Why This Recipe Works

Cowboy cookies—full of rolled oats, chocolate chips, toasted nuts, and flakes of coconut—have little to do with 10-gallon hats or gunfights at high noon. Instead they are a product of 1950s nostalgia for the American cowboy; recipes fondly call them hearty enough for the Western frontier. Since the dry oats and coconut absorbed moisture in the dough, making it tough, we added one egg plus one yolk and melted the butter (instead of creaming it with the sugar) to keep the dough moist and to give the cookies appealing chew. Deliberately underbaking the cookies (allowing for a bit of carryover cooking once they were out of the oven) gave us the ideal soft interiors and crisp exteriors. Staggering ¼-cup portions of dough on the cookie sheets created a rustic appearance and left enough room for them to spread to the proper large “cowboy” size.

Before You Begin

We prefer old-fashioned rolled oats in this recipe, but you can use quick or instant oats in a pinch. Do not use thick-cut oats here; the cookies will spread too much. These cookies are big and benefit from the extra space provided by a rimless cookie sheet when baking.

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 rimless cookie sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in bowl.

Whisk sugar, melted butter, egg and yolk, and vanilla in large bowl until combined. Stir in flour mixture until no dry streaks remain. Stir in oats, pecans, coconut, and chocolate chips until fully combined (mixture will be sticky).

Lightly spray 1/4-cup dry measuring cup with vegetable oil spray. Drop level 1/4-cup portions of dough onto prepared sheets, staggering 8 portions per sheet and spacing them about 2 1/2 inches apart. Divide any remaining dough among portions.

Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are browned and set and centers are puffed with pale, raw spots, 15 to 17 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Do not overbake.

Let cookies cool on sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and let cool completely before serving. (Cookies can be stored in airtight container for up to 3 days.)TO MAKE AHEAD: At end of step 3, wrap sheets tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days. When ready to bake, increase baking time to 16 to 18 minutes. To freeze, portion dough onto parchment-lined sheet and freeze until solid. Transfer frozen portions to zipper-lock bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Do not thaw before baking. Increase baking time to 17 to 19 minutes.