Homemade Pirate Cookies

Sunday 17 June 2012



Any guesses on what my absolute favourite cookie of all time is??? No, it's not custard creams, oreos, chocolate chip or even shortbreads . . .



It's the humble, peanut butter filled, peanut butter flavoured oat cookie called . . . "Pirate Cookies!" I just love that wholesome crisp oatmeal cookie (slightly peanut butter flavoured) and that yummy peanut buttercream filling. Oh, nothing on earth tastes better with a glass of milk.



I like to pull them apart and lick up the frosting and then eat the biscuits.



I like to dip them in milk and let them get soft and then eat that scrummy milk soaked goodness . . .



I like to eat them just as they come . . . two crispy layers . . . soft filling . . . Nom Nom!
I love to eat them anyway I can get them . . . only problem being . . . there is no such thing as a Pirate Cookie here in the UK . . . there is not even any biscuit that it close to being a Pirate Cookie.



My waistline is completely ok with that fact . . . but oh boy . . . you never know just how much you are going to miss something until it's way beyond your reach. I have been missing Pirate Cookies for nigh onto 12 years now . . . that's a long time to miss something.



Ok . . . so I do have had the occasional fix when I happen to fly home for holidays, about once every three years . . . but it's not near enough, truly. I love them that much. I've tried bringing some home with me in my baggage . . . but they get all crushed . . . not near as satisfying as crunching down your own biccies!



This week I decided to try to make my own . . . I baked oatmeal cookies largely based on an old recipe . . . I substituted some of the butter with peanut butter. It worked. I had some lovely peanut butter flavoured oatmeal cookies.I created a peanut butter flavoured buttercream filling.
I sandwiched that yummo peanut butter flavoured buttercream filling betwixt two of those scrummy oat cookies.



I fell in love. Mr Christie . . . you DO make good cookies . . . but these are better.

The end.



*Homemade Pirate Cookies*
Makes 18
Printable Recipe

Something which I have always missed from home . . . now I don't have to miss them anymore.

For the cookies:
75g of plain flour (3/4 cup)
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
8 TBS unsalted butter, at room temperature
90g of creamy peanut butter (1/2 cup)
96g of caster sugar (1/2 cup)
100g of soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup packed)
1 large free range egg, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
81g of quick cooking oats (1 cup)

For the filling:
3 TBS unsalted butter
90g of creamy peanut butter (1/2 cup)
130g of icing sugar, sifted (1 cup)
3 TBS heavy cream



Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk togethet the flour, soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Cream together the butter, peanut butter and both sugars, until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the flour mixture and then stir in the oats, beating briefly to combine. Scoop out using a small cookie scoop (approximately 1 heaped TBS) and drop onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches in between each for spreading. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown and the edgese are set. Allow to cool on the baking sheets for five minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Make the filling by beating together the butter, peanut butter and icing sugar at medium speed until smooth. Add the cream and beat until fluffy. Put together the cookies into pairs with some of this filling in between. Press the filling to the edges. Store in an airtight container.



Oh yes . . . I will still be induging my fill when I am home in July . . . but it's nice to know that I can still create a fabulous substitute in between trips!

25 comments

  1. Oh my goodness! I've never heard of Pirate Cookies, but now I instantly, instantly want one. Or two. Or a whole trayful. *Goes looking for pen and paper to write down recipe immediately*

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  2. Oh yum, these look good! When you say creamy PB you mean smooth right? Beccy will love these...gotsta keep em away from the Jo-jo tho.

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  3. I remember cooki4es like these when I was a kid! They don't sell anything like them in stores anymore.
    Another one of those things that if you want to have it, you'll have to make it yourself. Great idea and they look delicious!

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  4. For some reason..the tase and look are right there for me..but not sure they were called Pirate Cookies where I lived..
    Thanks Marie!

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  5. If I were not on my way out the door to church I would be making these right now. I will be baking this afternoon. I can already taste them. Thanks!

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  6. In the US, a similar cookie, with oat cookies sandwiching peanut butter cream filling, were called Gaucho's and the logo was of an elephant wearing a black gaucho outfit. They were a big favorite.

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    1. I had to look it up. These cookies were made by different companies. Pirate cookies were created by Christie, Brown & Co. in Canada and Nabisco bought the Christie company in 1928. The Gaucho's cookies were made by Burry's. I can't confirm this but Burry's doesn't seem to sell cookies any longer.

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  7. I haven't heard of Pirate Cookies but they do resemble a Girl Scout Cookie that I knew as Gaucho's.

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    1. I had to look this up. Burry's was the company that made this cookie in the US. The cookies they made for the Girl Scouts were called Savannah's, and the same cookies were made for retail sale but were called Gaucho's.
      In Canada, the cookies created by Christie, Brown & Co. were called Pirate cookies. The Christie company was sold to Nabisco in 1928 and both today are part of Mondelez, the spinoff company of Kraft.
      So these cookies were produced by two different companies. I can't confirm this but Burry's doesn't seem to make cookies anymore.

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    2. After reading up about Gaucho's, I learned that these cookies were made by a company called Burry's for the retail market. The exact same cookies were made by Burry's for the Girl Scouts but they were called Savannah's.

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  8. oh Marie,

    these would not be safe around me!!! incredibly delicious looking cookies :)
    Mary x

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  9. Now those sound positively scrummy!!!

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  10. You must be Canadian! :)

    I was just thinking about Pirate Cookies as I munched the last one from the box. I thought, "I betcha someone has found a way to make these, after all they started out in someone's kitchen to begin with."

    Thanks for the recipe! I'll make some this weekend :)

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  11. Omg! I am SO addicted to Pirate cookies - I can eat them by the bag (I call it mainlining cookies. It's bad.) - but I was forced to become gluten, corn and soy free about two years ago.

    I can so convert this recipe. I don't know you but I have a girl-crush suddenly. ;) Thank you!

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  12. Happy to make you happy Catherine! Hope you enjoy them and they fill that gap for you! xx

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  13. Marie, I made oatmeal scotchies (Nestles' toll house recipe)and they spread out way too much during baking. Do you know what might cause this? I used butter. I added more flour to the remaining batter and that helped some.

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  14. I'm no expert happy but I would say too much butter and not enough flour. I always use half butter and half shortening.

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  15. Another delicious Canadian cookie is Lassy Mogs. This cookie is from the Newfoundland part of Canada where there was heavy settlement by people from the British Isles. In Canada, the President's Choice brand made a version of this but I'm not sure it's available any longer. There are recipes around for Lassy Mogs. Try them if you can. They really are delicious.

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    1. I love molasses cookies Fritter. My mother and grandmother made the best ones! Nova Scotia style, which is probably not much different I am thinking. Delicious as you say!

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  16. This recipe is fabulous! I found myself house sitting in France for a week. The 1st two days it rained so I sat in reading all day, and did not make it to the grocery store. I saw the box of pirate cookies and opened it, and ended up eating the whole box while I was there.way too good to stop! To my horror, I could not replace them, because little did I know their family brought them all the way from Canada! I found this recipe, made them, and have to say they are better then what was in the box. I think the family will love them!

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    1. I sure hope so Cowgirl! They are delicious that's for sure. I don't think there will be a problem with them liking them! If anything these are even better! xoxo

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  17. I just made these and they are amazing!!!

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    1. I am so pleased they were enjoyed! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your experience with us! xo

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  18. Hi! I don’t have quick cooking oats, just the regular ones. Can I use those? Do I need to make any adjustments? Thanks! I’m looking forward to making these, I’m making them for a friends bday, Pirate cookies are his fav too!!

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    1. You can, but you might have to blitz them for a few seconds in a food processor to break them down a bit. Quick cooking oats are pretty much regular oats that have been broken into smaller bits! Hope you enjoy them! xo

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