silicone baking mat, it just does something magical to keep these cookies from spreading. Parchment paper just doesn’t do the same.
- I like to use a stand mixer to cream the butter and sugars and to cream in the eggs and vanilla and then do all the rest of the mixing by hand so the cookies stay chunky and the cereal remains in bigger crunchy pieces.
Strap on your spurs, put on that 10 gallon hat, and saddle up for the most loaded and delicious cookies of your life! Cowboy cookies are going to be your new favorite!
More EASY COOKIE RECIPES You’re Going to Love:
- Best Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies
- Chocolate Reese’s Pieces Cookies
- NY Times BEST Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
- Soft Gingerbread Cookies
- Glazed Lemon Cookies
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Million Dollar Cookies
- White Chocolate Molasses Cookies
- Nutella and Dulce de Leche-Stuffed Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Favorite Cowboy Cookies
Description
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Unsalted Butter, , softened
- 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs, (whole)
- 1 Egg Yolk
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 Cup Old-Fashioned Oats
- 1 Cup Frosted Flakes, (or Corn Flakes)
- 1/3 Cup Coconut Flakes
- 1/2 Cup Pecans, , roughly chopped (*optional)
- 1 Cup Peanut Butter Chips, (or butterscotch chips)
- 1 Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the butter and sugars until it is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add eggs and vanilla, beat well again.
- In a small bowl, add the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon and mix to combine.
- Add the oats, cereal, and coconut to the bowl, fold gently together, then add to the wet ingredients.
- Mix everything until almost combined.
- Add the peanut butter chips and chocolate chips and mix until everything is incorporated. Do not over-mix or you will break up the cereal.
- Scoop out into dough balls using a large cookie scoop and place on a silpat lined cookie sheet. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes, until the cookies are golden around the edges. Remove from the oven to cool slightly before eating.
Notes
Nutrition
Recommended Products
REMEMBER TO SUBSCRIBE TO our FREE Oh Sweet Basil NEWSLETTER AND RECEIVE EASY RECIPES DELIVERED INTO YOUR INBOX EVERY DAY!
When you try a recipe, please use the hashtag #ohsweetbasil on INSTAGRAM for a chance to be featured in our stories! FOLLOW OH, SWEET BASIL ON FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | PINTEREST | TWITTER FOR ALL OF OUR LATEST CONTENT, RECIPES AND STORIES.
