Before I was graced with a Stew Leonard’s location five minutes from my home, I used to hop in the car to take little field trips with my daughter to the nearest location about 30 minutes away. She’d be entertained, and I could have fun on a grocery shopping adventure. That’s just how much I love Stew Leonard’s, a family-owned regional grocery store chain with locations throughout Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York.
If you’ve ever visited Stew Leonard’s, you totally understand the hype. If not, it’s time to plan a field trip of your own.
The one-way, maze-shaped store is special for the whole family. It’s packed with general and specialty grocery items, musical animatronic farm animals and produce (the dancing avocados and bananas are our favorite) that give children full rein over pressing the buttons for songs and entertainment throughout the store, and even has a must-stop soft serve counter with tons of flavor options as you exit the store with your grocery haul.
But when it comes to Stew Leonard’s seasonal items, a fan favorite has just returned for the holidays, and shoppers are running to the store to grab a bottle (or three). Some fans are even “crossing state lines” to snag it.
Cookie Milk Is Back at Stew Leonard’s
Being that Stew Leonard’s celebrates joy, good vibes, and fun with food all year, it’s no surprise that the store has once again lined the refrigerator shelves with festive, fun Cookie Milk, and fans are thrilled. Your seasonal eggnog may just take a backseat to this treat this holiday season.
When asked what Cookie Milk tastes like, the store describes it as “milk that tastes like a sweet and buttery sugary cookie.” Other shoppers describe it as “a brown sugar chocolate chip cookie.” I can confirm that both of these descriptions are spot on. Imagine soaking freshly baked sugar cookies in milk overnight before straining it, and then pouring it into a large glass jug that keeps it crisp and cold. The milk is extremely sweet, but it doesn’t taste artificial. Stew Leonard’s takes the holiday spirit a step further with a different design on the bottle each year.
A fan-favorite recipe for this milk is to whip up an iced Cookie Milk latte, also called “Christmas cookies in a cup.” All you have to do is pour Cookie Milk over ice, and top it with espresso or coffee before stirring to combine. One fan opted to start with coffee cubes, since the ice will intensify the coffee flavor without diluting the delicious drink. They also topped off the latte with homemade Cookie Milk cold foam.
My entire family loves this milk most with plain Cheerios, because the toasty flavor of the cereal balances well with the rich sweetness of the milk. You can also make Cookie Milk french toast, pancakes, milkshakes, baked goods, and perhaps a sugar Cookie Milk martini for any holiday cocktail parties this year. Shoppers love to save the glass jar for future use, like storing homemade nut milks or iced coffee.
If you live in the tri-state area, but can’t make it to the store, you can order Cookie Milk online through services such as Instacart, DoorDash, and UberEats. The store only carries Cookie Milk annually throughout the holiday season, so be sure to snag your bottle before time runs out!
Dining and Cooking