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A grade-A cookie lover's account of the best – and sometimes worst – cookies around.

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Gingersnap at Bakeshop

Posted by admin on Jan 2, 2012 in Ginger, Ginger Molasses | 0 comments

Bakeshop
5351 NE Sandy Blvd – Portland
$2

I have given high praise to two cookies in the past that were both purchased at Ristretto Roasters. Both the Chocolate Chocolate Nib and the Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk, were baked by Kim Boyce, author of the beautiful Good to the Grain baking book.

And now…. Boyce has her very own retail bakery! Bakeshop opened just this past week on NE Sandy Blvd. (Her goods will continue to be available at Ristretto – as well as Extracto Coffee House, Breken Kitchen, Case Study Coffee (adjacent to the bakery), and probably a few other joints that I don’t know about.

Oatmeal Raisin at Grand Central Bakery

Posted by admin on Dec 8, 2011 in Oatmeal | 0 comments

Grand Central Bakery
Various locations – Portland and Seattle
$1.65

Quite awhile ago I told you about the oatmeal raisin at New Seasons Market, a cookie that is baked on site at the New Seasons bakery – from dough made by Grand Central Bakery.

The oatmeal raisin at New Seasons, however, is not the same oatmeal raisin cookie that you will find at an actual Grand Central Bakery. They are both very respectable versions of the oatmeal raisin category (one of my all time favorites, in case this isn’t obvious by now), but the one that Grand Central makes for their own bakeries wins my vote for 1st place between the two. I guess it only makes sense that Grand Central would send out their star player under their own brand. Sort of like Gap vs. Old Navy? Maybe not quite, but…something like that.

Hemp Seed Hazelnut Oatmeal with Carob at Laughing Planet Café

Posted by admin on Nov 17, 2011 in Oatmeal, Whole grain, Vegan | 8 comments

Laughing Planet Café
Portland – various locations (plus Eugene and Corvallis)
$2.50

Are you still here? Because if it were me reading this post, I would have scoffed at “hemp seed”, my nose would have scrunched at “hazelnut”, and you would’ve lost me completely at “carob.”

And, as if it needed one more strike against it? It’s vegan!

There is NO reason that this should be a good cookie.

Peanut Butter Quinoa at Cravin Raven

Posted by admin on Nov 12, 2011 in Gluten Free and/or Flourless, Peanut Butter | 0 comments

Cravin Raven Organic Bakery (exclusively gluten-free bakery)
8339 SE 13th Avenue – Portland
$2.25

There are so many other cookies that take precedence over peanut butter that it is a rare day that one makes its way into my mouth.

Almond Cookie at Nuvrei

Posted by admin on Oct 21, 2011 in Almond | 3 comments

Nuvrei Patisserie
404 NW 10th Avenue – Portland
$2

Nuvrei, a Portland bakery supplying superior almond croissant, berry brioche and an exceptionally fantastic flourless chocolate chewy cookie to the city’s best coffee shops, has opened a retail café above their bakery in The Pearl District. In case you’ve never had a Nuvrei item in your mouth before, let me spell it out for you: this is great news.

Maple Cream Pie at Whole Foods Market

Posted by admin on Oct 13, 2011 in Oatmeal | 8 comments

Maple Cream Pie
Whole Foods Market – Portland (Pearl District store, only.)
apx $3 (sold by weight at $7.99/lb)

To erase any confusion straight from the get-go, this is NOT, in fact, a pie. It is, as you can see, a sandwich cookie. One big, fat, muthafuggin sandwich cookie. I do not know why things like this – desserts that have nothing to do with pie (like whoopie pies, for example) – get called “pie.” Because it’s totally not pie.

What it IS is this: a big ass cookie. Two large oatmeal cookies, to be specific – with an obscene (i.e., way too much) amount of maple-y butter cream filling.

Oatmeal Rasin at The Dessert Tray

Posted by admin on Sep 7, 2011 in Oatmeal | 0 comments

The Dessert Tray
11950 SW Broadway St. – Beaverton
$1.50

This is a very good oatmeal raisin cookie. Nothing tricky, nothing fancy. No golden raisins, no cranberries, no cherries, no apricots. No hazelnuts, no pecans, no coconut. And mercifully, no shitty, waxy white chocolate chips. Nothing but straight up oatmeal, dark raisins, and a subtle hit of cinnamon.

It is very thick, and fairly soft – not crispy. A little bit moist and gooey in the center.

Ginger Oat Shortbread at Costello’s Travel Caffé

Posted by admin on Aug 30, 2011 in Ginger, Oatmeal, Shortbread/Sugar Cookies, Whole grain | 0 comments

Costello’s Travel Caffé
2222 NE Broadway – Portland
50¢/ea

I had driven by this place countless times over the past several years and never thought to stop in. I guess I just thought it looked and sounded kind of dopey: “Travel Caffé.” Like it was trying too hard or something. What the hell is a “travel café”, I would ask myself? And anyway, I am not traveling, I live two miles from the joint.

Molasses Cookie at Common Grounds Coffee House

Posted by admin on Aug 12, 2011 in Ginger Molasses, Vegan | 0 comments

Common Grounds Coffee House
4321 SE Hawthorne Blvd – Portland
$1

Wow. I’m not sure where to begin with this one. I have talked about 7 different ginger molasses cookies on Carpe Cookie so far, each one of them delicious and worthwhile in its own right. It can go without saying that the ginger molasses (or even just straight up molasses, sans ginger, like this one) is one of my pets. I love it.

Chocolate Whopper at Sweet Life Patisserie

Posted by admin on Aug 6, 2011 in Chocolate, Chocolate Chip | 0 comments

Sweet Life Patisserie
755 Monroe St – Eugene, OR
$1.50

In your basic chocolate-on-chocolate genre, this is a solid contender. While probably not quite as remarkable as the Triple Chocolate Cookie at Grand Central, I would certainly eat this cookie again and recommend it to anyone who digs this type of thing.

Maple Pecan Oatmeal at Wanda’s Café and Bakery

Posted by admin on Jul 15, 2011 in Oatmeal, Whole grain | 2 comments

Wanda’s Café & Bakery
Nehalem, OR*
$1.50

Something told me that the very minute I declared that I’ve never experienced a good bakery in any beach town that I would experience a good bakery in a beach town. Which is, in fact, what happened. Like, the very next day after I wrote it.

It was as if I were daring a good cookie to come my way. And check it out…it did! People, this is a good cookie. I would go a few miles out of my way (on foot, even) for this cookie. If you find yourself driving on US 101 anywhere near Manzanita and Nehalem, Oregon (and you fancy a hearty morsel of chewy oats), you should, too.

I will tell you why:

Oatmeal Raisin and Fig* at Macrina Bakery

Posted by admin on Jul 8, 2011 in Oatmeal, Snickerdoodle, Chocolate Chip | 0 comments

Macrina Bakery
1943 First Avenue South – Seattle (plus 2 other Seattle locations)
$1.90

At the beach this week – in lovely Manzanita, Oregon. I am with my family, celebrating my mom’s 70^th birthday. Knowing that I’d be kicking around here for 5 days with nothing more on the agenda than reading, running on the beach, munching on forty seven different types of snacks that come in bags that I rarely normally eat, drinking too much white wine, and hanging out with my kinfolk, I figured I’d have some extra time to track down and then tell you about a great beach cookie.

Two Rhubarb Cookies at Two Tarts Bakery

Posted by admin on May 22, 2011 in Macaroon/Macaron, Shortbread/Sugar Cookies, Meringue | 3 comments

Two Tarts Bakery
2309 NW Kearney Street – Portland
75¢/each

I’ve had it in mind to talk about Two Tarts for ages. I’ve been enjoying them ever since they first started plying their tiny wares 3-4 years ago at The Portland Farmers’ Market. They’ve since opened a small retail shop on NW 23rd Avenue, and continue to sell at the market, as well.

The problem is this: if I am to tell you about about Two Tarts, I am required to talk about not less than 10 different cookies at once. And it turns out that as much as I love to talk about cookies, I’m pretty lazy. So I’m compromising and talking about only three different Two Tarts cookies. It’s a start.

Oatmeal Cranberry Pecan at Mother’s Bistro

Posted by admin on May 6, 2011 in Oatmeal | 0 comments

Mother’s Bistro and Bar
212 SW Stark St – Portland
$1.50

After more than pleasing experiences with both the extra chocolatey chocolate and ginger molasses at Mother’s Bistro earlier this year, I was eager to try the oatmeal cookie that I had spotted in their dessert case- looking so nice, hearty and…oatey.

Macarons at Pix Patisserie

Posted by admin on Apr 25, 2011 in Gluten Free and/or Flourless, Macaroon/Macaron | 0 comments

Pix Patisserie
3901 N. Williams- Portland
3402 SE Division – Portland
$2

NOTE: Passover-friendly No flour, no leavening. Contains only almond flour, egg whites, sugar, butter, flavoring.

I hate to begin on a negative note, but I feel the need to preface this review with this piece of information: I don’t like Pix very much. I’ve tasted many desserts from this much raved-about Portland dessert mecca over the past several years that have been either stale or tasted like refrigerator (or both), or were just simply not delicious. (Don’t even get me started on the piece of crap “ghetto cake” (their words, not mine) that my friends and I picked up on New Year’s Eve. Unless you really want to hear about it, in which case I’ll happily explain.

Ginger Molasses at Dovetail Bakery

Posted by admin on Apr 14, 2011 in Ginger Molasses, Vegan | 0 comments

Dovetail Bakery
3039 NE Alberta St. – Portland
$2.25

As I have mentioned, I am not a vegan. This, if you have read any of my other cookie reviews, is stating the obvious. But despite my love of butter and eggs, some of my favorite cookies ever have been, to quote the used car salesman who sold me a 1988 Nissan Pulsar, “critter-free.” (True story: he was a vegan used car salesman and he really did say “critter-free” in reference to his dietary practices. I’m not making it up. And yes, I really did buy a 1988 Nissan Pulsar (in 1996) – T top convertible, cherry red, btw. It (I?) was pretty smokin’, if you wanna know the truth.)

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