Pacific Pie Co.
1520 SE 7th Ave – Portland
.75¢ and $1.50
Hi cookie eaters. This is a two-fer post. I’ve never had two different cookies share the limelight of a single post, but I’m doing it now because these are, in fact, very nearly the same cookie. The only thing separating the ANZAC biscuit from the cowboy cookie sitting in a neighboring jar at Pacific Pie Company is the addition of chocolate chips.
First things first. You’re either hip to the ANZAC biscuit or…you are not. If you are not, here’s the main thing to know. ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps and date back to WWI. Because they are made with ingredients that take awhile to get stale and rancid (such as eggs) and hence have a relatively long shelf life, they were made by wives and shipped to soldiers abroad. Like Twinkies. But way less chemically and much more delicious. And far more durable, for that fact.
Because instead of being a squishy and cream-filled sponge cake full of dumb, empty calories, these are solid and hearty, not too unlike a Nature Valley Granola Bar (original style) in consistency. But different. What I mean to say is that the only thing the ANZAC shares in common with a Twinkie is longevity. I really love the feel and texture of these in my mouth; they have the perfect balance of heft, chew, sweetness, softness and stiffness. And (almost – see below) flavor.
Here’s what’s in it:
oats
coconut
flour
butter
sugar
golden syrup (this gives the cookie its stiff chewiness that prevents it from getting dry and stale. Super smart.
baking soda
Do you notice a glaring omission? No? Because it didn’t take looking up a recipe for ANZAC biscuits for me to figure it out. I tasted it (or rather DIDN’T taste it) on the very first bite. I’ll give you a hint. It rhymes with “fault.”
WHERE IS THE G.D. SALT?!?
Baker, please! I mean, seriously…PLEASE! You gots to use salt. It makes the butter taste like butter and the oats taste like oats and the sugar taste like sugar. Otherwise, what’s the point? Yeah, I get it. This is a matter of personal taste. But my personal taste says: salt, por favor. Bring it.
HOWEVER…Despite the salt fault, I liked both of these quite a bit. Luckily, I tote this handy little tin of sea salt in my bag with me at all times, which has saved many a cookie (and cake and pumpkin bread and…) from its undue bland fate. (No, you don’t need hand harvested sea salt from the Oregon Coast for this purpose, but it was a gift and…it really is some f-ing nice salt.)
(Pacific Pie Co. Baker: if you are reading this, please do not hate me. I really do like your cookies and pie (and that’s coming from a non pie-chaser), but this is a point on which I have trouble keeping my opinion to myself. Why don’t you use salt? Or enough salt, anyway? I’m not talking deer salt lick levels here, just, you know, an at least detectable amount. What would be the crime in that?)
Okay, I’m back from my at least once-weekly salt rant. That was a little bit exhausting, if you want to know the truth. Breathe….
Oh yeah…the COWBOY COOKIE. Not much more to say about this one other than the fact that it’s also got semi sweet chocolate chips. No complaints. All comments about the ANZAC biscuit above apply to the cowboy cookie. If you hate chocolate, you won’t like it. Obvs.
I’m excited to go back to Pacific Pie and try a Lamington. I’ve read about these and seen photos and recipes, but I think it’s the first one I’ve seen live, in person.
In sum: I will eat both of these again. Good cookies!