Are Mallomars Just A Dupe For A Classic British Biscuit?

It’s almost that time of year again when the air starts to get crisper and we get to see some of our favorite classic seasonal food items return to stores and grocery shelves. One of these highly-anticipated items steers clear of the iconic seasonal flavors like pumpkin spice and peppermint garlore, though. This item is seasonal for a different reason that holds tight to tradition. This item is, of course, Mallomars.

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Mallomars are a classic east coast grocery store cookie that have become inseparable from many families’ idea of what we eat during the cooler months. And that, my friends, is no coincidence. You see, Mallomars are made with a graham cracker base, a marshmallow dome of filling, and a crisp tempered-chocolate coating. They’ve been sold since 1913, so the tempered chocolate coating used for these cookies pre-dates modern refrigerated food transportation. In order to avoid jeopardizing that precious chocolate shell, the company resorted to limiting its distribution of these cookies to only the months of the year that they could trust wouldn’t melt the shell before they even hit shelves.

Their presence on grocery store shelves is just around the corner with their distribution traditionally beginning in September. And with this exciting occasion at the forefront of this east-coaster’s mind, one question continued to permeate: where did Mallomars even come from? And, are they the first of its kind? You see, they’re incredibly similar looking to a couple of vintage international favorites, namely Tunnock’s Tea Cakes from Scotland. But who started this international trend? That’s what we’re here to get to the bottom of. So let’s break this down together, shall we?

Mallomars Vs. Tea Cakes: Who Came First?

Okay, well before we get too deep into this it’s important to note that although they are visually and theoretically comparable desserts, Tunnock’s Tea Cakes and Mallomars are fundamentally made quite differently. Where Mallomars are made with a graham cracker base, a gelatin-based marshmallow filling, and pure dark chocolate shell, the Tunnock’s Tea Cakes are made with a shortbread cookie base, a whipped Italian meringue, and are traditionally coated in milk chocolate (although dark chocolate varieties are available, too).

It’s easy to negate those differences though and still say that they are clearly similar and therefore must be correlated in some way. And since Mallomars began distribution in 1913 and Tunnock’s Tea Cakes didn’t begin production until the 1950s, there’s kind of an obvious order of events that leads one to believe that Tea Cakes are a bit of a dupe for Mallomars, made available in the UK. At least, that’s what I thought. But there’s always more to the story than that.

Despite their similarities, the differences are actually what clue us in to the truth of the matter. In fact, the style of biscuit that a Tea Cake is draws inspiration from is long-standing European tradition drawing back to the 19th century in Denmark under the name Flødeboller. Although it took on many different offensive and racist names as it became popular throughout Europe, the treat itself never really changed in composition and existed long before the invention of Mallomars.

Is It A Dupe?

Like we mentioned earlier, they aren’t necessarily the same product. But if you’ve got an itch for one of the incredibly satisfying chocolate covered marshmallow biscuits you’re looking to cure, then either one will probably do. While the Mallomars are a bit spongier and firm from the addition of gelatin in the marshmallow, they’re deeply reminiscent of the flavor of a s’more. And in the case of Tea Cakes, they are creamy and luscious, but they will inevitably be more difficult to source for those of us in the States. Both treats are fabulous in their own right. It just all comes down to what you’re able to source and what kind of biscuit you’re craving.