cookies
Jerritt Smith
smit9627@umn.edu
9/4/2018
Pdes 2701- Creative Design Methods
Final Idea: Theater Cookie
Theater Cookies utilize the classic combination of caramel and chocolate to merge two normally unassociated foods together, cookies and popcorn. Since chocolate and caramel are delicious with both cookies and popcorn, the two mix seamlessly and expose a salty and sweet flavor. The bowl structure of the cookie resembles a popcorn bowl, containing the popcorn and further reinforcing the theater theme. One unique characteristic about the dough is that it contains orange vanilla Mio water enhancer rather than regular vanilla extract, resulting in an interesting cream flavor. Furthermore, the caramel Ghirardelli chocolates act to add rich flavor and a gooey texture in addition to binding the cookie and popcorn together. To top the cookie off, the popcorn provides texture to the cookie and evokes a salty, buttery flavor in compliment to the sweet base. Ultimately, theater cookies are the perfect snack to sneak into the movie theater and eat after you’ve devoured all your popcorn during the trailers.
When looking online, I could not find the same idea relating to the shape and construction of the theater cookie, suggesting its originality. I found cookies that had popcorn baked inside them, or cookies that were die cut in the shape of a popcorn bucket, however, none were like mine. These cookies are also easy to make and don’t require any special equipment or ingredients. With approval from my peers, I am hopeful that you will enjoy my theater cookies too.




Recipe:
- 1 cup of unsalted butter
- 1 egg
- 3 Cups of unbleached flour
- 2 8-square bars of caramel filled Ghirardelli chocolates
- 1 cup of raw cane sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1/2 cup of crushed chocolate
- ~2 cups of popcorn
- 1 teaspoon of Mio Orange Vanilla liquid water enhancer
- 3/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon of almond extract

Required materials:
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 large mixing spoon
- 1 muffin tin
- 1 teaspoon
- 1 rolling pin
- 1 measuring cup
- 1 oven
- 1 pair of oven mitts

Idea Generation:
In my process of idea generation, I began by brainstorming cookies of different shapes, flavors, and ingredients on my own, then with friends. A majority of the initial ideas were poor and unoriginal, however, they led me to new ideas. My notes and sketches are unorganized in infancy but as I narrowed down the two I chose to test, clarity emerged. Throughout this process, I frequently asked myself questions for inspiration. Some of those questions include:
- What if I made it bigger, smaller, harder, softer, stronger, or weaker?
- Where and when might it be used or eaten?
- What ideas can I combine?
- What if I added or subtracted something?
- Who would it appeal to?

Ideas:
- Taco Cookies- taco shape with cookie toppings inside
- Waffle cookies- waffle shape with maple flavored frosting
- Cave cookies- Round, hollow cookie with rock candy and pop rocks
- Deep dish cookies- round, walled cookie with frosting and cookie topping
- Root beer float cookies- root-beer flavored cookies with vanilla frosting
- Caffeine cookies- chocolate chip cookies with caffeine to wake you up

7. Cookie rings- round cookies you can wear like rings
8. Cookie fingers- cookies that fit over your fingers, enabling you to dip them in milk easier
9. Hiking cookies- trail mix and protein inside cookies

10. Theater cookies- bucket shaped cookies with melted caramel and popcorn
11. Cookie slots- cherry, lemon, and watermelon flavors separated like a slot machine. The combination of flavors are random
12. Pringle cookies- thin with shape of Pringles with different flavors. Stack them for flavor combinations.
13. Crepe cookies- Thin cookies made like crepes. Mini crepes basically

Of all ideas, I decided to test the Ring-Finger Cookie and the Theater Cookie because I felt their unique forms and ingredient combinations add novelty and value to the ideas. Also, many of my ideas had already been created before and I could not find cookies that matched my Ring-Finger or Theater cookie ideas when searching for them using several keywords that could reveal results.
Idea Test 1: Ring-Finger Cookies
Taking the classic cookie to the next level, ring-finger cookies combine two ideas, cookie rings, and cookie fingers. Its wearable nature enables you to easily dip the cookie in milk and wear several cookies at once. You are only limited by the number of fingers you have. As you eat, the cookie turns into a fashionable ring!
Recipe:
- 1 cup of unsalted butter
- 1 egg
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 teaspoon of Mio Orange Vanilla liquid water enhancer
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 cup of raw cane sugar
- 3 1/2 cups of unbleached flour
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup mini marshmallows
Required materials:
- Aluminum foil
- 1 rolling pin
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 cookie sheet
- 1 butter knife
- 2 mixing spoons
- 1 measuring cup
- 1 teaspoon
- 1 pair of oven mitts
- 1 oven







Idea Evaluation:
Throughout the process of baking and testing these cookies, several errors emerged in the recipe, construction, and concept. Firstly, there was too much baking powder in the dough, so the cookies fell apart. Only one of the cookies survived from the first of my experimental batches. One success of the recipe, however, was that the Mio Orange Vanilla water enhancer worked as a substitute for vanilla extract and give the cookie a unique flavor. Another error in this concept is that one size does not fit all. The cookie was too big for some of my taste testers’ fingers, and too small for others, reducing its practicality. Some of my testers also complained that they were afraid of biting their finger when trying to eat the cookie. Ultimately, with tweaks to the recipe, these cookies are feasible, however, they are not valuable to those who the cookies do not fit and they would be difficult to present in class without bringing milk and cups for testing.
Idea Test 2: Theater Cookies
Theater cookies reflect the theme of going to the movie theater by combining the flavors of your favorite movie snacks. In this test, I used the backside of a muffin tin to create a bowl shape cookie. From there, I melted different combinations of snacks one might eat at the movie theater, such as Milk Duds, Swedish Fish, gummy bears, and mini marshmallows. To top off the cookies, I added the most beloved theater snack, popcorn.
Recipe:
- 1 egg
- 1 cup of unsalted butter
- 1 cup of raw cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
- 1 cup of raw cane sugar
- 3 cups of unbleached flour
- Milk Duds
- Mini Marshmallows
- Gummy bears
- Swedish fish
- 1 bag of popcorn
Required materials:
- 1 muffin tin
- 1 rolling pin
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 butter knife
- 2 mixing spoons
- 1 measuring cup
- 1 teaspoon
- 1 pair of oven mitts
- 1 oven






Idea Evaluation:
In this cookie experiment, I learned more about the way cookies taste with different ingredients, the way they behave, and what happens when flavors and textures clash. Firstly, I tested almond extract as a substitute for vanilla extract, however, I accidentally added way too much almond extract, which completely overpowered the taste of the cookies. When I went to press the popcorn into the candy, the bottoms of the cookie bowls fell off because I didn’t allow the cookies to cool down enough to hold together well. In addition to pressing the popcorn into the candy, the Milk Duds didn’t melt well and the gummy bears and Swedish fish had a horrible flavor and texture in combination with cookies and popcorn. Despite my flaws in the creation of these cookies, I feel they are original, would be easy to make again, and are relatively practical.
Iteration:
In the process of testing out the cookies, I took notes on large and small changes I could make to my cookies to improve their overall taste, form, and presentation. The following pictures and descriptions note those changes.

The dough in the experimental batch of theater cookies had a bland appearance and frankly a bland taste as well. For the final, I added crushed chocolate chips to the recipe to further sweeten the dough and add interest to the presentation of the cookie.

The squares I cut out looked unprofessional in the experiment, so I resolved to stamp out circular bowls with a cup.

I used caramel Ghiradelli chocolates instead of Milk Duds for better taste and to melt them faster. They take away from the theater theme but taste better than milk duds, adding to the overall value of the cookie.
Some of the changes I made to the final version of the theater cookies not pictured above include adjustments to the recipe, such as using less baking powder, adding Mio Orange Vanilla liquid water enhancer, using less almond extract, and slightly increased the salt added.
Timeline-
- Tuesday 9/4: Create blog post, make a list of cookie ideas on my own, then with friends. Keep in mind flavor, texture, process, and presentation. Also remember > novel+value+feasible.
- Wednesday 9/5: Narrow list of ideas down to form a list of necessary ingredients. Conduct research on cookies as to how much of each ingredient I will need for testing. Research how different ingredients affect the flavor of foods.
- Thursday 9/6: Sketch out cookie designs and organize lists. Take photos of ideas to post on the blog. Decide on a couple cookie designs to test out.
- Friday 9/7: Find a place to get ingredients and purchase them. Get enough ingredients for experimentation.
- Saturday 9/8: Conduct cookie tests in small batches and have friends test them out. Experiment with recipes or revise designs if necessary.
- Monday 9/10: Extra day of testing and revising if necessary. Aim to achieve the final cookie today. Get feedback and a majority vote on flavor and design from friends. Fill in data and paste pictures of final cookie design on the blog post.
- Tuesday 9/11: Clean up loose ends on post and edit or revise if necessary.
- Wednesday 9/12: Publish story. Buy ingredients for my final batch of cookies.
- Thursday 9/13: Bake and prepare cookies fresh for class.
Fun Fact-
Cookies are called ‘cookies’ rather than ‘bakies’ because cookie comes from the Dutch word ‘Koekje,’ which was a flat crisp cake made with a sugary dough.
