Pirate Cookies

There is a bakery in my town that used to make the most amazing cookie. They called it The Cowboy, and it was a soft, chewy oatmeal cookie with pecans and chocolate chips. There was a time where I was eating them so frequently, that whoever was behind the counter on the day I would come in would know exactly what I wanted, even if they had never waited on me before ... oddly enough, that creeped me out so bad I stopped eating them for a long time.  On their part it was just good customer service. But in my mind, being The Cowboy cookie monster was not the reputation I wanted in this town.

After my long break, I went back in one day only to find the price had gone up, the cookie had gotten smaller, and it did not taste the same.  It was still a good cookie, but not the magical cookie for which I had fallen in love. Perhaps I was their only customer for this particular cookie, and after I stopped purchasing them the baker became depressed and couldn't go on any longer ... who knows.

Fast forward to this week. For the first time ever, I attempted my very own cookie recipe, and even though I wasn't sure about the results at first, I've pretty much been eating them like they were my soul source of survival. They ranked higher than air as of this morning.

My justification: they have oatmeal in them, and oatmeal is good for your heart.

Enough said.

I took my inspiration from The Cowboy I enjoyed all those years ago, and armed with a little knowledge on the various ingredients and their effects on the bake, and my fascination with rum extract,  The Pirate was born.

Now this recipe is my first attempt, and other versions will be forthcoming, but The Pirate has become a cookie that I could eat night and day.  And I've literally tried to live out that statement.

The Pirate Cookie

2 sticks softened butter (unsalted)
1 cup dark brown sugar packed
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tsp. salt (if you use salted butter, change this to 1/2 tsp.)
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl or stand mixer (which is what I use) cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. In separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, & salt. Add eggs to butter/egg mixture one at a time until incorporated. Then add extracts and mix. Then add in flour and mix just until no white is left showing. Then mix in oats and chocolate chips until evenly distributed.

If you scoop out a mound about the size of 1 tbsp., you should end up with about 30 or so cookies. I use a mini ice-cream scoop, so that's the amount I roughly produced.  Place your scoops on a parchment lined backing tray or silicone mat and bake for 12-15 minutes.

I usually rotate the trays halfway through baking because I have hot spots in my oven. You want to end up with a lovely brown color.  The finished product should be crunchy on the edges and soft and chewy inside.

I'm going to try this one again with raisins instead of chocolate chips, and maybe even go wild and try a different extract. The rum gave it an interesting, and quite addictive flavor.

But then again, butter has the same effect on me.

So does chocolate chips ...

Maybe I really am part cookie monster ...