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At best, the Wyckoff mom will get a text saying the chocolate chip cookies were amazing. But it's not the same as watching the joy firsthand.
Later this summer, Levine will get to do just that when she brings Hands Down Cookies — the cookie business she launched remotely during the pandemic — to a storefront in Hawthorne.
"I'm really excited to be around people and see people smile when they eat my cookies," the mom of two said in a call with Daily Voice.
Levine, who grew up in North Caldwell, launched Hands Down Cookies in November 2020, after nearly 20 years of perfecting her chocolate chip cookie recipe.
She's always baked for friends and family, and believes chocolate chip cookies should be eaten warm, fresh out of the oven.
"I would do little things for people, make trays of cookies," she said. "But I found out they were serving them the next day, and it would kill me."
Levine's friends and family urged her for years to open a cookie shop. One day during the pandemic, out of boredom, she did.
But there was a twist: Levine sold dough. It was the only way she could ensure her chocolate chip cookies were eaten the way they should be. Fresh out of the oven.
And so, she posted in a Wyckoff Moms group on Facebook.
"I put myself out there," she said. "I'm not a social media person at all, it's very intimidating to me."
But the response was tremendous. That day, Levine received about 80 dozen cookie dough orders. She made the dough in her kitchen and customers picked them up.
"That's when I was like, I have to get into a kitchen," the baker said.
Levine was onto something.
Since November 2020, Levine has been baking a variety of frozen cookie dough, vacuum sealing it, and shipping them out.
It certainly kept Levine busy, and she loved the concept of being able to allow her customers to bake fresh cookies at home, complete with the smell and the experience of it all. Kitchen to tray to oven.
But, Levine started to feel like something was missing. Not only was she noticing customers sometimes wanted their cookies baked for them, but she was longing for interaction.
"There is a need and a want for baked cookies," she said.
Fresh ones.
And so, the lease was up at Levine's commercial kitchen, and a storefront at 696 Goffle Road in Hawthorne opened. She says it fell into her lap. How could she say no?
Levine is looking forward to taking Hands Down Cookies to the next level. She's adding rice crispy treats, blondies, and brownies — classic, nostalgic baked goods.
"It's going to be different because we're adding on the baked aspect," she said. "We'll be selling things that are baked — and up until now it was just frozen dough."
Levine is looking forward to be able to interact with the community, face-to-face, and see her customers take that first bite of her ooey, gooey, chocolate chip cookies, fresh out of the oven.
Levine is hoping to open her shop sometime in August.
Hands Down Cookies, 696 Goffle Road, Hawthorne. Instagram and Facebook
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