cowboy cookies
{{Short description|Type of drop cookie}}{{Infobox food|image=Plate of cowboy cookies.jpg|caption=Plate of cowboy cookies|type=Cookie|region=United States of America|course=Dessert|main_ingredient=Oatmeal, chocolate chips, pecans, coconut}}
Cowboy cookies are a type of drop cookie made with oatmeal, chocolate chips, pecans, and coconut.
History
The origins of "cowboy cookies" are unknown although they have been variously attributed to Texas or the Old West. The story that describes them in originating in the Old West claims that they were eaten by cowboys as a high energy snack that could be easily carried.{{Cite news |last=Gordon |first=Karen |title=Karen Gordon: Breakfast calls for Cowboy Cookies packed with oats |work=Vancouver Sun |url=https://vancouversun.com/life/food/recipes/karen-gordon-breakfast-calls-for-cowboy-cookies-packed-with-oats}}{{Cite web |date=2020-11-11 |title=The Untold Truth Of Cowboy Cookies |url=https://www.mashed.com/277299/the-untold-truth-of-cowboy-cookies/ |access-date=2023-06-20 |website=Mashed |language=en-US}} The dessert is also associated with the state of Wyoming.{{Cite web |date=2022-12-07 |title=Make fully loaded cowboy cookies to feed a party crowd |url=https://www.today.com/recipes/cowboy-cookies-cranberries-chocolate-coconut-recipe-t271589 |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=TODAY.com |language=en}}File:Cowboy Cookie Dough.jpgFile:Cowboy Cookies.jpgCowboy cookies were further popularized when First Lady Laura Bush baked "Texas Governor's Mansion Cowboy Cookies" for the First Lady Bake-Off during her husband George W. Bush's campaign for the 2000 United States presidential election.{{Cite web |date=2015-06-11 |title=Cowboy Cookies, Yeehaw! |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/cowboy-cookies-yeehaw_b_7561656 |access-date=2023-06-20 |website=HuffPost |language=en}} As part of the competition, the recipe was printed in Family Circle, the publication which held the contest. They ultimately beat Tipper Gore's recipe for ginger snap cookies.{{Cite web |title=Laura Bush's Cowboy Cookies |url=https://www.southernliving.com/recipes/cowboy-cookies-recipe |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=Southern Living |language=en}} An article by Marian Burros in The New York Times noted that Family Circle had increased the cooking time in the recipe from the 10 to 12 minutes suggested by Laura Bush to 17 to 20 minutes, causing them to be burnt. Burros also described Gore's cookies as superior, and stated that they only lost because they lacked chocolate and were not as "flashy".{{Cite news |last=Burros |first=Marian |date=2000-07-02 |title=It's Ginger vs. Chocolate in the Presidential Cookie Race |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/02/style/it-s-ginger-vs-chocolate-in-the-presidential-cookie-race.html |access-date=2023-06-19 |issn=0362-4331}} Bush submitted her recipe for cowboy cookies again in the 2004 bakeoff and beat Teresa Kerry's pumpkin spice cookies.{{Cite news |last=Burros |first=Marian |date=2004-07-28 |title=UNIFYING THE PARTY: THE CANDIDATE'S WIFE; Mystery Ingredients: Heinz Kerry Disavows Cookie Recipe |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/28/us/unifying-party-candidate-s-wife-mystery-ingredients-heinz-kerry-disavows-cookie.html |access-date=2023-06-24 |issn=0362-4331}}
Description
Cowboy cookies typically include a variety of rich ingredients, including oatmeal, chocolate, pecans and shredded coconut.{{Cite web |date=2022-10-19 |title=Pecans add perfect touch to Cowboy Cookies |url=https://www.bostonherald.com/2022/10/19/pecans-add-perfect-touch-to-cowboy-cookies/ |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=Boston Herald |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Giant Cowboy Cookies Recipe |url=https://www.pbs.org/food/recipes/giant-cowboy-cookies |access-date=2023-06-20 |website=PBS Food |language=en-US}} The dough typically includes flour, sugar, eggs, butter and vanilla.{{Cite web |title=Wyoming Cowboy Cookies |url=https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/wyoming-cowboy-cookies/ |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=Taste of Home |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Cowboy Cookies Recipe |url=https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/4997-cowboy-cookies |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=NYT Cooking |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=CountryLady |title=Chocolate Cowboy Cookies Recipe - Food.com |url=https://www.food.com/recipe/chocolate-cowboy-cookies-56652,%20https://www.food.com/recipe/chocolate-cowboy-cookies-56652 |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=www.food.com |language=en }}{{Dead link|date=January 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Some variations include pieces of hard pretzels.{{Cite news |title=Pretzel Cowboy Cookies |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/recipes/pretzel-cowboy-cookies/}}{{Cite web |last=staff |first=Seattle Times |date=2013-12-19 |title=Recipe: Pretzel Cowboy Cookies |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/life/food-drink/recipe-pretzel-cowboy-cookies/ |access-date=2023-06-20 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}