Ranger Cookies

Prep 1 hr 15 min
Total 1 hr 30 min
Servings 54

Where will your holidays take you? With these old-fashioned ranger cookies packed with oats, Wheaties™ cereal and peanuts, you can fuel any trip with delicious bites. Baked until they are soft in the middle, they have a delightful light and nutty crunch. While we love these cookies for their flavor, we also love that each cookie has ½ serving of whole grain from the oats and whole grain flour! This ranger cookie recipe makes a large batch, about 54, so there will be plenty of these whole-grain, energy-packed cookies to give everyone that extra boost on your next hike! Or, enjoy these at home instead and freeze the leftovers to save the extras for later.

By Betty Crocker Kitchens

Updated September 14, 2020

Ingredients

2

cups packed brown sugar
1

cup butter or margarine, softened
1

teaspoon vanilla
2

eggs
2

cups Gold Medal™ whole wheat flour
2

cups old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats
1

teaspoon baking powder
1

teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2

cups Wheaties™ cereal
1

cup salted peanuts

Steps

1

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, mix brown sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs with spoon. Stir in flour, oats, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in cereal and peanuts.
2

Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. On ungreased cookie sheets, place balls about 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly with greased bottom of glass dipped in sugar.
3

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.

Old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats - which do you choose when baking? Quick-cooking oats and old-fashioned oats are both whole oats that have been steamed and rolled. Unlike old-fashioned oats, quick-cooking oats are cut into small pieces before steaming which would give these cookies a softer texture. If you want cookies that are chewier with more defined oats, use the old-fashioned oats instead.
These cookies are versatile and can be made with a variety of ingredients commonly found in the kitchen pantry. Substitute Chex™ cereal for the Wheaties™, add in raisins, M&M’s™, or even mix in a few chocolate chips or peanut butter chips for extra crunch and flavor.
Take a shortcut and use a pouch of Betty Crocker™ oatmeal cookie mix. For more details, see our recipe for Easy Ranger Cookies for more tips and tricks to get delicious ranger cookies baked and in the cookie jar easier and quicker!
For those looking for gluten-free options, try our recipe for Gluten-Free Ranger Cookies! They have the same light and nutty crunch but use a Betty Crocker™ Gluten-Free cookie mix to make them gluten-free.