I spent the last week in the warm embrace of Mexico City so there was more eating and drinking than reviewing or reporting, but exploring new cuisines always makes me think of the recipes and traditions that will survive my own experience.
There are meals like seafood stew on Christmas Eve, the pork tenderloin and orzo my dad makes when the family gets together at any time of year, and of course, desserts like the individual birthday cakes we requested year after year.
When I’m really looking for comfort, though, the answer is ranger cookies. While the following is by no means a family invention and there are other versions out there, this is the recipe that my grandmother used, and my mother after her, and that I’ll continue to use when I want to bite into a memory.
Ranger Cookies
Ingredients
1 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups quick-cooking oats
2 cups rice krispies
Instructions
Combine butter, sugars - mix well. Beat in eggs, baking soda, salt and baking powder. Add flour, vanilla, oats and krispies - stir to mix well. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake @ 350 for 10 - 13 minutes until golden brown.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this letter said that this recipe makes 96 cookies, but after consulting with experts, we’ve determined that that’s just not possible with “heaping spoonfuls.” Can confirm these are delicious at any size and number.
A lot of you are understandably concerned about the gargantuan yield of this recipe. Checking in with an expert (my mom) to see if that’s a typo or if we’re cookie monsters. Will update when we have answers.
The best!