My copycat Berger cookies will win the heart of any Baltimorean! It took years to perfect this beloved recipe, right down to that incredible chocolate fudge topping. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Copycat Berger Cookies
Maryland natives are already privy to the sheer joy of happening upon a pack of Berger cookies at a gas station or grocery store–what a treat! With their ridiculously rich cascading mountain of chocolate fudge frosting and thin, cakey vanilla cookie bases, these are a rare find that I simply cannot pass up.
For those of you who aren’t so lucky, I am very excited to be sharing my copycat recipe so you too can indulge in this classic Baltimore cookie!
I’ve been working on this recipe for over TEN years now because I wanted to do true justice to the original–it’s a Maryland icon (right up there with Maryland crab cakes!). I tried so many variations and finally landed here. Some things may seem funny or fussy (imitation vanilla, two types of cocoa, a double boiler) but every single one of them makes a difference and is necessary.
The recipe isn’t hard or challenging though, and the cookies are an experience to enjoy. Whether you grew up eating Berger cookies like I did or are just discovering them today, I can’t wait for you to try my version!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- As authentic as it gets, from the soft texture and subtle vanilla flavor of the cookies right down to that incredible fudge topping. Some recipes try to replace the fudge with a thick chocolate ganache, and that just isn’t true to the original. In fact, many believe that fudge was actually invented in Baltimore, so we simply have to include it here!
- Super indulgent, very rich, and very sweet, just like the original. It’s hard to eat too many (though I could certainly manage more than one).
- Nostalgic taste, especially for Marylanders and Baltimoreans. While we love our Maryland crab soup and peach cake, there’s just something about Berger cookies that takes us right back to childhood.
- No chilling the dough–you can prep and bake it right away! I don’t know about you, but my impatient heart loves a no-chill cookie recipe 😉
Ingredients
There are a few ingredients in my Berger cookies that you may have questions about–let’s review them first!
- Salted AND unsalted butter. While I’m typically an unsalted butter baker, lately I’ve been experimenting with using salted butter in anything unbaked. So in addition to the unsalted butter for the cookies, you’ll also need salted butter for the fudge topping. If you only have one, I do include substitution instructions in the recipe notes below, but I prefer to use both!
- Imitation vanilla. Pure vanilla extract (and especially homemade vanilla extract) has a special place in my heart, but imitation vanilla provides the most authentic Berger cookie flavor.
- Cake flour. Similar to my copycat Lofthouse cookies, you must use cake flour here for the right texture. The original cookies are cakey by nature and have a fine crumb, and cake flour will get us there.
- Light corn syrup. Not high fructose corn syrup! Just like when making my chocolate fudge, light corn syrup is a crucial ingredient for the proper fudgy consistency of today’s fudge topping.
- Natural AND Dutch process cocoa. Using two types of cocoa may seem like a pain, but both are necessity for authentic flavor. Don’t worry, I have plenty of recipes to use up the remainders of both 😉
SAM’S TIP: Baking powder and baking soda are not the same thing! Today’s recipe calls for just baking powder–do not substitute soda, or your cookies will not turn out properly.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Berger Cookies
Make the cookies
- Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Stir in the remaining wet ingredients–egg, milk, and vanilla–then set your bowl aside.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl, then gradually stir them into the flour mixture until you have a cohesive dough.
- Drop 1 tablespoon scoops of dough onto parchment lined baking sheets. The dough will be very sticky (which is why I don’t provide weight measurements for the dough), so don’t attempt to roll it through your hands!
Flatten & bake
- Flatten the cookies: dampen your fingers before gently flattening each cookie. This step is important; if you skip it, your cookies won’t spread properly.
- Bake until the edges are just starting to turn a light golden brown. Over-baking will cause dry, crumbly cookies–not what we want here!
Make the icing
- Make the frosting: mix the butter and corn syrup together with an electric mixer, then add the powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Drizzle in the heavy cream and vanilla, then stir until the frosting is smooth and combined.
- Transfer the frosting to a double boiler and heat until smooth and easy to spread. The frosting will turn a darker color as well.
- Frost each cookie with about 1 ½ tablespoons of frosting. Make sure you are frosting the flat bottom part of the cookie, as traditional Berger cookies do this. The end result is a rounded look (similar to black and white cookies!). Let the frosting firm up before enjoying.
SAM’S TIP: Make sure your double boiler is set up properly! You’ll need a heatproof bowl–you don’t want any shattered glass in your kitchen–that fits in the pot so the bottom is sitting just above the water; it should not touch.
Frequently Asked Questions
Berger cookies are named after their creator, Henry Berger. Like many German immigrants during the 1800s, Berger made his way to Baltimore from Germany and started a bakery. The bakery is still in operation today, though it is no longer owned by a member of the Berger family.
You can read more about the history of berger cookies on their website.
Nope! Just like the real thing, these cookies will keep at room temperature for up to a week. I recommend keeping them in an airtight container so they stay fresh.
My recipe is not an official Berger cookie recipe, but it is about as close to the real thing as you can get (and I spent a decade getting here). The fudge frosting is fudgy, but not too soft, the cookie is cakey and not at all dry. I waited to share this recipe with you until it was absolutely perfect, and as a Maryland native, I proudly stand by it!
Fellow Marylanders, are there any other classic Maryland recipes you’d like to see from me? Smith Island cake or crab dip might be fun 😉
Enjoy!
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Berger Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature preferred
- 1 Tablespoon milk
- ½ teaspoon imitation vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cups (190 g) cake flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Frosting
- 1 cup (226 g) salted butter softened
- 6 tablespoons (88 ml) light corn syrup
- 5 cups (625 g) powdered sugar
- ⅔ cup (67 g) natural cocoa powder
- 2 Tablespoons (13 g) Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons imitation vanilla extract
Recommended Equipment
- Double boiler
Instructions
Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until light and fluffy and well-combined.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- Add egg, milk, and vanilla extract and stir together until completely combined. Set aside.1 large egg, 1 Tablespoon milk, ½ teaspoon imitation vanilla extract
- In a separate, medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.1 ⅔ cups (190 g) cake flour, ¾ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet, stirring until completely combined.
- Scoop dough by level 1 Tablespoon-sized scoop and drop onto baking sheet, spacing cookies at least 2” (5cm) apart.
- Lightly dampen your fingertips and gently flatten each cookie.
- Transfer to center rack of 350F (175C) preheated oven and bake 10-12 minutes, until the very edges of the cookies are beginning to turn a light golden brown. Allow cookies to cool while you prepare the frosting.
Frosting
- Combine butter and corn syrup in a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until creamy and well-combined.1 cup (226 g) salted butter, 6 tablespoons (88 ml) light corn syrup
- Gradually add powdered sugar, about 1 cup/125g at a time, stirring after each addition until completely combined.5 cups (625 g) powdered sugar
- Add both cocoa powders and stir until well-combined.⅔ cup (67 g) natural cocoa powder, 2 Tablespoons (13 g) Dutch-process cocoa powder
- While stirring on low-speed, drizzle in heavy cream and vanilla extract, stirring until frosting is completely combined and smooth.2 Tablespoons heavy cream, 2 teaspoons imitation vanilla extract
- Prepare a double boiler by filling a medium-sized saucepan with 1-2” of water and fit a medium-sized heatproof bowl onto the pot so that it rests on it without touching the water. Bring water to a simmer, and transfer your frosting to the bowl. Once water is simmering, place the bowl on top of the pot and heat frosting, stirring frequently, until it is melted, darkened in color, smooth, and easy to spread.
- Flip cooled cookies over (you’ll be frosting the flat bottoms of the cookies) and scoop 1 ½ Tablespoons of frosting over each cookie. Use the back of a spoon or an offset spatula to nudge the frosting so it spills over the edges.
- Allow frosting to cool and firm before enjoying!
Notes
Unsalted AND Salted butter (why both)
Both because it simply works best during testing and yielded the best flavor. In this case, though, you can substitute. If you only have salted butter: Reduce the salt in the cookie portion to just ¼ teaspoon. If you only have unsalted butter: Add ½ teaspoon of salt to the icing (just stir it in after the cocoa).Vanilla extract
Berger cookies have a distinctly artificial taste to them and the best way to emulate this is to use imitation vanilla extract. Of course you can use regular vanilla extract if you prefer, the cookies will just not taste as much like Berger cookies as they should.Cake flour
Cake flour is STRONGLY recommended for the closest imitation of the classic Berger cookie crumb. All-purpose flour just doesn’t work the same here!Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
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