Everyone loves cookies, especially with a glass of warm milk. But cookies are so much more than that. From its origins to global variations, here’s all you need to know about the beloved cookie.
In the first week of December, just around the festive season, comes a very special day. We’re talking about National Cookie Day, which falls on 4 December. It’s a chance to celebrate the warmest of confections—cookies. But it's about more than just the cookies itself. It's about what they represent. The coming together of people, the dunking of cookies in warm milk on cold evenings, the aroma of freshly baked cookies on a Sunday afternoon. People come together over cookies and always include them in their celebrations. It's the small moments that cookies create for us that make them so loved.
The word “cookie” is often used for the chewier varieties, while the crisper ones tend to be called biscuits. Cookies seemingly originated in 7th-century AD Persia (modern day Iran). It was one of the first countries to harvest and grow sugarcane, and introduce sweet notes in their foods. Through conquests and exploration, cookies reached Europe, and by the 14th century, European cookbooks were full of cookie recipes. One particular cookie to emerge in Elizabethan England was a square cookie made of egg yolks and spices, and baked on parchment paper. In fact, the base of most cookies was similar—wheat, sugar, butter and oil. With the colonizers, cookies reached America and spread there with enthusiasm.
Perhaps the most popular of the cookies, reigning supreme over all others, is the chocolate chip cookie. And this brilliant innovation was actually a mistake by Ruth Graves Wakefield. In 1937, Massachusetts, she was running the Toll House Restaurant and often baked cookies for her guests. On that day, she realized she had run out of baker’s chocolate. So she used a bar of semi-sweet chocolate instead, expecting the same results. But the chocolate chunks kept their shape and thus, the first batch of chocolate chip cookies were born.
Since then, iterations of the cookie have also emerged in a vast variety. Here’s a few cookie recipes to try baking yourself.
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Snickerdoodles are rolled in cinnamon sugar, offering a delightful, grainy crunch on the outside and a soft, chewy interior. The warm spice makes these cookies particularly popular during the festive season.
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Certainly a heartier option, oatmeal raisin cookies provide a satisfying texture and chewiness. The oats make one feel full longer and the raisins give the cookies an enticing appearance.
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Elegant and delicate, macarons are a French cookie with global popularity. They are essentially meringue-based cookies, which sandwich a creamy filling, leading to a treat that is both visually elegant and flavorful.
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Originating from Italy, biscottis are twice-baked cookies, hard and perfect for dunking into coffee or tea. The crispiness makes it fun to eat and the almond slivers add a flavor note to the otherwise plain cookies.
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