JUST MAKE SURE THE DOBERMAN DOESN'T CHOKE ON THEM:

First came the legend, then the Neiman Marcus cookie recipe (WALTRINA STOVALL, September 26, 2007, The Dallas Morning News)

If you've been in touch with the outside world during the past 20 years – have received any mail more personal than a utility bill or a flier addressed to "Current Resident" – you know that what the woman found was that the charge for the cookie recipe was not $2.50, as she expected. It was a whopping $250.

Incensed, she had 1,000 copies of the recipe made. She began mailing it to friends, relatives and casual acquaintances. She handed it out at a day spa and to people she bumped into at crowded cocktail parties. The daughter took it for show and tell at her exclusive girls' school.

Recipients were asked to pass the recipe on because the greedy store must be stopped from charging an unconscionable amount for a cookie recipe.

The story began circulating in the late '80s and spread quickly.

Although Neiman's denied the story – in fact, the company said it had never served cookies in its restaurants – it kept gaining momentum. Finally, with the help of the Internet and e-mail, it became The Urban Legend That Would Not Die.

Inquiries about the costly recipe kept coming in until, finally, the store tasked its bakers to come up with a recipe worthy of the NM reputation. It was perfected in 1995 by Kevin Garvin and is on the company Web site, www.neimanmarcus.com. Free. It also is in the Neiman Marcus Cookbook (Clarkson Potter, $45) by Mr. Garvin and John Harrisson. [...]

NEIMAN MARCUS CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
½ cup (1 stick) butter

1 cup light brown sugar

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder

1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300 F. Cream the butter with the sugars until fluffy using an electric mixer on medium speed (approximately 30 seconds).

Beat in the egg and vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.

In a mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda and beat into the butter at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso coffee powder and the chocolate chips.

Using a 1-ounce scoop or 2-tablespoon measure, drop cookies onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2-inch circle.

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispy cookie.