Laura Bush's Texas Governor's Mansion Cowboy Cookies

These are Preston's favorite cookie, so in honor of his birthday, I am posting them today. The recipe makes a ton, and I get tired of scooping cookie dough and rotating sheets fairly quickly, so I usually freeze part of the dough in a log. Beware, though - the frozen cookie dough is really good. I've frozen it before and we haven't gotten around to ever baking the cookies because we ate all the dough frozen. Don't be like me. You shouldn't let your kids eat raw cookie dough and you shouldn't either. But you should make these cookies. They are crisp on the edges and chewy inside.

Laura Bush's Texas Governor's Mansion Cowboy Cookies

Recipe from Parent's Magazine

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1T baking soda
1T cinnamon
1 t salt
1.5 cups (3 sticks) butter, softened
1.5 cups granualated sugar
1.5 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
1 T vanilla
2-3 cups chocolate chips
3 cups rolled oats
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
2 cups chopped pecans, optional (I always opt out)


Mix dry ingredients in a bowl.

In a very large bowl, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Add in sugars and cream. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Add vanilla.

Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Add chocolate chips, oats, and coconut and stir until combined.

Drop by 2 tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets, leaving plenty of room around each one.I usually do eight per sheet. They spread a lot, so you may want to mound the dough up higher. Bake at 350 for 11-13 minutes. Let cool a few minutes before removing to a rack to cool completely. Package some up and send them to Preston because I don't make them very often since they use 3 sticks of butter and 3 cups of sugar.

Green Orange Julius

The family night classic...reinvented.  This isn't just for dessert though; it's delicious anytime.

I realize the majority of my recent posts involve bananas. Sorry about that if you can't eat or don't like bananas. That's definitely not the case here. Sometimes I buy three bunches a week. If they're on the reduced rack, they're only 25 cents a pound, so I totally stock up.

This would be perfect for St. Patrick's Day, although you'll definitely want to make it year round.

Green Orange Julius

from Foodie with Family


1.5 cups milk, whatever kind suits your preference
1 cup orange juice concentrate
a couple big handfuls of spinach
1 frozen and sliced banana
1/2 t vanilla

Blend it all together until frothy and serve. Serves 2-3.