Perfect Every Time

Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: March 2024 | Photograph By: Susan Renfro

Krysti Henderson

Krysti Henderson knows more about the transformative power of baking than most of us.

After all, she’s been cooking up sumptuous sweets at her commercial bakery, for 10 years – ever since that memorable July 4th day when she first brought around a slice of her luscious chocolate heaven cake (the creation that also became the eponym for her business) to the Cashiers Farmers Market.

Today her repertoire of baked goods – Chocolate Heaven, Caramel Cake, Coffee Cake and four varieties of Banana Bread – are sold throughout the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic through independent retailers and distributors.

So, it’s not surprising when she tells me, “Personally, I don’t bake a lot because it’s what I do every day. But once in a while I goof off and decide to have some fun.”

When that happens, she reaches for her whips, bowls, and mixers and cooks up a batch of her favorite cookies – Ranger Cookies. “They’re just a very happy experience for me. They’re good and simple without any exotic ingredients, and don’t need any ‘churching up’ – that’s the draw of the ranger cookies, they’re perfect every time.”

Uniquely crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, with the occasional crunch of a nut between creamy bites of buttery oatmeal and crispy Rice Krispies, they are a whammy of texture and flavor – a sort of simple perfection in and of themselves.

Krysti Henderson’s Ranger Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar (I like to use dark brown sugar for the molasses-ey flavor)

2 large eggs

1 tbsp. bourbon

2 cups all-purpose flour (I like unbleached)

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 cups quick oats

2 cups crispy rice cereal (crushed corn flakes are pretty awesome, too)

1 cup shredded coconut

Optional: 1 cup finely chopped pecans – or your favorite nuts, 1 cup dried cherries,  cranberries or raisins. I like to add a tsp. of nutmeg as well.

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Mix on medium speed until the butter and sugar are incorporated, then increase the speed to medium high and mix until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Reduce the speed to low, add the egg and bourbon and mix until incorporated.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and whisk together. Slowly add to the mixer and mix until mixed well. Add the cereal, oats, shredded coconut, and other add-ins if using.

4. Portion the dough using a small scoop (about ½ cup) on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about four inches apart.
5. Bake until golden brown around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes. (Krysti likes her a tiny bit underdone to keep them chewy) Allow

the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Note: Krysti advises that “They probably freeze extremely well, but they never last long around me so it’s never been an issue!”