These cowboy cookies are thick and chewy cookies loaded with chocolate chips, pecans, coconut and oats. They’re such a yummy texture and flavor all wrapped up in a delicious cookie.
These chewy cookies are loaded with so much goodness, they have cinnamon, oats, coconut, pecans, chocolate chips all wrapped up into one delicious cookie.
Cowboy cookies are delicious served warm with a cold glass of milk, or still delicious a couple days later. The cookies have slightly crunchy edges, the best soft and chewy middles, and so packed full of delicious ingredients.
What are cowboy cookies?
Cowboy cookies are a loaded oatmeal cookie packed full of chocolate chips, coconut, and pecans. They were made popular when Laura Bush made Cowboy Cookies for a political Bake Off in 2000.
Some say these cookies were enjoyed by cowboys, like an old fashioned granola bar cookie because they’re packed full of so many delicious ingredients, and would withstand long days in their saddle bags. Others say they originated in Texas (also called Texas Cookies) which has long been home to many cowboys.
Regardless of the origin of the name, these cowboy cookies are delicious, and you’ll love them whether you’re a cowboy or not 😉
These cookies are similar to my Chocolate Chip Coconut Pecan Cookies, but with added oatmeal to give them their extra chewy texture.
Ingredients Needed to make Cowboy Cookies:
This is a quick overview of the ingredients you’ll need for this cowboy cookie recipe. Specific measurements and full recipe instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
- unsalted butter – to hold all the ingredients together, and give the cookies flavor
- granulated and brown sugar – the perfect combination for soft and chewy cookies
- eggs – to help hold all the dry ingredients together, and provide moisture
- vanilla extract
- all purpose flour – measure carefully by spooning it into the cup, then leveling off the top
- old fashioned oats – these give the cookies the perfect chewy texture
- cinnamon – gives the cookies a nice warm flavor
- baking soda – helps the cookies rise just enough
- salt – balances out the sweetness of the cookies
- chocolate chips – you can use whichever type you prefer, dark chocolate, semi sweet, or milk chocolate chips, or even a mix
- pecans – chopped up so they spread nicely throughout the cookies, you can toast them before adding them to the dough for an extra nutty flavor
- coconut – sweetened shredded coconut works best, you can also toast the coconut before adding it to the cookies if desired
How to make Cowboy Cookies?
Preheat the oven and line a baking pan with parchment paper.
In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) cream together your butter, white sugar, and brown sugar with a stand mixer, or a hand mixer, for a couple minutes until it’s light in color, and creamy.
Add in the eggs and vanilla extract and stir them together until just combined.
Then add in all the dry ingredients, flour, oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt and stir it together until you have a nice soft cookie dough.
Add in the mix-ins; chocolate chips, pecans, and coconut and fold them into the dough.
Take scoops of dough, about 2 TBS each and roll them into balls and place them each 2 inches apart on the prepared baking pan.
Bake the cookies until the edges are golden, and the tops are mostly set, then remove the pan from the oven to let them cool for 10 minutes on the baking pan. Then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Tips and Tricks to make Texas Cowboy Cookies:
- For an even nuttier, rich cookie, try using brown butter instead of regular softened butter.
- Use old fashioned oats in the cookie dough for the best chewy oat texture. Quick oats will soak up more of the moisture and are not recommended.
- Try other baking chips instead of chocolate chips in these cookies, butterscotch chips, cinnamon chips, peanut butter chips, or white chocolate chips are delicious.
- You can also substitute walnuts for the pecans if that is what you have on hand, or prefer.
- Some people also add corn flakes to these cookies, add about 1 cup to the cookie dough when you add your chocolate chips if desired.
- You can also add 1 cup of dried fruit to these cookies if desired, I love them with raisins or cran-raisins.
- If your dough is too sticky to work with, cover it and place it in the fridge for 15 to 30 minutes to make it easier to manage.
- You can also chill the remaining dough if you bake a pan and the cookies are spreading too much, this can be caused by mis-measuring, or just a warm kitchen.
- Remove your cookies from the oven when the edges are lightly golden brown. The middles may still look under baked, but the cookies will keep baking on the baking sheet, and this will keep them soft and chewy in the center.
How to store leftover cookies?
After the cookies have come to room temperature, you can store any leftovers in an airtight container on the counter for up to 4 days.
You can also freeze the leftover cookies. Arrange them on a cookie sheet, then freeze the cookie sheet for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until they are hardened. Then transfer the cookies to a freezer safe container, or double wrap them in two layers of freezer safe zip top bags. Then can be frozen for up to 3 months. Let them thaw at room temperature until ready to eat.
You can also freeze the cookie dough prior to baking. Roll the dough into balls and place them on a baking tray in the freezer for about 1 hour. Transfer the frozen cookie dough balls to a freezer safe container, and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake the frozen cookie dough balls the same as before, just add an extra 2 to 4 minutes, or until they’re cooked through.
These delicious cookies are a definite favorite, they’re loaded with so many different flavors, giving them the perfect texture and flavor in every bite. They’re definitely a favorite here, and will be with your family members too.
More oatmeal cookie recipes:
- Hurricane Cookies
- Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Healthy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Monster Cookies
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Cowboy Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- flakey sea salt (optional)
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a cookie sheet with a silicone liner or parchment paper, and set it aside.
- Add the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar to a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and cream them together for about 2 minutes until light and creamy.
- Add in the eggs, and vanilla extract, and stir them into the mixture until just combined.
- Add in the flour, oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt and stir it all together until you have a nice soft cookie dough.
- Add in the chocolate chips, chopped pecans, and shredded coconut and fold them into the dough.
- Scoop the dough into 2 heaping TBS sized balls, roll them into balls. Place them onto the prepared cookie sheet, 2 inches apart from each other.
- Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 10 to 14 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden brown, and the tops are just set.
- Top the cookies with a couple extra chocolate chips, or pecan pieces if desired. Sprinkle the cookies with sea salt, if desired.
- Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes, as they will continue baking. Then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Gloria Barrett says
How much cornstarch? It is not listed with the ingredients!
Thanks!
Aimee says
Sorry, no cornstarch in this one – fixed it! But if you want to add some for a softer cookie, I usually add 1 TBS