Coping Cookies....Still Eating My Feelings

Well, this is unfortunate, seems they are going back to pop-ups and delivery only but staying the space? Yeah with the new delivery fee charge Seattle is now imposing this make this beyond the top end I was already willing to pay for them. Oh well, plenty of bakeries and Cookies around town to still explore.

Well, this is (in)convenient seeing as I am still in my not running month. Having a French bakery just a few blocks away is bad enough, now someone goes and opens up a cookie bakery quite literally around the corner from my abode. I would say “how lucky for me” they’ve opened right when I am in my eating my feelings phase of inactivity but somehow sarcasm is hard to translate to the blog (picture me arching my eyebrow). And as you will see, they are not just any cookies. Called Coping Cookies, seems they started as a benefit bake sale, then morphed into citywide pop-ups and now in their very own brick and mortar location too close for calorie comfort.

I think we all know cake is pretty high on my list of first choice desserts and doughnuts are second. But a good cookie runs real close to second as a delicious dessert that also offers the heft and sweetness satisfaction I crave in a treat. I know I have covered some over the years, but looking back, I feel I may have not given them as much coverage as they probably deserve. Odd since I have most definitely eaten more than my fair share of them since….forever. It has so many things going for it. A lot of bakeries and stores make them and they are quick, takeaway and usually affordable options if you want a little something without the sugar crash of a giant piece of frosted cake. Not to mention, like doughnuts, they can come in a variety of flavors and sizes to fit your palate or mood.

It is this kind of cookie variety that makes them a lot like pizza—meaning, everyone has their favorite type. Whether it be chocolate chip, snicker doodle, peanut butter, ginger snap, thin, crispy, thick, soft, dough like, big, small and so on. Everyone has a particular like and much like pizza, you are gonna find some place that makes it just the way you like it. I will admit upfront I am not necessarily into the thin crispy variety. Since I have that heft issue, I like the edges to be just a bit crunchy with some slightly soft and moderately gooey center. I am not the biggest fan of just plain cookie dough. Soft, yes, but still baked through as it were. A tough combo I know, but I have had some and know it can be done.

A good cookie is more than just a sweet treat—it's a moment of bliss. It starts with the perfect balance of crispy edges and for me, a soft, chewy center—as texture matters. It should also boast a rich, buttery flavor, complemented by the perfect amount of sweetness. Whether it's a classic chocolate chip or an indulgent double chocolate, quality ingredients too, can make all the difference. A generous scattering of chunks of chocolate or a sprinkle of sea salt can elevate the humble cookie to new heights. But above all, a good cookie evokes nostalgia, comfort, and that undeniable craving for just one more bite or maybe just one more cookie.

After looking at Coping Cookies menu offerings current and past, they looked to be of the thick kind and also specializing in flavor combos you might not ordinarily find in a cookie. I think it was this kind of out there-ness that intrigued me to give them a try. Though, who am I kidding, I am always down to eat a cookie.

This seemed like a no brainer as a first choice cookie to try. Mixing my love of carrot cake with a cookie in the carrot ‘bout it. A carrot cake spice cookie topped with white cookie icing and filled with some “faux cream cheese buttercream”, crushed pecans and white chocolate chips. They definitely nailed the flavor with a very robust taste of nutmeg, cinnamon, brown sugar and ginger. Normally I am not a nut in my dessert fan but here they were crushed pretty well and not really a distraction. The only thing really missing was some actual bits of carrot. If you can crush up some pecans into this, surely one could get a few carrots in the cookie mix?

As you can see, they really stuffed (a running theme in most of their cookies) it with the “faux cream cheese buttercream” which wasn’t quite my fave cream cheese frosting, but I guess some concessions have to be made for something that is not refrigerated. I mean, with the spices it kind of works and does at least give the essence of carrot cake if not the real thing. Also notice how big and thick (another running theme) the cookie is. In fact, pretty much all of their cookies are like this. Such thickness does lend the cookies to being quite the cookie dough inside and to varying degrees of doneness in the ones I had. The cookie is also big and sweet. One could easily share this with someone and still get their fill. I pretty much did this in three eatings to mitigate the sugar rushes. Overall I liked it, though might have enjoyed a little more baked-ness inside.

Here we have your standard base cookie this time with a white chocolate chip center and little sprinkled with ground freeze dried strawberries and a cookie frosting drizzle. I think they could have amped up the strawberry here as it was more of an essence than a smack to mouth flavor like the carrot was. Also very dough like inside with a lightly crisp outside. Probably would have also just dumped it full of chips. Was all right but a little basic and not my fave of the batch.

The rocky road is a chocolate base cookie with roasted almonds, filled with marshmallow cream topped with more cream and mini marshmallows. The bake on this one was better. Still soft but not as much cookie dough. A nice enough amount of marshmallow cream and just the right amount of nuts and chocolate flavor to give that rocky road taste feel. Really it’s the chocolate and marshmallows that make it. And the nuts (still not a fan) are not overwhelming and at least work here for what they are trying to make.

The goal with the sundae fundae cookie evidently is banana hot fudge sundae. Standard cookie base mixed with real bananas (they say), chopped almonds, white chocolate chips and filled with a chocolate ganache. And it mostly works. The banana is there but it was kind of faint, at least in the one I had. The nuts (I know—nuts AGAIN!) and chocolate ganache tend to overpower it. Still, it was a tasty cookie with a good bake and appropriately crunchy and chewy.

While fancy cookies are fun to eat, ultimately the real test of a cookie shop is how they do the basics such as the classic chocolate chip. Kind of the way a great chef needs to master a simple omelette, a cookie baker should be able to do a good chocolate chip. The perfect cookie possesses a crispy golden exterior with a soft, chewy center that oozes melty chocolate when served hot or at least copious amounts of chips. The cookie should not be too greasy, too dry, too soft or too crisp but just the right balance of moistness. Possibly topped with a light sprinkle of sea salt to add that contrasting dash of salty sweet we all (me!) crave. This one comes pretty close. It was crisp on the outside, soft inside, filled with enough chocolate chips to get one in every bite and nicely topped with sea salt. The bake was right on the edge for me. Maybe a couple more minutes in the oven, but otherwise still a very luscious and delicious cookie through every bite.

The cookies at Coping Cookies are big, as in bigger than the palm of your hand. They are also very thick as you can see and this does lead to cookie dough like centers in most of their cookies. I’m guessing that is their thing, next to the stuffing them with filling like you would a cupcake. These reasons also explain why the cookies fall on the pricey side. The specialty filled ones are gonna run you around $5, the basic chip around $4 and they also sell some mini basic chips for about $2. Yes, kind of a lot for a cookie but it is A LOT of cookie and as I stated above, they are abundantly sharable. Kind of why I’m giving a pass on the pricing and focusing on the flavors which change monthly and add a little cookie variety to the standard fare you find most places.

I won’t say they are my cake replacement, as nothing will ever be that! But it is nice to have another dessert sweets choice nearby me (ugh!) that can meet my cookie craving needs when I wanna eat my feelings. Plus you would be supporting a local women owned LGBTQI business. If you have a fondness for cookie dough like cookies then seek them out for interesting new flavors in a “not your standard cookie” and a classic chip that won’t leave you disappointed either.