Story Behind the Card - Baltimore's Berger Cookie
While popping up at a market a few weeks ago, I had two women approach our table reading the greeting cards and getting a laugh as people often do. When they picked up one of our new Berger Cookie cards, both of these women stopped to ask me, "What is a Berger Cookie?" I was admittedly a little taken aback. I mean, how do you answer that? Were these women living under a rock? Come to find out they both recently came to Baltimore from North Carolina and Alaska so I guess they had a good excuse, but maybe the Berger Cookie needs some explanation.
What is a Berger Cookie?
When you think of iconic foods in Baltimore, surely the Berger Cookie is near the top of the list. A big dollop of fudgey goodness on a soft, cakey cookie, the Berger Cookie has been a staple in our family for as long as we can remember. For me growing up in Massachusetts, Berger Cookies were a treat we could only get when we came to Maryland to visit family. And every time we made the trip, we went home with a bag of Berger Cookies to bring back to New England for ourselves but also at the request of friends. I can remember the night before we were due to head home, we would always have to stop at High's or the local grocery store to stock up. So when I moved to Baltimore in 2004, suddenly it was all the Berger Cookies I could eat, whenever I wanted!
History of the Berger cookie
The Berger Cookie has been around since 1835 when a German Immigrant named Henry Berger opened a bakery in East Baltimore. His three sons George, Henry and Otto joined the act and they sold the cookies at stalls in the open air markets throughout Baltimore. Our great grandparents, also of German descent, owned a poultry stall in Belair Market and an ad for the market printed in the Baltimore Sun in 1951 shows our g-grandfather's poultry business along with the Berger Bakery. We like to think maybe they were buddies and traded chickens for cookies.
The Berger Recipe
The bakery remained in the Berger family until after World War I when a bakery employee named George Russel purchased it. In 1969 it changed hands again to a new family of employees, the DeBaufres who still own it today. Despite new owners over the years, the recipe is nearly the same as it was made starting 190 years ago with a few minor tweaks. The rich chocolate icing the Berger Cookie is known for, is hand dipped lovingly on each and every cookie. This is kind of the beauty of the cookie, besides its sweet, delicious taste. Not made by a factory machine, the fudgey topping can be a little bit messy and misshapen but looks don't matter once you bite into one. While the recipe is top secret, King Arthur Flour has a Berger Cookie recipe that they think is pretty close if you wanted to try to make them at home. But when the delicious original is so readily available for those of us lucky enough to call Baltimore home, who has time for that? I especially love the perfect snack pack duo of cookies.
Berger Cookie Greetings
We love creating locally inspired greetings that connect people to their favorite things about Baltimore. It's kind of our thing. So it's a wonder it took us this long to come up with some Berger Cookie inspired cards since they have long been a favorite in our family. This year we now have two new greetings that celebrate this iconic treat. And of course the Berger Cookie is featured in some of our favorite art prints. So treat yourself or a friend to some Berger Cookies and we have a card to go with that too. Comment below your favorite Berger Cookie memories and happy eating!
