Lexington: A Destination and A Dessert

Talk of shopping locally for Thanksgiving dinner typically means picking up produce at the farmers market or farmstand or ordering prepared meals or sides from someplace like .

But that’s not the only way to get a little bit of Lexington on the table during the holiday season.

It just so happens, this town shares its name with a sweet treat, a milk chocolate toffee almond chocolate chunk cookie, one of 15 varieties in Pepperidge Farm’s “American Collection.” 

With real butter and natural vanilla flavor, milk chocolate chunks and other quality ingredients, the Pepperidge Farm website says these cookies seek to make the grocery store aisle a destination to rival their namesakes. 

“We worked closely with our bakers to seek out the finest ingredients, while improving the taste and the texture of some of our American Collection chocolate chunk and soft baked cookie varieties,” said Brian Immel, Business Director at Pepperidge Farm, in a September press release announcing the American Collection. “The names of our cookies celebrate favorite American destinations that people have loved exploring for generations, just as our Distinctive cookies line celebrates European destinations.”

While our best guess is the Connecticut-based Pepperidge Farm had Lexington, Mass. in mind when creating this toffee almond cookie, a company spokeperson would neither confirm nor deny.

“When naming our cookies we never associate them with a particular state,” Geri Allen, manager of corporate and brand communications, wrote in an email to Lexington Patch.

“Please note that none of the towns named in the collection have anything to do with those specific towns,” she said. “The Lexington cookie was inspired by toffee chocolate candy. It contains creamy milk chocolate, crunchy almonds and sweets bits of toffee; and is made with real butter and natural vanilla flavor.”

The Lexington is one of 15 varieties in the American Collection, which also includes cookies named after Nantucket, Tahoe, Maui, Montauk and Mystic. American Collection cookies are available now at major supermarkets, grocery stores and mass merchandisers nationwide, the Pepperidge Farm website says.