The 'Dark Twin' Of The Fortune Cookie Is Making Its Way To The US And Canada

Pechkeks, a cookie company based in Hamburg, Germany, initially launched its brand of Misfortune Cookies in 2013, with an English language version in production by 2015. With a 300 percent growth in revenues last year and an eye for expansion, Pechkeks is now preparing to enter the US and Canadian markets with its dark humor and is currently on the hunt for a distributor.

The black cookies are colored with non-artificial colorant carbon and also have a similar taste to regular fortune cookies, according to FoodNavigator-USA — though they're slightly crunchier than typical fortune cookies, and are produced every two months to ensure freshness.

Pechkeks was also a recipient of an innovation award at the International Sweets and Biscuit Fair (ISM) in Cologne this year for its comical cookies. Although the cookies aren't exactly new, this year was the first time they were exhibited at a fair in an effort to interest buyers.

"Here we are a newcomer for the sweets market...," Andreas Pohl, founder and CEO of Pechkeks, told Confectionery News at ISM." [W]e reach different buyers. Normally, we are more known as a gifting article."

The cookies are currently available in select stores in Europe and online, with single cookies available for about $1.06 to $1.58 and a 13-cookie gift box priced around $13.72.