Review : Byron Bay Cookies

As a family, we consider ourselves very lucky to have been chosen to sample and review the range of Byron Bay Cookies.

We didn’t really know what to expect, when the Postman brought what seemed to be an unfeasibly large box. Upon opening, we discovered a treasure trove of Cookiness! “Get the kettle on!”, the cry went up.

So, we settled down with our first choice - the Sticky Date, Ginger & Walnut Cookie.

What a triumph. Each individual flavour of date, walnut and ginger comes through, with the level of ginger being just right and not overpowering the other two at all. Even as you open the packaging, you know you’re in for a treat as the cookie just smells divine. Pleasantly dense without being over-sweet, it has the joint accolade of being able to melt in the mouth, yet also being able to be dunked in your tea, which if anything, enhances the flavour. There aren’t many cookies you can say that about!

As a close second, came the Lemon Macadamia Nut Shortbread. Personally, I’d say this was my favourite. It looks nice, smells gorgeous and the taste, with its crumbly butteriness is a cookie experience that is just beyond all things. The lemony flavour hovers around in the background, ever present, while the Macadamia nuts are evenly spread without being in huge chunks that would inevitably compromise one’s teeth. I think the biggest accolade one can give these shortbread cookies, is that it is impossible to hold a conversation whilst eating one.

We all ran out of tea at this stage, so let’s fast forward to the following day at tea-time.

Our son, who is 11 years old and pushover for a Smartie, immediately homed in on the “Dotty Cookie”. His professional opinion is that this is a wonderful cookie. I quote “Lovely crumbly consistency .. ~munch~ .. big chocolate chunks in it, too .. ~crunch~ .. chocolate really tastes fresh .. ~slurp~ .. it gets better when you dunk it in milk!”. Does a cookie get better than that, for a child?

Hubby had homed in on the Fig & Pecan cookie, forgiving it for being low fat. Although he found it quite hard work to chew, saying “you certainly know you’ve eaten one, it fills a hole!” as it is somewhat dense in it’s flapjack-like consistency, he certainly wouldn’t have turned down a second!

My choice was the White Chocolate Chunk & Macadamia nut cookie. With the vanilla sweetness of a soft ice cream, this cookie is just begging to be eaten with a strong cup of coffee. With very gentle flavours, the chunks of nut are slightly too big for comfort’s sake (see comment above, re. teeth!). Again, it is gloriously crumbly and buttery.

Last, but by far from least, came the Strawberry & Clotted Cream cookie. Moist and strawberryish with a creamy finish, the cookie isn’t cloying at all and every bite is a delight. As with most of the shortcake-style cookies, be prepared to be wearing any number of crumbs! The most memorable feature of this cookie, however, is the smell. Do remember to take a moment to enjoy the aroma, before taking that first delicious bite.

With a retail price of between £1.20 and £1.39 (for the gluten-free versions) I’d say that these cookies represent excellent value for money.