 Something classic (jam sandwich cookie with heart cutout), something new (peach-shaped and flavored cookie sandwich), all delicious.
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KAREN HOCHMAN is Editorial Director of THE NIBBLE.
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July 2008
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Jennie & Vera’s Cookies
Elegance
CAPSULE REPORT: Thank goodness for America’s artisan bakers. They provide us with such wonderful things for our own pleasure and to give as gifts. The mother-daughter team of Vera and Jennie produce lovely cookies, including some eye-openers we’ve never seen before. As an impressive gift, a memorable end to a dinner party or a treat for yourself, these ladies show you welcome old classics and exciting new concepts.
Vera Mirkovic and Jennie Näss are a mother-daughter team who, after pursuing their own business careers, joined forces in 2005 to create elegant cookies for people who appreciate European traditions and hand detailing that go into them. Handcrafted in suburban Chicago, the butter cookies, made with imagination and the finest ingredients, can be delivered anywhere.
These are not just any handmade butter cookies. Drawing on Vera’s Croatian background, some use only confectioner’s sugar and some a blend of confectioner’s and table sugars, creating a less sweet and softer profile that still delivers buttery goodness.
Nicely gift-boxed, the cookies make a special gift for people who recognize and appreciate something distinctively different. And of course, don’t hesitate to buy a few boxes as a treat for yourself. Don’t order more than you can devour, though: The cookies should be consumed within 7 to 10 days of receiving them and refrigerated in an airtight container until ready to enjoy. Best to bring to room temperature before tasting.
Cookie Flavors
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Chocolate Cocktail Ball, one of our favorites, is a bite-size bourbon ball. |
All of the cookies we tasted were delicious; what you like will depend on whether you prefer chocolate to coffee, macadamia to pecan. In each, you’ll taste the butter. Coincidentally, our favorites can be found in the Signature Love You Mom! assortment, with an added order of Chocolate Spice Cookies.
- A Cup Of Espresso Cookie: A 2-1/4" disk with a subtle flavor of coffee. There’s more of a coffee blast in the Macadamia Cappuccino Cookie.
- Almond Moon Cookies: Not crescent shaped, these “moon” cookies are so-named because of their crater-like surface, which hides slivers of almonds.
- A Slice Of Pecan Pie: Not exactly, since pecan pie is known to be cloyingly sweet. This interesting cookie has lots of pecan flavor and some caramel.
- Brownie Breath Mint: This cookie tastes like a chocolate Altoid. We can see how it has its fans, but it’s surprisingly edgy in this classic-toned collection.
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It may look simple, but Chocolate Spice Cookie, one of our favorites from Jennie And Vera’s, is a wonderful chocolate butter cookie with a depth of chocolate flavor and light spice notes. |
These cherry oatmeal cookies got accolades from our tasters.
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- Decaf Latte Cheesecake Cookie: Very subtle coffee flavor in a dough that’s moister from cream cheese.
- Jen’s Ultimate Oatmeal Cherry: Made with organic whole wheat flour and other organic ingredients, this is a classic, quality oatmeal cookie. The cherry is a more luscious alternative to raisin.
- Lemon Thumbprint: A nice tea cookie, but too ladylike in lemoniness to assuage our appetite for citrus.
- Macadamia Cappuccino Cookie: Great coffee flavor in a round cookie punctuated with a large macadamia nut.
- Sweetheart: A buttery sugar cookie sandwich filled with fresh strawberry jam. The heart-shaped cutout makes it perfect for bridal showers, Valentine’s Day or an anytime gift for someone you love.
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Pick Of The Crop
To dazzle guests and gift recipients, here are our suggestions:
- Brown Butter Bubba: With an intoxicating aroma and flavor of vanilla and brown butter, the hidden ingredient—ground almonds—makes this simple-looking brown cookie a complex delight.
- Chocolate Cocktail Ball: A one-inch bite of happiness, reminiscent of Mom’s holiday Bourbon balls (photo above).
- Chocolate Spice Cookie: This two-inch-square cookie was a favorite: chocolatey with soft hints of spice (photo above).
- You Are A Peach! Cookie: This sandwich cookie, resembling a large peach (photo at right), is beautifully painted and colored with a few drops of red food coloring and sandwiched with peach marmalade.
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 Just peachy: The You Are A Peach! cookie is novel and scrumptious. |
It’s a cookie...it’s a walnut...it’s the best walnut cookie ever. |
- Vera’s Walnut Cookie: Another work of art, this trompe l’oeil cookie (photo at left) looks like a walnut, tastes like ground walnuts and is a total charmer.
Cookie Assortments
Since Jennie & Vera’s requires a two-dozen minimum order for individual styles, one may be better served with a pre-set assortment. There are 10 varieties, focusing on chocolate, coffee, fruit, nuts, best-sellers and “everything.” The Signature Love You Mom! Cookie Collection of four cookies has three of our favorites: Cocoa Cocktail Balls, You’re A Peach! and Vera’s Walnuts.
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In fact, you’ll spend so much time perusing the options, that a couple of assortments may be the best way to go. Have fortitude, and remember: there are no wrong choices.
JENNIE AND VERA’s COOKIES
Elegant Butter Cookies
- Individual Cookie Variety
$15.00 to $32.00/dozen
Depending On Variety
Minimum Two Dozen Per
Style
- 10 Assortments
$25.00 to $85.00
Everything
$260.00
Purchase online* at
JennieAndVerasCookies.com
*Prices and product availability are verified at publication but are subject to change. Shipping is additional. These items are offered by a third party and THE NIBBLE has no relationship with them. This link to purchase is provided as a reader convenience.
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White coated paper boxes with black raised lettering are tied with black or white grosgrain ribbon. Photo by Saidi Granados.
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