Posted by on Feb 27, 2013 in Ginger, Oatmeal | 0 comments

Bakeshop
5351 NE Sandy Blvd – Portland
$2

This was actually purchased this at Ristretto Roasters on NE 42nd Ave, one of the few coffee shops where, in addition to their own retail space on NE Sandy Blvd, Bakeshop good are sold. (Note: it’s $2.50 Ristretto)

I love this cookie. It’s like a much more expertly made (and way more delicious) version of the Mother’s Iced Oatmeal Cookie of my youth. And I love those Mother’s Iced Oatmeal Cookies so this is no small compliment. You know what I’m talking about? No? These:

Those are f-ing good cookies, right?

These are better. Not fair to compare a freshly-made bakery cookie with a bag of mass produced, I know. Just offering a point of reference.

The lowdown:

• It looks like it’s going to be crispy but instead it’s soft – yet not floppy or bendy – and slightly chewy.

• The flavor is so distinctively Mother’s. I don’t know what that is, exactly, or how to describe it other than that. But it’s not something I’ve tasted in other oatmeal cookies that I’ve eaten. And I have eaten my share of oatmeal cookies. To know me is to know this. I dig the oatmeal.

• No raisins. No nuts.

• The ginger hit is subtle  yet present.

• The icing…damn. The icing puts this over the edge. Perfect, glossy (but not wet or messy) powdered sugar and cinnamon glaze. I would eat this icing alone, from a spoon. And I will. Because…

• The recipe is included in baker/owner Kim Boyce’s  Good to the Grain, which is sitting on my bookshelf – and which I think is a fantastic cookbook. Okay, so I’ll  make a batch, already.

But the truth is that I’m enjoying keeping them as a (self-imposed) occasional treat for now. Too much of a good thing…?

Bottom line: if you like an oatmeal cookie, track these down, asap – or make them at home.

Highly recommended.