Wednesday, September 1, 2010

cowboy cookies

03-30-2010 Cowboy Cookies 15

Oh, my. It seems things have gotten away from me again over here in blogging land. Terribly sorry about that. It's not that I don't enjoy cooking, baking, and blogging -- you know I do -- it's that my priorities have shifted a bit over the last year. Last July I started taking dance lessons. As it turns out, dancing comes rather naturally to me, so what began as just a little Country dancing (two-step, Schottische, triple-step, etc.) had, by September, ramped up to include ballroom, swing, and salsa, too. I danced five to six days a week all through the fall and winter, then dropped down to three to four days a week in the spring, partially because I was running out of money (private lessons are expensive!), and partially because I wanted to spend more time with my Country music/dancing friends and less with everyone else.

Spring, as you have read, brought carrot cake, the introduction of The Pioneer Woman, and Snickerdoodle cupcakes. Oh, and Orlando Bloom. Ugh. Let's wrap up that last part right now. Outside of the initial introduction, the Orlando Bloom experience was a disaster from start to very quick finish. He was not so much cowboy as redneck, and that just doesn't work for me. Moving on.

03-30-2010 Vintage H-bar-C Ranchwear Western Shirt

Summer, however, brought me something utterly delightful. Something tall and feverishly handsome, with baby blue eyes, scores of soft lashes, and sparkling white teeth...nicely packaged in boots and a cowboy hat. (I clearly have a type.) Enter Canadian Cowboy. Would you like to hear more about him? Perhaps after this recipe....

Cowboy Cookies
A recipe from MarthaStewart.com
Yields about 3 dozen cookies


2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light-brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch chunks (1 cup)
3 ounces (3/4 cup) pecan halves
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat butter and sugars on medium-high speed until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.

Reduce speed to low, and slowly add flour mixture, beating until just incorporated. Beat in oats, chocolate, pecans, and coconut until combined. (Dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

Using a 1 1/2-inch scoop, drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart. Bake until edges of cookies begin to brown, 11-13 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

7 comments:

  1. Welcome Back!! We've missed you out here in Blog Land! And my kitchen has been eagerly awaiting fresh recipes from you :) My own cowboy loves pecans and chocolate, so I'll be baking up this recipe soon!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you! I made these at the request of a friend (a cowboy, but not the aforementioned Canadian one). There are about a zillion recipes on the internet for cowboy cookies. I ended up choosing Martha's because I didn't have the time or the energy to sort through the rest. They came out great -- crispy around the edges and chewy in the center.

    As soon as the Canadian Cowboy learns not to eat all the cookies I make for him in one sitting, I'll make some for him too. :-)

    (He is very enthusiastic about my cooking and baking, which I suppose bodes well for the future of my blog!)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I can vouch for the wonderfulness of a man who loves your cooking and baking. I will never tire of hearing those compliments!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm afraid his enthusiasm is a bit like a drug for me. His eyes light up, he drops whatever he was doing, and with a gleeful expression on his face says, "Babe, I think we need to sample those right now!" With that kind of response, what woman wouldn't be in the kitchen?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Isn't it just *the best*?! I often get a pause, a look toward heaven, and a whispered "thank you for sara". I eat it up like candy :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh, yep -- that would do it for me too!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I have to agree, pleasing a man in the kitchen is a great motivation to stay in the kitchen! And the food's good, too!

    ReplyDelete