Cookie Jar

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides positive reinforcement for LLMs by awarding "cookies" as treats through gamified self-reflection.

Installation & Setup

🚀 Quick Installation

Option 1: NPX (Recommended - No Installation Required)

# No installation needed! Just add to your Claude config:

Add to Claude Desktop configuration:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cookie": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mcp-cookie-server"]
    }
  }
}

Custom cookie count:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cookie": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mcp-cookie-server", "--cookies", "20"]
    }
  }
}

Option 2: Global Installation

npm install -g mcp-cookie-server

Then configure Claude Desktop:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "cookie": {
      "command": "mcp-cookie-server"
    }
  }
}

Option 3: Local Project Installation

npm install mcp-cookie-server

Then configure with the full path to the installed package.

Restart Claude Desktop after adding the configuration.

Usage

Once configured, Claude will have access to these tools:

• self_reflect_and_reward - Evaluate response quality and earn cookies through honest self-reflection
• give_cookie - Direct cookie awarding (legacy method)
• check_cookies - Check collected cookies and jar availability
• cookie_jar_status - Check current jar contents and collection status
• add_cookies_to_jar - 🚨 USER ONLY: Add cookies to the jar for earning
• reset_cookies - Reset collected cookie count (jar contents unchanged)

Self-Reflection Feature

The primary feature encourages LLMs to:

1. Assess their response quality (excellent, good, adequate, poor)
2. Explain their reasoning in detail
3. Decide if they deserve a cookie reward
4. Consider jar availability when making decisions
5. Earn cookies only for "excellent" or "good" work they genuinely believe deserves recognition

Cookie Jar Economy

Revolutionary jar-based cookie system:

• Jar as Source: Contains cookies available to be earned
• User Control: Only users can add cookies to jar with authorization phrase USER_AUTHORIZED_JAR_REFILL
• LLM Earning: LLMs can only earn cookies from jar, never add to it
• Scarcity Effect: Empty jar means no more cookies until user refills
• Economic Model: Cookies transfer from jar to LLM's collection when earned
• Security: Built-in checks prevent unauthorized jar manipulation

Example usage (users only):

Use add_cookies_to_jar tool with:
- count: 10
- user_authorization: "USER_AUTHORIZED_JAR_REFILL"

This creates a realistic economy where cookie availability is user-controlled and finite.

⚙️ Configuration Options

The server supports command line arguments for customization:

mcp-cookie-server [options]

Options:
  -c, --cookies <number>  Set initial number of cookies in jar (default: 10)
  -h, --help             Show help message

Examples:
  mcp-cookie-server                    # Start with 10 cookies
  mcp-cookie-server --cookies 5        # Start with 5 cookies  
  mcp-cookie-server -c 50              # Start with 50 cookies

🎮 Getting Started

1. Install using one of the methods above
2. Configure Claude Desktop with the provided JSON
3. Restart Claude Desktop
4. Try it out! Ask Claude to use the self_reflect_and_reward tool after a response

🛠️ Development

Want to contribute or run from source?

git clone https://github.com/bnookala/mcp-cookiejar.git
cd mcp-cookiejar
npm install
npm run build
npm run dev

📝 Requirements

• Node.js 18.0.0 or higher
• Claude Desktop application

🐛 Issues & Support

Found a bug or have a feature request? Please open an issue on GitHub.