Sometimes Foodie: Lidl Cafe Noir Cookies

Cafe Noir Cookies - Lidl

If you are a Maria, you must at some point in your life consume Maria cookies. It's the law.(It doesn't have to be Goya-brand, but they're what my grandma ate.) They aren't trendy, they never have new flavors, shapes or colors, but that's because they don't have to. They are the perfect hot beverage cookie. Tea, coffee, cocoa...they're all better when consumed with a side of Maria cookies for dunking. They don't need gimmicks to keep me coming back for more. But hear me out, what if Maria cookies had a coffee flavored glaze on the bottom?

I did not immediately make the Maria-cookie connection when I purchased these. I was walking through Lidl and saw these and thought they might be fun to try. That's all. It wasn't until I opened the package and saw what these actually were that everything clicked.

For some reason I thought these would be more like butter cookies, the ones sold in blue ~~sewing kits~~ metal tins, but they're not. These cookies are perfect cracker-like rectangles, with rounded edges, and a smooth coating of coffee flavored "glaze" on the bottom. The glaze is hard and glossy, but thin, and makes a satisfying tapping noise. Kind of like a layer of nail polish, which is not the yummiest description, but it's accurate. The cookie itself is just like a Maria cookie. It even smells the same, kind of sweet, but healthy-ish, similar to an animal cracker.

Eaten straight from the package, dry, the cookie is lightly sweetened, with a graham-cracker-like crispness and an earthy wheat flavoring. The glaze adds a light touch of coffee flavoring and added sweetness, but overall these are very animal cracker-like. With a hint of coffee. When compared to sugary cookie counterparts, like Oreo, these are practically a health food, but this really shines when you dunk it into a hot drink. In this case, a mug of of black tea.

When dunked, the glaze slowly dissolves and leaving silky trails in your beverage as you stir, and the cookie absorbs everything like a delicious sponge. I am failing at these food descriptions, but it's a textural experience that I just love. (Let it be known, I am a dunker. I love dunking my cookies.)

That said, I think this cookie (and all Maria Cookies) are best eaten, dunked in a warm beverage. A cold glass of milk can do in a pinch, but it just isn't the same. Tea, coffee, or cocoa is preferred,

After seeing Emmy make a Lime Maria Ice Box Cake on Youtube, I bet you that these would make a great base for some ice box tiramisu. That is, if you have enough cookies left. I'm already halfway through my sleeve as-it is. With tiramisu in mind, which is one of my favorite desserts of all time, I may have to pick up a few more packages. You know, just for ~~science~~ the blog.