HOW TO MAKE

BEN'S COOKIES
AT HOME

15 flavours
to make
you happy
marmaladeandme.com
CONTENTS
Introduction
Tips & tricks
What's your flavour?
Triple Chocolate Chunk
Praline & Milk
Oatmeal & Raisin
Ginger Ginger
Dates & Milk Chocolate
Orange & Milk Chocolate
Peanut Butter
Coconut
Ginger & Dark Chocolate
And there's more ...

www.marmaladeandme.com
 INTRODUCTION
It's fair to say that I've been obsessing about Ben's Cookies for years.

Do you know them? If you live in Bath, Brighton, Bristol, Edinburgh, London, Oxford,
Reading, Dubai, Kuwait, Riyadh, Seoul or Singapore then you most probably will and if
you don't ... then let me tell you all.

They are BIG. They have chunks and not chips and most importantly they are slightly
gooey in the centre ... in fact, you could say that they are somewhere between a cake
and a traditional cookie, especially when they are straight from the oven. Swoooooon.
Oh my word, they are SO good. And the flavours - my favourite is the Ginger
and Dark Chocolate, but you can also tempt me with a White Chocolate (even though I'm
not normally a fan), or a Coconut or a Milk Chocolate. In fact, just pass me the box. A
large box.

And the branding (because I'm a sucker for great branding) is so very perfect. Striking,
red background; black, scratchy lettering and a classic Quentin Blake illustration of
Ben (I assume).

But they are also expensive and not right on my doorstep either, so being able to
recreate Ben's cookies so that I could make them at home would be heavenly...
 INTRODUCTION
(continued)
So, I started on the internet - of course. There are a handful of recipes that claim to
have nailed it. I've tried them all and although they are all nice cookies, they are a
million miles from the real McCoy. The first attempt spread so much that I ended up
with one enormous 'baking tray' shaped cookie about a millimetre thick. There was
talk by the children of re-branding as 'Ben's enormous pancakes' but ultimately it was -
REJECT. The next few iterations were more successful but there was still room for
improvement. Then I did a bit of research and discovered that the chain of shops was
founded in 1984 by Helge Rubinstein. She wrote an iconic chocolate recipe book, so
that had to be my next move.

A few small steps forward came next, followed by a couple of backward steps and
then I was so very nearly there ... just a bit more of this and a bit less of that, until ...
TA DAH - I had nailed it ... the Ben's cookie recipe - well, as close to the genuine article
as is possible, without resorting to industrial espionage. And they are easy too. The
end result FAR outweighs the effort.

Of course, the flavour that I focussed on first was my own favourite - Ginger and Dark
Chocolate. But now, I have perfected the other flavours too so that we can all savour
these big, chunky, gooey, rich, delicious cookies at home - all 15 flavours. These will
make you happy. I promise
 TIPS & TRICKS
WHAT I LEARNED ...
Chunks not chips - Always.
Which chocolate? - Choose the best chocolate
that you can manage - I'm a fan of Lindt. A
chunky bar of chocolate will stay in defined
pieces once cooked. A thinner bar melts a bit
and becomes an irregular shape ... it's your
choice.
On top vs inside? - Sometimes I mix the
chocolate into the cookie dough, other times I
arrange it on top of the cookies. You choose but
try to get an even spread through the batch.
What about white chocolate? - White chocolate
on the top of the cookie does go brown and ends
up looking like grilled cheese! Avoid this by
hiding the chunks inside the cookie mixture.
How big should they be? - 90g (3oz) of cookie
mixture works for me. Keep the cookies all the
same size (it helps to weigh them) - then they
will cook evenly.
How long should I cook them for? - 10 minutes
works in my oven but if in doubt, bake for less
time rather than more - you want that soft centre
after all.
How long will they keep for? - They don't last
long around here, but if you manage to find a
good hiding spot they will keep in an airtight
container for 3 or 4 days.
Freezing works well - Freeze
the uncooked cookies in portions and 'ready
shaped' to enjoy cookies warm from the oven
whenever you fancy. Baking temperature and
time remains the same. Now that sounds
tempting ...
 WHAT'S YOUR FLAVOUR?

WHEN I STARTED
TO RECREATE
BEN'S COOKIES AT
HOME ...
When I started to recreate
Ben's Cookies at home, Ginger
and Dark Chocolate was
definitely my favourite. No
competition.

But then I experimented with

Orange and Milk Chocolate and
suddenly THAT was my
favourite. And then I tried a
Peanut Butter warm from the
oven and I knew that this was
my new true love - until I
discovered Praline and Milk ...
But there's also Oatmeal and
Raisin (with the added bonus of
feeling slightly virtuous) and
Triple Chocolate Chunk (with
absolutely no chance of feeling
virtuous)....

So which will be your favourite?

 TRIPLE CHOCOLATE CHUNK
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

160g (5½oz) plain flour
40g (1½oz) cocoa powder
½ teaspoon salt
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) + a
little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
40g (1½oz) dark chocolate (I used 60% cocoa
solids), cut into big chunks
40g (1½oz) milk chocolate, cut into big chunks
40g (1½oz) white chocolate, cut into big chunks

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
cocoa powder and salt.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar and the caster sugar sugar into the melted butter and
combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 To add the chocolate I find it easier to divide the dough into 12 pieces and then share
the chocolate chunks between them, pressing them into the dough. It's easiest to use the
scales for the dividing - my pieces of dough (before the chocolate) were about 90g each.
Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball
slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 PRALINE & MILK
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
50g (2oz) hazelnuts, roughly chopped
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
100g (4oz) hazelnut butter, unsweetened and
crunchy
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
100g (4oz) milk chocolate, cut into big chunks

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt and the chopped hazelnuts.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar, the caster sugar and the hazelnut butter into the melted
butter and combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 To add the chocolate I find it easier to divide the dough into 12 pieces and then share
the chocolate chunks between them, pressing them into the dough. It's easiest to use the
scales for the dividing - my pieces of dough (before the chocolate) were about 90g each.
Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball
slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 OATMEAL & RAISIN
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
100g (4oz) jumbo oats
100g (4oz) raisins
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt, cinnamon, oats and the raisins.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar and the caster sugar into the melted butter and combine
everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 Divide the dough into 12 pieces - it's easiest to use the scales for the dividing ... my
pieces of dough were about 90g each. Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto
the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 GINGER GINGER
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
100g (4oz) stem ginger, roughly chopped
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt, ground ginger and stem ginger.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar and the caster sugar into the melted butter and combine
everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 Divide the dough into 12 pieces - it's easiest to use the scales for the dividing ... my
pieces of dough were about 90g each. Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto
the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 DATES & MILK CHOCOLATE
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
100g (4oz) soft, pitted dates, cut into chunky
pieces
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
100g (4oz) milk chocolate, cut into big chunks

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt and the chopped dates.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar, the caster sugar and the vanilla extract into the melted
butter and combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 To add the chocolate I find it easier to divide the dough into 12 pieces and then share
the chocolate chunks between them, pressing them into the dough. It's easiest to use the
scales for the dividing - my pieces of dough (before the chocolate) were about 90g each.
Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball
slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 ORANGE & MILK CHOCOLATE
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
finely grated zest of 2 large oranges
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
100g (4oz) milk chocolate, cut into big chunks

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar, the caster sugar and the orange zest into the melted
butter and combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 To add the chocolate I find it easier to divide the dough into 12 pieces and then share
the chocolate chunks between them, pressing them into the dough. It's easiest to use the
scales for the dividing - my pieces of dough (before the chocolate) were about 90g each.
Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball
slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 PEANUT BUTTER
Makes 14 cookies

250g (9oz) SR flour

250g (9oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
50g (2oz) unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
150g (5oz) peanut butter, unsweetened and
crunchy
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
a sprinkling of coarse sea salt

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt and the chopped peanuts.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar, the caster sugar and the peanut butter into the melted
butter and combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 Divide the dough into 14 pieces - it's easiest to use the scales for the dividing ... my
pieces of dough were about 90g each. Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto
the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball slightly with the palm of your hand and sprinkle a
little sea salt over each cookie
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 COCONUT
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150g (5oz) sweetened coconut
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
25g (1oz) dessicated coconut

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar, caster sugar, vanilla extract and sweetened coconut into
the melted butter and combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful
here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 Divide the dough into 12 pieces - it's easiest to use the scales for the dividing ... my
pieces of dough were about 90g each. Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto
the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball slightly with the palm of your hand and sprinkle
generously with the dessicated coconut.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 GINGER & DARK CHOCOLATE
Makes 12 cookies

200g (7oz) SR flour

200g (7oz) plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
100g (4oz) stem ginger in syrup, drained and
cut into chunky pieces
170g (6oz) unsalted butter (cut into chunks) +
a little extra for greasing the baking trays
200g (7oz) dark brown, soft sugar
100g (4oz) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
100g (4oz) dark chocolate (I used 60% cocoa
solids), cut into big chunks

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F

(gas mark 6).
2 Lightly grease 2 large baking trays.
3 Weigh out the two types of flour into a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly and stir in the
salt and the stem ginger.
4 Now place the butter in a large bowl and melt it in the microwave until no solid bits
remain.
5 Tip the dark brown, soft sugar, the caster sugar and the vanilla extract into the melted
butter and combine everything thoroughly - an electric hand whisk is helpful here.
6 Break the eggs into a cup and when you are sure that the melted butter mixture is cool
enough not to scramble the eggs (stick your finger in to test it), beat the eggs into the
mixture.
7 Next tip the butter mixture into the flour mixture and stir well until everything is fully
combined.
8 To add the chocolate I find it easier to divide the dough into 12 pieces and then share
the chocolate chunks between them, pressing them into the dough. It's easiest to use the
scales for the dividing - my pieces of dough (before the chocolate) were about 90g each.
Roll the dough pieces in balls and place them onto the 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball
slightly with the palm of your hand.
9 Now bake in the oven for 10 minutes. You want the cookies to still feel very soft in the
centre.
10 Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack as soon as they are out of the oven.
 AND THERE'S MORE ...
The remaining six flavours are easy to adapt from the recipes
that we already have -

To make - Which recipe What do I What do

do I use? take out? I add?

Milk Chocolate
= Milk Chocolate
& Orange - +
zest of 2 oranges 1 tsp vanilla extract

White Chocolate
= Milk Chocolate
& Orange - 100g milk chocolate + 100g white chocolate

zest of 2 oranges 1 tsp vanilla extract

Double Chocolate
Chunk = Triple Chocolate
Chunk - +
100g white chocolate

an extra 20g each of

milk & dark chocolate
AND THERE'S EVEN MORE ...
To make - Which recipe What do I What do
do I use? take out? I add?

Cranberries &
White Chocolate = Dates &
Milk Chocolate - 100g soft dates + 100g white chocolate

100g milk chocolate 100g cranberries

Dark Chocolate
= Milk Chocolate
& Orange - 100g milk chocolate + 100g dark chocolate

zest of 2 oranges 1 tsp vanilla extract

White Chocolate
& Macadamia = Dates &
Milk Chocolate - 100g soft dates + 100g white chocolate

100g milk chocolate 100g macadamias