Joe Biden Hands Out This Sweet Treat To His Oval Office Visitors
Because there was no First Lady Cookie Contest during the toss up between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, we didn't get a chance to see — never mind taste — First Lady Dr. Jill Biden's cookie choice (spoiler alert: she's a fan of Giada De Laurentiis' oatmeal, cranberry, and chocolate chunk cookies, as revealed by The Boston Globe). But it appears that the Bidens have been making up for lost time by making the American cookie classic a signature part of the administration.
The White House chocolate chip cookie made its debut under the Bidens when, a day after the Inauguration, Jill brought baskets of chocolate chip cookies and distributed them to members of the National Guard, to thank them for keeping the family safe during the heavily-guarded ceremonies that took place two days before (via U.S. News). It now appears that after meetings, chocolate chip cookies packaged with the presidential seal are offered to Congressional members to bring back to the Capitol, in a move that the Associated Press is calling "chocolate chip diplomacy."
The White House has given away more than 4,200 chocolate chip cookies so far
Visiting members of the U.S. Congress don't appear to be the only ones that are treated to homemade chocolate chip cookies. Politico reports that the bowl of apples former President Barack Obama kept in the Oval Office has been swapped out with chocolate chip cookies, and staffers have been known to put their hand in the cookie bowl to take a few for the road. No surprise then, that the White House has said it has given out more than 4,200 chocolate chip (and special edition) cookies in the first 100 days of the administration.
There's no clue as to whether the Biden White House is looking to the oatmeal, cranberry, and chocolate chip cookies that The Boston Globe says Jill favors, or whether they're going with something tried and true, like the chocolate chip cookies the former White House Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier says he used to make for former President Bill Clinton (via Cake Student). Whatever the recipe is, it looks like it's a winner — and we can't wait to find out how the cookies are made, and what goes into them.