Fun at the Ranch and All My Favorite Cookies!

Tex here, fresh off of an invigorating weekend at the ranch. I love to go down there. Get away from the city and enjoy some of the simple things that you just don't get to do when you live in town. Like campfires and Polaris rides through the woods. 

Funny thing about the ranch, though, you just never know what you might find. 

Of course, these babies are expected this time of year. The pasture was full of calves.

And beautiful views are always welcome.

Don't see many of these little fellas, though.

Not sure how this baby mole managed to stray away from his mama, but he was still cute.

Much cuter than this guy.

I'm referring to the gator, not my son. Although Ryan would not agree. To say that he loves gators would be an understatement. So when this fella wandered into one of our ponds, Ryan couldn't wait to catch him. And, as you can see, he did just that. This was his farewell kiss, though. Little Buddy (yes,Ryan named him) went back to the pond after we took this pic. A few months later, he was gone.

Ryan has another passion, too. And I hate when these guys show up.

Yep, that's a Copperhead. As in poisonous snake. See the stick in Ryan's hand? He uses that to catch these disgusting creatures. Personally, I prefer a gun, but Ryan captures them, ogles over them, scares the fire out of us, then releases them into the woods. Hopefully the snakes are freaked out enough from being manhandled that they won't come back.

Shudder!

But enough about yucky things like gators and snakes. I'd much rather talk cookies.

You ever see a recipe and think, "I gotta try this?"

That's exactly what happened to me as soon as I perused this recipe.

I love cookies. Chocolate chip, peanut butter, oatmeal... Which is exactly why this captured my attention. Why not combine them all?

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies. Sounds yummy, doesn't it? However, the name is a little misleading. They should call them Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies. Kind of a mouthful, huh? And you know what's weird about these cookies? 

No flour. 

That's right. There is no flour in this recipe. However, there IS lots of flavor and fiber. So in my book, that makes them almost healthy. I mean chocolate is one of the major food groups, right? ;)

So here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 6 cup rolled oats (not instant or quick - I used the old fashioned style)
• 2 cups milk chocolate chips (I used my 60% cacao instead)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 

Cream together butter and sugars.

Nope, not looking to creamy to me either, but that's what the recipe said.

Add the vanilla, eggs and peanut butter.

Now we're looking creamy.

And, if you're a sucker for peanut butter like I am, this smells divine.

Stir in baking soda, oats and chocolate chips.

Yep, this is a work out. And I must forewarn those of you who like to sample their cookie dough like I do. You get started with this and you might not be able to stop. Oh. My. It was AMAZING.

Drop by 1/4 cupfuls (yes, you read that right) onto a cookie sheet.

Then partially flatten with your hand.

Bake 14-16 minutes. The cookies might not look done, but they'll continue cooking out of the oven.

Now came the real test. I was afraid they might be crumbly. Instead, they were soft and chewy. And oh-so-satisfying. One of these with a cup of tea about mid-afternoon and you'll be good until dinner. 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

Our dogs like going to the ranch, too. And they always know when we're about to go. They see us bringing down suitcases and loading the car and they get all excited. 

Dixie, our golden retriever, has a special fondness for fish. Sometimes the boys will throw a few bass into the stock tank and Dixie will stay there for hours, chasing the fish round and round. Which is good exercise for this pudgie pup. She's even jumped in a time or two, though she doesn't hurt the fish. 

All she wants to do is play.

What did you do this weekend? Work or play? Did you watch the big game? Did you do something productive? Or did you kick back and enjoy doing nothing?