Happiness is a chocolate chip cookie. Just ask Laurelyn Roberts, owner of ButterGirl Baking Co. “When you’re a baker, people are always happy to see you,†she says.
Known as the ButterGirl, Roberts sells many varieties of happiness at local farmers’ markets and online, cookies like peppermint chocolate, ginger spice, oatmeal almond, brown-sugar shortbread, double-chocolate hearts, and, of course, chocolate chip. She also sells fudge and brownies in flavors like chocolate-raspberry, peanut butter, and chocolate-walnut. When she goes to the farmers’ markets, she says, “They’re my chance to meet customers. I can sample new recipes and get feedback. Plus people always walk away from me with a smile.â€
That happiness thing again.
Each treat is the product of methodical experimentation. Once Roberts gets an idea for a cookie, she pores through her cookbooks, family recipes, and the Internet, finding all the ways the cookie can be made. After making several varieties, she decides what flavor, richness, and consistency she wants. Then she experiments until she hits the perfect result. Her double-chocolate cookie, for example, contains just enough coffee to enhance the chocolate’s richness, but not enough to add a coffee taste…