It’s nostalgic. A reminder of the simpler, better days of childhood when milk and cookies were an afternoon treat. There is just something about eating warm chocolate chip cookies and not being able to stop.
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There is nothing more tantalizing than the smell of mom’s freshly baked cookies wafting through the air and nothing more torturous than waiting for a fresh batch of cookies to cool enough to handle.
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However, the anticipation is well worth because there is nothing more satisfying than warm cookies paired with a glass of ice cold milk. The emotional attachment to milk and cookies is irrefutable, but is there scientific evidence why milk and cookies will never go out of style? Let’s break it down.
The Cookie
Photo by Helena Lin
The quintessential cookie to consume with milk is definitely the chocolate chip cookie. Originally dubbed “Toll House Crunch Cookie,” it was made by accident when Ruth Wakefield substituted Nestle’s semi-sweet chocolate chips for baking chocolate. She hoped the chips would melt to make chocolate cookies but alas, she failed, and we thank her everyday.
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Of course, cookie addiction begins with our underlying sugar addiction. Shockingly, rats addicted to cocaine preferred a sugar high over an actual high. But who could blame them? Sugar is delicious.
Infographic courtesy of amylstein from visual.ly
Now let’s look at the chocolate chips. One of the profs of Food Chemistry at McGill swears that chocolate is addicting because it melts just under body temperature, creating the lusciousness behind chocolate that we dream and drool about.
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Apparently, chocolate is like marijuana? It’s been found that chocolate contains anandamide, which is a compound similar to THC (the active compound in weed).
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Unfortunately, chocolate won’t make you hallucinate, but it does activate those dopamine pleasure centers that make you oh so happy.
The Milk
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What separates milk from other beverage choices is its flavor and creaminess. Milk helps to wash down all the deliciously addictive sugar and chocolate you just consumed, without diluting or ruining the taste of cookies.
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Not to mention, your mom did say that milk will make your bones grow stronger, so eating cookies with it makes it a healthy snack, right? Usher seems to agree.
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Photo by Helena Lin
More cookies to eat with milk: