Soft, Gooey, Chocolate Chip Cookies
Posted on 22 December 2008 by Justin
The Power of Cookies
In New Zealand, for some reason that bypasses logical understanding, all of their cookies possess the texture and feel of a cracker. They are hard, dry, and you risk chipping your tooth whenever 
you manage to gather the necessary courage to bite into one. Now, New Zealanders are smart people. If they did not like really really hard cookies, I am certain they simply would bake them for less time – so they resembled something closer to cookies instead of hockey pucks. Being a bit of a cookie connoisseur myself, I eventually convinced Natalie to bake some real, American style, chocolate chip cookies. (Just shopping for the ingredients was interesting because Kiwis have different names for all sorts of baking goods. Try to picture Natalie and I walking aimlessly around a mid sized grocery store, attempting to figure out why chocolate chips are called chocolate drops and why they are only available in 5 oz bags. Baking the cookies was a whole other kind of adventure that found us converting Fahrenheit to Celsius, ounces to milliliters, and eye balling teaspoons and tablespoons because of the lack of measuring spoons.) Natalie, despite my firm objections, decided to give away some of our precious children.. er….I mean, cookies to the lodge chefs. (Looking back, this was the nice thing to do and staying on the good side of the chefs certainly does have its advantages 
) This whole exchange I realized, while I was staring longingly at the empty cookie platter mourning the loss of six of those tasty morsels, was another step in the cultural exchange game. People here know about the United States but their interactions with Natalie and I show them something they will never see in a Ford Motor company marketing scheme, or a Hollywood movie. Thus, cookies have once again taught me a valuable lesson. Simply 
interacting with and spending time with local people facilitates the cultural exchange game flowing in both directions, such as learning new kiwi words while pointing out that Alaska is the 49th state and not an independent country.
In retrospect, I think I knew all along that two people from different cultures and countries inevitably learn something new from each other. This mutual education is, for me, one of the alluring parts about long term travel. The isolation of the United States often leads us to forget that the world is full of people and cultures with different, but valid, opinions and value systems that are a result of their unique circumstances. Reading about other countries, whether rich or poor, does not replace the value of face to face interaction.
So here’s this weeks travel pitch. Go out and travel the world. Meet people you don’t understand and try to see the world from where they live. Become humbled by your ignorance and grow ashamed of your arrogance as your world view grows to accommodate increasingly differing perspective. And, in the middle of it all, be sure to bake a nice warm batch of your favorite cookies to share with your new friends.
Tags | New Zealand
But what did the chefs think of the cookies ?!? Are they on the menu yet?
@Pam – They liked the cookies (because they were so soft) but I have not convinced them to put them on the menu. I will keep trying however, and I will let you know if it is successful.
I felt the same way when I lived in Australia. Culture shock for me didn’t set in till I was there for about 3 months but once I got over it, I really started to see Australia differently, from a less touristy point of view. I love the fact that they don’t call it “pop” or even “soda” they call it “fizzy drink.” Little nuances like that are always fun.
So speaking of weird things that are different over there… do they have Reeses peanut butter cups? Or Lemonade? In Australia their lemonade was basically sprite, or 7up… very sad. Also due to the fact that a peanut butter and jelly sandwich means peanut butter and jello, people gave you weird looks if you talked or asked about one. Peanut butter is definitely not a staple part of the Aussie diet (probably kiwi as well), in fact most people don’t really like it much– therefore no Reeses!!!
I understand how you felt about giving away 6 of your precious cookies because Reeses are my probably my favorite candy ever and since they are not sold in AU, my mom shipped some to me for my birthday. I was SOOO excited about having them, and I wanted my good Aussie friends to experience the glory of a Reeses peanut butter cup, so I shared a few with a friend, this is the response I got, “is that peanut butter?” WHAT!?! I never shared a Reeses again (unless it was with a North American- US or Canada) because I didn’t want to “cast my pearls before swine,” as it were. Haha.
Oh good times…. anyway, glad to hear that your cross-cultural exchange in the cookie (do they call them bickies, or biscuits?) dept went better then my Reeses exchange
you’ll have to let me know if they sell them in NZ, or if you can find real lemonade there too.
Hey there, I’m a Kiwi looking for a good American chocolate chip cookie recipe and I was a little confused by your experience in NZ…admittedly we do make horrid cookies or as we call them biscuits, but most supermarkets (grocery stores) in NZ still sell chocolate chips, a few brands refer to them as chocolate drops but most Kiwis still call them chips. Also we do use measuring spoons, perhaps the chefs you were dealing with have never changed their menus (which would explain why they wont use your recipe) and are so used to the measurements they no longer need proper equipment. It’s also funny that you have to point out that Alaska is the 49th state and not an independent country because Kiwis are always having to point out that NZ is an independent country and not part of Australia…so there’s a cultural similarity
Oh and Paulie yes we do have Reese’s but as predicted they are not that popular in NZ..I myself are peanut butter mad but I’m some what alone in my passion 
Anyway if you have that cookie recipe I would love it because I revolt in having to eat a hockey puk!
@Michelle Doms – The confusion over chocolate chips and chocolate drops may be partly regional (Te Anau is not really a big town) and partly New Zealandish. Oh well. I have attached our cookie recipe. Remember, it all has to do with not over baking your cookies!
Classic American Chocolate Chip Cookies
Preparation time: 55 minutes
Baking time: 10 minutes
Makes 5 dozen (or more) cookies
1 ½ cup butter, softened
1 ¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 ¾ cups flour
1 cup quick oats
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups chocolate chips
Heat oven to 350*F. Combine butter, brown sugar and sugar in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; add remaining cookie ingredients except chocolate chips. Beat until well mixed. Stir in chocolate chips by hand.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until very lightly browned. Let stand 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets.
wow! These cookies are amazing! I love baking them with dark chocolate chips.
Oh, no. Now I want to eat some. I guess I will have to make cookies soon…