July 1, 2009

A Bit of Chocolate Chip Cookie History

by Cherie Carb

Chocolate Chip Cookies are one the most popular cookies ever. I love them when they are fresh out of the oven as do my kids and my husband.

Chocolate chip cookies are called a drop cookie. Their dough traditionally has brown sugar, white sugar, butter and semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Chocolate chip cookies have many variations. Some are m&m’s, oatmeal, and nuts. Some variations include white chocolate too, like white chocolate with macadamia nut for example.

A fun dessert, a cookie-wich made by Mrs. Field is two cookies with a middle layer of frosting. Loads of sugar and loads of calories! Our local Mrs. Fields stand closed luckily for me!

A lady by the name of Ruth Graves Wakefield is the one whom made this great treat. We owe her thanks. The famous name she gave them was “Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies”.

Why “Toll House”? It was because she had bought an inn with her husband, Kenneth Wakefield in Massachusetts and was the cook there.

“Toll House Inn” was an inn, restaurant and a toll stop. Being built on a toll road, folks stopped there to pay their tolls like a modern day toll both for us.

In the 1940’s Ruth Graves Wakefield wrote a cookbook based on the years cooking at the inn. It was a best seller called “Ruth Wakefield’s Recipes: Tried and True”.

The Wakefield’s sold the inn in the 60’s. Changes were made to it. By the 70’s it was sold again. The owners in the 70’s restored it. In the 80’s a fire burned it down.

Ruth Graves Wakefield lived from 1903 to 1977. She is buried in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts had a proposal in 1977 for the chocolate chip cookie to be the official cookie of the state.

There are billions of chocolate chip cookies eaten each year by cookie lovers everywhere. Thanks Ruth Graves Wakefield for this delicious, classic dessert!

About the Author:

Are you a busy person but would like to make a home baked dessert for your next special occasion? I am a busy person too but I have some simple recipes for you! Check out my blog www.simpledessertrecipes.net for simple home baked desserts. And find ideas on how to make things like www.simpledesseertrecipes.net/frostings home baked frostings too!