The Perfect Fall Cookie

About author / Pamela Chester

Mom of two; graduate French Culinary Institute; kids cooking program instructor; Master's degree in food studies. Creates kid friendly foods and loves her slow cooker.

My idea of the perfect way to cap off a brisk fall day is with a glass of fresh apple cider and a spiced wafer cookie. These are thin, firm cookies flavored with ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and molasses. They are similar to a traditional ginger snap, but very dark and hard, perfect for dunking. It’s my favorite type of store-bought cookie, and we have them around our house in the fall the same way many people stock those familiar chocolate and vanilla cream sandwich cookies.

Up until a few years ago, you couldn’t find these particular spiced wafer cookies anywhere other than the Philadelphia area. The cookie also doesn’t hit store shelves until back to school time and disappears before the holiday season. Because of this limited availability, they have achieved somewhat of a cult status among Philly natives and other people who have tried and loved them. When you see them stacked at the front of the local store, you know autumn is officially here.

Each fall I used to bring a box of them into work in New York for my coworkers upon returning from a weekend visiting Philly. Even though New York City is only about a hundred miles away from Philly, at that relatively recent time I could never find spiced wafers in a local store. The cookies would be devoured by mid-morning, they are that good. Now they are available online and in some big stores across the country, and I have even heard they have been spied in a bodega in my old New York neighborhood.

There are two competing brands and they both come in a signature box of orange and black with a rotund German chef on the front touting that they are the original colonial Philadelphia cookie. They are pretty much the same, although one is said to be a bit less sweet, and spicier than the other. Either brand is great, but the crunchy texture is something a little different if you are unaccustomed. Some people swear by the trick of placing them in the microwave for just a few seconds to soften them up a bit.

Besides dunking in some cold milk or warm apple cider, spiced wafer cookies can be used in a variety of dessert recipes. Try replacing crushed graham crackers with spiced wafer crumbs to give a pumpkin pie or cheesecake crust some added zing. The spicy flavor is the perfect match to pumpkin too. A friend of mine always serves a pumpkin cream cheese dip with them at fall gatherings.

You can replicate spiced wafers at home. Use the best and freshest spices you can. Although the boxed cookies don’t contain fresh ginger, I think it adds a nice kick if you make the cookies homemade. Freshly ground nutmeg from the clove is also key to making a delicious spice cookie. If you like a chewier cookie, you can try a shorter baking time. They keep for a few weeks tightly wrapped, but don’t be surprised if they last no longer than an afternoon. Serve with your favorite fall beverage, try apple cider, milk, or a glass of cold pumpkin beer.

Whether you buy them in the store or make ‘em yourself, be sure to have plenty on hand. They’ll disappear quickly!

Serves/Makes: 240

***Wafer Cookies***

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup molasses
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated (optional)

***Pumpkin Dip***

• 1 package (8 ounce size) cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 cups pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger