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Tuesday, April 16th marks the grand opening of Milk Jar Cookies, a new, shabby chic bakery in Mid-City specializing in fresh-out-of-the-oven cookies.
The duo behind the counter is Courtney Cowan and Adam Tiller, and together they've concocted about fourteen personal (and pleasing) cookie recipes, including sugar cinnamon, rocky road, and banana split. Our advice? Snag whichever cookie is hot out of the oven and you'll be in sweet, sweet heaven.
We talked to Cowan about Milk Jar and their really tasty cookies:
LAist: This is a bit of a career change for you. What were you doing before, and what made this the right time to step on a different path?
Courtney Cowan: I was a post production supervisor in television for 12 years. I started an online cookie company in 2005 and did it on the side while working and [when] on hiatus. While the siren song of TV would continually lure me back, I always held onto the cookie dream. Then the fall of 2012 my husband decided to join forces with me, and we founded Milk Jar Cookies. For a variety of reasons the timing just felt right, and I was finally ready to make the leap.
How did you settle on serving only cookies, as opposed to cupcakes, brownies, or pie (or a little bit of everything)?
While I enjoy baking lots of different baked goods, cookies have always had a special place in my heart and are what I do best. We also like the idea of a simple, specialty shop that focuses on one thing but offers a variety of choice at the same time. We have relationships with a couple different distributors for our ingredients. Our milk comes from Broguiere's Dairy in Montebello, and our coffee is roasted downtown by Handome Coffee Roasters.
Why Mid-City?
We live in the area and love the neighborhood, so when we found 5466 we jumped on it. Our hope in opening a shop was to become part of a community, and this corridor of Wilshire felt like a perfect fit. We couldn't be happier that we ended up here.
How did you come up with all of your recipes?
In my teens I developed my own chocolate chip cookie recipe that I tweaked over time. In 2005 I started seriously thinking about making this cookie dream a reality and began brainstorming about fun, new flavors to expand my menu. Inspiration strikes regularly, and I'll work on new flavors which is always fun. I have a reserve of several flavors that will be brought out as Seasonal Specials at Milk Jar.
Your mother was helping out in the kitchen during your soft opening. Tell us how else she's involved in the story of Milk Jar Cookies.
She is quite a good baker herself and taught me the basics of baking when I was a kid. I remember specifically the day she taught me what a leavening agent was, as I forgot the baking soda in a recipe. Needless to say, it wasn't pretty, and I've never forgotten it again.
When you're craving something beyond sweets, where in LA do you go for a savory lunch or dinner?
Cube on La Brea. Mmmmm.
If you're feeling peckish at work, what's your go-to cookie flavor?
Chocolate Pecan Caramel!
Any advice for all of grown-up girls that dream of opening a dessert shop?
Do your research. And, go for it! If you want it, make it happen. It won't be easy, but it will most definitely be worth it.
Milk Jar Cookies is located at 5466 Wilshire Boulevard in Mid-City. (323) 634-9800
