I can't catch you, you're the gingerbread man.

December 13, 2010 12:08 AM

Chicago-Gingerbread-Cookie-Filter: Can you help me find the gingerbread cookie of my childhood?

My dad's friend would give me 2 gingerbread cookies each Christmas when I was a kid (maybe 20-or-so years ago). Of course I never started appreciating them until I got a bit older and then it became something I looked forward to.
We stopped seeing the friend for Christmas years ago and I've been looking for the cookies ever since.

Here's what I remember:
They were not homemade.
They were always in a white box (possibly with the name of the bakery on it)
They were in the shape of a gingerbread man. As far as I remember the arms and legs were straight with no bends for joints or feet.
They were not decorated with white frosting or candy.
They were not soft and chewy, but rather crunchy.
I remember them being pretty large and thick. Maybe almost as tall as a Starbuck's Venti cup (sorry, that was the nearest item with a simialr size).

I actually asked the friend about the cookies a few years ago and he knows they were from a bakery in Chicago but he can't remember which one.

I have one more possible clue... I think I remember that there may have been 2 tiny brown dots (of frosting?) on the front where generic gingerbread men have their buttons... or possibly for eyes. The brown was actually the same color as the cookie so it was almost camouflaged which makes me wonder if it was actually frosting or part of the cookie. However, I'm afraid that I might actually be remembering a gingerbread cookie that I didn't like and overlapping memories.

posted by simplethings to Food & Drink (4 answers total)

Do you know the neighborhood where the friend lived or worked?
posted by achmorrison at 5:12 AM on December 13, 2010

Central Continental in Mt Prospect (which is not Chicago, but people often say "Chicago" when they mean one of the towns ringing the city) has been in business for at least 80 years and their Christmas Gingerbread men are thick and undecorated. None of the bakeries in my neighborhood that I can think of are either that old or do gingerbread men.
posted by crush-onastick at 7:40 AM on December 13, 2010

Response by poster: He lived in the north side... not sure what neighborhood though. He travelled for work, but he's sure the cookies were from a local bakery.

I'll try out the Mt. Prospect bakery sometime this week. :)
posted by simplethings at 10:22 AM on December 13, 2010

I don't know about these places and their gingerbread cookies but they have been around long enough to call and ask:

1. My go-to bakery on the north side is Dinkels (on Lincoln.) It's been around for a long time. I don't recall gingerbread men but trust me, it'd be worth it to call and ask them or to head in and check the place out - I've enjoyed many of their cookies, cakes, breads, and donuts. I live in OR now and I'm getting sad just thinking of them.

2. Consider heading to Andersonville for your cookie quest. The Sweedish Bakery on Clark that has been around long enough to possibly be the right place.

Good luck and report back if you figure it out!
posted by adorap0621 at 10:10 AM on December 19, 2010