Buffalo Chip Cookies with Variations

Buffalo chip cookies are the over-the-top jumbo cookie tradition that earned their name from their resemblance to actual buffalo chips out on the prairie. Two cups each of rolled oats and crushed corn flakes bulk up a butter-and-brown-sugar dough, while a ‘choose-your-own-stir-ins’ approach lets you pick from raisins, peanuts, nuts, coconut, butterscotch chips, or chocolate chips.

The corn flakes are the unsung hero. They give these cookies their signature craggy, nubby surface and add a delicate crispness that plain oat cookies don’t have. Crushed slightly during mixing, they distribute through the dough as little airy structural anchors.

Melted (not just softened) margarine creates a wetter dough that spreads more, contributing to that giant flat-and-thin buffalo-chip silhouette. Cream them properly and you get small puffy cookies; this is the opposite intent here.

Pro Tips

• Use truly large scoops or a ½-cup measure for proper buffalo chip size. These are not meant to be small; small versions don’t develop the right texture contrast.
• Leave plenty of space on the cookie sheet. These spread substantially during the bake and crowded ones will merge into one giant cookie sheet.
• Don’t overbake. They should look slightly underdone when you pull them; they firm up as they cool. Overbaked buffalo chips turn dry and crumbly.
• Stick to 1 or 2 stir-ins as the recipe specifies. Adding all 6 makes the cookies fall apart from too many add-ins overwhelming the dough’s structure.

Variations

• For a classic chocolate-peanut combo, use 6 oz chocolate chips and 1 cup peanuts.
• For a tropical version, use 1 cup shredded coconut and 1 cup chopped macadamia nuts.
• For oatmeal-raisin lovers, use 1 cup raisins and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon.

Freeze unbaked dough scoops on a tray, then transfer to a zip-top bag for fresh-baked cookies on demand throughout the week.