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The very BEST Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies for your winter weekend baking. Homemade chocolate chip cookies, made with oats, shredded coconut, plenty of chocolate chunks, pretzels pieces, and a small pinch of flaky sea salt. Each cookie dough ball is hand stuffed with salty pretzel pieces before baking them to perfection. There’s nothing not to love about these sweet chocolate (crunch) cookies. Each bite is slightly crisp on the edges but soft and gooey in the center…with just a little pretzel crunch.

overhead close up photo of Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies

The last day of January just feels like it deserves a good cookie…I mean, it’s been a long month. On one hand, it feels like this month flew by, but on the other, it feels like it’s been the longest month. We shared a lot of new recipes, with almost all of them geared towards a Healthy January. Today is the exception (well, maybe yesterday too). But I just had to share these cookies because they’re insanely good and so perfect for this weekend! We truly do loooove them, but I can’t really say there’s anything that “healthy” about them. While…there’s oats…and unsweetened coconut?

But they also have butter, some sugar (not a ton), and plenty of semi-sweet chocolate too.

Please do hear me out. I tried, and tried, and tried again to create a delicious, soft, moist, and healthy cookie. But I just could not get them right. There were batches of peanut butter cookies, banana cookies, oat cookies, vegan cookies, butterless cookies. Pretty much every kind of cookie. But none of them were good enough. If you follow on Instagram you may have seen my many failed attempts.

cookie dough in bowl

Feeling pretty defeated, I caved in and made these cookies. And I got them right the very FIRST batch. I was immediately sold. Then I gave them to my mom to try. She said she was beyond sold and couldn’t stop eating them. We both agreed that the recipe needed to be shared, preferably before Super Bowl Sunday. So yes, technically it is still January, but sometimes you just need a really good, buttery, sweet, heavy on the chocolate cookie.

Trust me, you do. And I am here to share it with you all.

PS. I haven’t given up on my “healthy” cookie testing, just taking a break.

overhead close up photo of Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies

the back story…

What inspired these cowboy cookies? While I saw a recipe on Pinterest for cowboy cookies. They had oats, coconut, and pecans stirred into a classic chocolate chip cookie. They sounded very interesting, but it also felt like there was something missing from the cookie. Like, if you’re going to add so many “stir-ins” to your basic chocolate chip cookie, at least one of them should be a little more exciting.

For a second I couldn’t figure out what the cookie was missing, but then it hit me, a loaded cookie needs a “salty” component and maybe even a little crunch.

P.R.E.T.Z.E.L.S.

I thought back to these chocolate chip cookie stuffed soft pretzels I made last year. And then these snickerdoodles I made back in December. And I knew that a little salt and a little crunch from a pretzel would make a cowboy-style cookie even better. I tested it and the verdict came in quick. These are indeed the best…MOM says so! And she does not mess around when it comes to chocolate chip cookies.

Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookie dough baking

To make these salted pretzel cowboy party cookies…

One, gather your ingredients. You’ll need the basics, butter, sugar, flour, etc. Simple, nothing fancy, but all good.

Two, the stir-ins are the most important part. You’ll need old fashioned oats, shredded coconut, salted pretzel twists, and semi-sweet or milk chocolate chunks.

Three, beat, mix, stir, bake, wack that pan on the counter, bake again, wack again, eat warm…ENJOY!

Yes, there’s not one complicated thing about this recipe. These are EASY cookies.

overhead photo of Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies on baking sheet

A few keys for success…

…smashed pretzels on the outside, only just a few for the slightest salty, crunch with every sweet bite.

…flatten the cookies dough balls a bit before baking. You must do this to help your cookies bake evenly and spread.

…tap that baking sheet on your counter midway through baking, then finish cooking. When the cookies have completely finished baking, remove them from the oven, and tap the baking sheet once more. You guys, this step is KEY. It will ensure you have the least cakey chocolate chip cookie. Instead, you’ll get a cookie with crisp edges and a gooey center. Tapping the baking pan on the counter deflates the center of the cookie, pushing the edges out. I used this same method for my pumpkin cookies and I now do it whenever I bake any cookies…because it works. I learned this tip from the New York Times and you need it too.

…a little pinch of flaky sea salt, which isn’t a must, but it sure is delicious.

overhead photo of Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies

What I love about these cookies is that they’re so easy to make. They require no chilling and truly take just thirty minutes from start to finish. I almost always have these ingredients on hand. And when it’s Friday night and the urge for a delicious yet simple chocolatey cookie comes on? These cookies will be my new go-to.

They’re just perfectly crisp on the edges, but soft and gooey in the center, with a nice crunch and a little saltiness from the pretzels on top. The best kind of cookie.

Bake these tonight, or sometime this weekend for the Super Bowl…and then every other day you’re craving something sweet and easy!

side angled close up photo of Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies

If you make these salted pretzel cowboy party cookies, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!

Salted Pretzel Cowboy Party Cookies.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 32 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 207 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Ingredients

Instructions

  • 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
    2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until combined. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, until combined. Add the vanilla, beating until creamy. Add the flour, cinnamon (if using), baking soda, and salt. Fold in the oats, coconut, chocolate chips, and chocolate chunks.
    3. Roll the dough into rounded 2 tablespoon size balls. Place 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Gently push a few crushed pretzel pieces into each dough ball (see above photo), then flatten the dough ball down with the palm of your hand to 1/2 inch thickness.
    4. Transfer to the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and tap the baking sheet on the counter 3 times to flatten them down. Return to the oven and bake another 4 minutes or until the cookies are just beginning to set on the edges, but still doughy in the center. Remove from the oven and tap the baking sheet on the counter 2-3 times to flatten them down again. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet. They will continue to cook slightly as they sit on the baking sheet. Sprinkle with flaky salt.
    5. Eat warm (highly recommended) or let cool and store in an airtight container for up to 4 days. 

Notes

Freezing: the cookie dough balls can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw, then bake as directed. 
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Comments

    1. Hey Joan,
      Happy Sunday!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I appreciate you making it and your feedback! x

  1. Planning on making these cookies for a friend’s birthday bash. Want the pretzels to be crunchy! Can I make them a day ahead or will the pretzel be soft? And is pan tapping the same as pan banging for this receipe?
    Thanks!!

    1. Hi Karen,
      Sure, you can totally make these a day in advance! Yes, tapping and banging is the same thing:) I hope you love this recipe, happy birthday to your friend! xx

  2. 3 stars
    Followed the recipes and really wanted to love them.
    But they tasted way too dry to my husband and me. Like we wouldn’t want to have these without a glass of milk.

    They were still kinda undercooked so time in the oven can’t have been the problem.

    Any advice on what was the problem?
    Cause everyone else in the comments seems to have loved them…

  3. 5 stars
    The first one I tried after baking I thought, nah, not my thing, too much going on…. But something about these cookies is pure magic and now I can’t stop eating them. I made them for my employees end of the year party and they were an enormous hit!

    1. Hey Jessica,
      Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! Happy Tuesday! 🎄

  4. 5 stars
    These are amazing!!!! I tried different times over multiple batches. The 9 mins suggested in the recipe was way too undercooked for me, but I know some people like that flavoring. I prefer an 11-12 min total cook time. 5 mins then tap and another 6 mins. Regardless these are so yummy and substantial.

  5. 5 stars
    I just finished making these for the first time, and definitely not the last! They’re so good! I subbed coconut sugar for the brown sugar (that’s what I had) but everything else I followed exactly. Thank you!

    1. Hey Cori,
      Happy Wednesday!? Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad it was a tasty one! xxT

  6. 5 stars
    I love these cookies. The only thing is that when I put pretzels in these sorts of things they always lose their crunch by the next day … is there anything to prevent that??

  7. Really yum. I used unsalted butter so they needed an extra sprinkle of salt at the end. I did the midway banging but still had a cakey puff when I took them out. Pressed gently w the back of a spatula and that did the trick. Added chopped raw pecans to the batter which made them next level.

    1. Hi Amy,
      Fantastic! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Have a great week:) xx

    1. Hi Allie,
      That will be fine for you to use. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try!! xTieghan

  8. Hi Tieghan,
    These look delicious 🙂 What would you recommend if I wanted to substitute the salted butter? Your help will be appreciated 🙂 Thanks!

    1. Hi Nisha,
      So sorry, you are definitely going to want to use the butter in this recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan

  9. 5 stars
    These are amazing!! I only had about 3/3 tbs of vanilla extract in the house so I added. 1/4 tbs of almond extract and they taste so good! I also added 3/4
    cup chopped walnuts to the dough. Very very good!!!