Sugar cookies

I meant to post this earlier, honest, but I kind of got caught in a whirlwind of Christmas frenzy which spared no one here at home ... least of all our kitchen.

A while back I said I would try a new sugar cookie recipe, hopefully before Christmas. If this isn't cutting it close, I don't know what is! Actually, I baked these last week. More accurately, I baked these last week and then again this week. That's how happy we are with them.

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Double chocolate peppermint crunch cookies

In two words I can summarize my son's outlook on gift giving and cartoon watching: Spoiler Fest.

He is still honing his storytelling skills, but sit down with him to watch a show he has already seen and you will quickly realize that he has a knack for picking out the most essential aspects of a plot ... and revealing them to you at least two minutes before they actually occur. Spoiler Fest.

The other day when I picked him up after school, he was positively brimming with excitement: last day of school for the year, and a Christmas present for Mommy and Papà! He paused long enough for me to thank him and then he spilled the beans. "Can you unwrap it now? I made it myself! It's an ornament with my picture in it!" Spoiler Fest.

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Chocolate crinkles, or moonrock cookies

It's no secret that I was a terrible child. Fortunately for me (but maybe not so much for my parents at the time) kids don't come in a box that can be sent back marked "Return to Sender" in bold, black ink. And so my family was subjected to a life-changing years-long adventure called Cookie's Childhood, whose protagonist - more like an antagonist, really - was a stubborn, pesky, talkative, annoying little sister with a knack for breaking things, getting injured, and making her big sister cry.

I vividly recall wasp stings, encounters with fiery red ants, busted appliances, dog bites, hair on fire, collapsing bookcases ... and that was just when I was playing on my own. Things got so much more exciting when I had playmates around, including my sister, who ended up with my tagging along much more often than she would have liked.

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Hachis parmentier

I seem to be in a perpetual state of incredulity at how fast time flies, but weren't we just complaining about the sweltering summer heat and celebrating Christmas '09? Now it's December, and up until yesterday I was convinced that there were still at least FIVE weeks to go in November.

I'm still in summer mode, if not longing for days stretched with sun then dreaming of escape. I want to be back here.

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