Cookies, the thick, chewy US version of the crunchy British biscuit, are the most-consumed snack food in the US. Americans eat more than two billion of them a year; about three hundred per person. Cookies are so popular that the north-eastern state of Massachusetts adopted the chocolate chip variety as its official state cookie in 1997. American real estate agents have even been known to use freshly-baked cookies to make houses smell homely and encourage visitors to buy them. Along with french fries (‘chips’ in the UK), potato chips ( ‘crisps’ in the UK) and ice cream, cookies have become an American staple. But where and how were they invented?
oriental roots
Food historians believe that the earliest form of cookie dates back to 7th-century Persia (present-day Iran). Persians knew how to grow and harvestsugar cane and they used it to bake delicious cakes and pastries. Sugar spread across the whole Mediterranean area, and became a luxury product in Europe. By the 14th century, cookies were commonplace in many European cities, and cookbooks appeared, full of recipes. One of these was Thomas Dawson’s Good Huswife’s Jewell. Written for the growing yeomanry, or middle classes of Elizabethan England, it included a very popular recipe for a square biscuit made of egg yolks and spices.
AN AMERICAN UPDATE
Beginning in the 17th century, scores of European immigrants began arriving in the US, taking their customs and recipes with them. The Dutch had the koekje which is short for koek, ‘cake’. The American Cookie is a close relative, and the name ‘cookie’ most likely derives from its Dutch cousin. The expansion of the railroad in the 19th century gave Americans access to many homegrown and imported ingredients, such as cocoa beans, coconuts, oranges and cereals. They were incorporated into many recipes, including those for cookies.
THE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE
The iconic chocolate chip cookie is credited to Ruth Graves Wakefield, who ran the Toll House Restaurant in Whitman, Massachusetts. In 1937, Wakefield was making cookies when she realised that she had run out of baker’s chocolate, a key ingredient. Instead, she used a bar of semi-sweet chocolate chopped into pieces, expecting it to melt and spread through the cookie dough. Things didn’t go as expected, as the chocolate pieces kept their shape. The result, however, was a huge success. The recipe spread, and today chocolate chip cookies remain a favourite among cookie connoisseurs.