History of Cookies

We are celebrating cookies this month during our Baking Club! I thought what better way to start than with a little history of cookies.

Did you know that cookies were originally made on accident? Cooks used a small amount of batter to test the oven temperature prior to cooking a cake. The cakes were called “koekje” which in Dutch means little cake and thus the cookie was born.

Americans consume over 2 billion cookies a year! One of the favorites is the Chocolate Chip Cookie. Story goes that sometime in the 1930’s a Massachusetts inn keeper ran out of nuts while making cookies. So instead she substituted a chocolate bar that she broke into chunks. The Toll House Cookie (named after the inn) was an instant success and Ruth Wakefield was credited with being the creator.

Cookies were originally brought to the United States by European immigrants. In fact, the simple butter cookies very similar to the English tea cakes and the Scotch shortbread.

Cookies have evolved a lot! There are so many kinds of cookies!

Drop Cookies are made by simply dropping dough onto a baking sheet.

Bars are made when the batter is spooned into a shallow baking dish, cooled and then cut into, you guessed it bars.

Hand formed or molded cookies are made by physically shaping the dough either by rolling into balls, or molded into small logs or other shapes.

Pressed cookies are used making a cookie press. With a cookie press you pour the dough in and then put a patterned disc. When you squeeze the trigger the dough is pressed through and a shaped cookie is formed.

Refrigerator or Ice Box cookies are shaped into a log, refrigerated until firm, sliced and baked.

Rolled Cookies are when the dough is rolled flat and cookie cutters are used to get different shaped cookies.

When making cookies you are truly only limited to your imagination! You can put anything you want into them and form them into any shape you would like! This month we will be showing you tons of tried and true cookie recipes, tips on baking cookies, must have cookie supplies, our favorite cookie cutters and SO much more!