Chatting to the folks from Molly Woppy recently, it struck us that the same things that are important to Tassie makers, are important to New Zealand producers too:  using all-natural ingredients including real butter, dairy and free-range eggs, and no artificial colours or flavours.

But before we got much further, we had to ask where the name came from. Apparently, it’s based on the childhood nickname of one of the founders, Hayley Malloy, from the Scottish fairy tale of Molly Whuppie, a Hansel and Gretel-type story involving sisters, a terrifying giant and great bravery on the part of Molly Whuppie.

Something of the fighting spirit of Hayley’s nickname must have rubbed off because it’s taken Hayley and her partner Alistair’s sheer hard work and tenacity over the past 20+ years to build Molly Woppy from a home-based cottage enterprise to the state-of-the-art business it is today, employing about 30 people and selling cookies across New Zealand and Australia - they’re even served aboard Air New Zealand’s flights!

We caught up with Kate Gibson, Molly Woppy’s Marketing Manager, who filled us in on some more details about this impressive cookie empire.

Q: Tell us about your cookies!

A: They’re all natural, nostalgic flavours, done properly. Our number one seller are our Gingerbread Kids, and number two is our Milk Choccy Chunk – which are actually gluten free: they’re so good people don’t even realise they’re gluten free. Alistair, who is a chef, created our in-house gluten-free flour and it’s fantastic.

Q: How did you come to work with Hill Street?

A: I think we’ve come together through shared values of loving quality food and sourcing the best ingredients from passionate producers. 

Q: What’s your personal favourite?

A: I’ve loved Molly Woppy since I was a kid – the first cookie I tried was their Christmas cookie as it was virtually the only gluten free cookie around (I’m coelic) and it was so good. These days I love the Choccy Coconut Ruff – it’s everything you love about a coconut rough but in a biscuit – dark chocolate, coconut, it’s fudgy, soft and chewy.

Q: What’s the best thing about being a producer in New Zealand?

A: First, we’re just really lucky to work with local producers who provide us with great quality ingredients like New Zealand butter, eggs, and dairy.

Secondly, it’s our people, they’re the most beautiful, passionate bunch and that’s baked into each cookie, which are still all hand made. Nothing leaves the door which isn’t top quality - they just wouldn’t let it!

Q: What are the challenges of being a producer in New Zealand?

A: Given our isolation, sometimes our supply chain can be challenging. We have also had to balance growth against our priority of maintaining quality. Chocolate and cocoa prices have gone up exponentially, but we made a decision not to use less. We just had to commit to create efficiencies to keep our prices down.

Q: What’s your favourite way to eat a Molly Woppy cookie?

A: You can make an amazing vanilla ice cream sandwich with two Milk Chocky Chunks.

And our Sticky Date, Walnut and Chia Cookies make a great crushed biscuit base for a cheesecake!

Molly Wolly Artisan Cookies are $11.50 per packet and are available at most Hill Street stores. Range may differ between stores; check with your local store for availability.