Cowboy “Cookie” Power Bites
Andrea Potischman
Dec 1, 2019
I’ve always had a fascination with cowboys. But being raised as a city kid, I’m not exactly sure why or how. I’ve never actually met a real cowboy; only the want-to-be’s. The family ranch vacation where you become a cowboy/girl for the week is on my list of things to do, but somehow my fear of snakes (and love of white sandy beaches) has prevented me from pulling the trigger on that family trip.
That aside, my love of cowboys has logically led me to my love of a favorite American baking invention-the cowboy cookie. For those unfamiliar, a cowboy cookie is a compost or kitchen sink cookie which I have blogged about before when I posted my “dump Trump compost cookies”.
For those unfamiliar, a kitchen sink/compost cookie is a mixture of lots of different things, or whatever you have on hand. Cowboy cookies can be described as a chocolate chip cookie meets an oatmeal cookie with lots of other “add-ins“, such as coconut, nuts, and brown sugar which helps make them extra chewy.
Cowboy cookies, also called “ranger cookies” have been around a long time but gained in popularity due to political bake-off. In the early 1990’s in Family Circle Magazine. There Laura Bush’s Texas Governor’s Mansion Cowboy Cookie recipe went up against Tipper Gore’s Ginger Snap Cookie recipe. Cowboy cookies won by a landslide. Despite, my political views, I get it.
While it’s no secret, that I LOVE a good cookie, I wanted to make a no-bake cowboy cookie power bite that was just as tasty and a tad bit healthier. I may be biased, but I think I did it. Not sure what a real cowboy would think of my cowboy power bites, but I’ll take my chances for now, until I meet a real one.
Cowboy "Cookie" Power Bites
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1/3 cup dairy-free Enjoy Life chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup roasted pecans, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon dark muscovado sugar (I prefer India Tree)
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/3 cup, plus 1 tablespoon of creamy almond butter
- 2 tablespoons local honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- Dash of cinnamon
Directions:
- In a large mixing bowl add the rolled oats, coconut, chocolate chips, pecans, muscovado sugar, and almond flour, and mix well to blend. Add the almond butter, honey, vanilla, chia seeds, and cinnamon and mix to incorporate.
- Place in the refrigerator and allow to chill for 15 minutes. Remove the mixture from the refrigerator and using your hands, press firmly and form into 1-inch balls. (Note: if the mixture is too dry, add a bit more almond butter.)
- Store the power bites in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The power bites stay fresh for about 1 week.
Made them!!! Really, really good. Had to add a bit more almond butter. My kids ate them in a day.
Nice. Always love hearing when people make my recipes, thank you for telling me!!!! Keep on cooking. Happy holidays.