Oh the places these hero cookies can go!
Jump to Recipe
As the Culinary Director at Skratch Labs, I distinctly recall delivering a tray of warm rice bowls and homebaked cookies to Rebecca Rusch’s PR camp at Sea Otter where the ground-breaking adventuress and endurance legend Was holding an event. “Rebecca Rusch was fueled by MY COOKIES!” I thought.
So you can imagine the joy in actually collaborating with her to create a cookie recipe. The result? Choose-Your-Trail Mix Cookies for Rebecca Rusch are the second recipe in my #HeroCookie series with Prokit!! (Insert adult-like squeal of glee.)
I expected that a cookie epitomizing a woman as honestly badass as Rebecca was going to be a serious challenge. Would it be something nutritionally dense that could survive a 1000-mile trans-Alaskan quest? Perhaps she wanted a waterproof cookie that would remain un-soggied as she rows a flimsy canoe across the South China Sea? These are not strange requests for the likes of Rebecca Rusch.
Echoing Robert Frost, Rebecca has also taken the road less traveled when presented with the option. And it’s made all the difference for her as well. “Each and every day we’re faced with choices that shape who we are,” she says. “And those choices can be decided with pressure or passion.”
Rebecca has chosen passion over pressure, always. As a kid growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, Rebecca tied on a pair of cross country sneakers and ran out the door. She found a love for exploration, movement, teamwork and, yes, the road less traveled. Rebecca still in those shoes, and has spent the past 30-year long career “chasing firsts” around the world.
{I’ve} “lived for days with my feet off the ground in Yosemite; spent hours under the hood of my truck with grease up to the elbows; picked leeches off my team mates’ private parts in Borneo” she says. The accomplishments she’s most proud of are “my longevity, evolution and integrity as an athlete and a human. I am proud to be maintaining a career that continually challenges and inspires myself and others to Be Good.”
I’m so proud to create a recipe to fuel Rebecca’s tenacious adventurism, and more. Here’s what she had to say about her #HeroCookies:
What’s your hero cookie? (Or is it a cookie hero?)
{My #HeroCookie} answers the question – “what’s around that corner? What’s over there?” This cookie would be fueling, healthy, soothing, comforting, fun, inspired, and adventurous. For the trails less traveled. Rocky, dirty, undulating. Comforting, but unpredictable.”
If you close your eyes and imagine yourself eating this cookie, where are you?
“Outside, high on a mountain peak…somewhere new and unknown…sweaty, tired, elated from the work. Celebrating the gift of the summit and the view and already looking at the next peak over there….”
What’s fueling you through these challenging pandemic times?
You can’t sit still. One must evolve. Do not give up. This is hands down one of the most challenging times ever. I have to keep inspiring and challenging myself. It’s hard but essential. We are only half way through this race and it’s time to dig in and not quit. Giving up is not an option. Community is key. “
These cookies! My Trail Mix Cookie for Rebecca are even better than waterproof or freeze-resistant; you actually choose your own cookie adventure as you bake! My recipe is inspired by the original trusted energy source – trail mix! So, it’s crammed with toasted nuts, dried fruit, hearty oats, and chocolate. ANYTHING can become “trail mix,” just as anything can become an adventure, so as you bake your cookies, you decide all the delicious little nibs, bumps and surprises to include.
Here are a few combinations Rebecca + I have taste-test approved:
If you’re looking for some additional ways to choose your own adventure, and Be Good, Rebecca has some ideas for that too:
Rebecca hopes that when you bake + enjoy these cookies, you’re inspired to be brave. To be bold. To use that cookie power to Be Good, and to do good for others too. And, to not just embrace the unexpected, but to enjoy it. And, she has a few ideas for places/actual adventures where your trail mix cookies will fit right in!
Quickly before you get baking:
This very forgiving recipe can easily be manipulated to be made vegan, dairy-free or gluten-free. Simply use your favorite swap for butter and eggs, gluten-free oats or a cup-for-cup gluten free flour.
Happy baking, friends! Get out there, enjoy the adventure!
This very forgiving recipe can easily be manipulated for whatever physical (or dietary) adventures you have ahead!
Happy baking, friends! Get out there, enjoy the adventure!
Flavors are FUN, yes, but they also are the mechanisms by which our bodies nourish themselves. Flavors basically tell our bodies what the food is giving us – on a nutritional and energetic level. Our bodies then prepare enzymes to break those components down, assimilate them, and turn them into fuel for our vibrant lives. We can’t eat just one flavor and get all of the things we need, so learning to track the flavors in our foods helps us to be sure that we’re really getting all of the things we need in our meals. This particular recipe has at least four of six flavors. The more flavors we can enjoy in any meal or food, the happier and more balanced our bodies will be. If you’re wanting to learn more about how the flavors we eat fuel our bodies – energetically and nutritively, check out this little blog post.
Oh the places these hero cookies can go!
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Spread the nuts and oats over a baking sheet and toast until fragrant + just golden – about 5 minutes. Watch carefully as you don’t want the smaller seeds to burn! Pull the sheet pan from the oven and allow the nuts and oats to cool to room temperature.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the egg, melted butter, sugars, vanilla and salt until a cohesive mixture is formed. Allow the mixture to stand while the oats and nuts cool.
Add the dried fruit or ginger and chopped chocolate to the egg mixture. Stir to combine. Add the flour, the baking soda, and then the nut and oat mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon (or with your hands,) squeezing and pressing to combine.
Allow the cookie batter to chill 2 hours, or up to 3 days. This allows the cookies to set, and for the baked cookies to have a lovely texture.
Preheat your oven to 350°F again (if it’s no longer on.) Line a sheet tray with parchment paper. Use a 1⁄3 cup measure to scoop cookie batter out onto the sheet pan, pressing down the dough into disks. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
Bake the cookies until golden around the edges and very fragrant, 11-13 minutes.
Allow to cool on the baking sheet. Then pack + enjoy often!