Sunday I wrapped a bunch of gifts, Monday I went out and did the rest of the shopping, and today the baking starts. It won’t be as much as we’ve done some years, but I want enough to have some in the house, bring to my sister’s for Christmas Eve, and give to friends (especially that, since if they are all here, there’s not enough exercise in the world to help…).

Christmas is when I pull out the cookie recipes I got from my mother and her Italian, Polish, and many other friends. They’re the kinds of recipes people keep in the family, and usually the kind you have to show someone how to make, because there’s always some trick or tip that defies being explained in the recipe. That means they’re made of memories as much as sugar and chocolate.

I can’t even begin to think of how many hours I spent in the kitchen with my mother, to all hours of the night, making all kinds of baked goods. She was a stickler, too — it had to be perfect, and you used every little bit of dough in the bowl. I can still hear her say “There’s a whole cookie in there — get it out!” LOL I say that to anyone I am teaching to bake, or baking with, if they don’t scrape all of the dough out, too.

At Christmas I make her date breads, her Italian Fudge Cookies, Biscotti, the Mexican Wedding Cakes (which she called Snowballs), the Rum Cakes, the Khrustyky, and others, and making these recipes is more than just the urge for a sweet treat, though they are definitely that, too. They are the way I connect with my mom and all of those memories every year, and how I keep her with me even though she’s been gone for almost fifteen years now.

Growing up, every Christmas Eve was also a birthday party in our house, as Christmas Eve was my mom’s birthday. I hope you’ll send a little birthday wish up for my mom this week, and then tell me about your favorite cookies and cookie memories (share and I’ll pick someone to get a signed copy of my December Blaze, I’ll Be Yours For Christmas).

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you!

Is there anyone who doesn’t love cookies, or who doesn’t have a special cookie in their life? Maybe one your mom made, or one your family loves? Or decadent ones at the store that you only let yourself buy for a special treat?

In my spankin’ new release, MAKE YOUR MOVE, Jodie Patterson owns a Chicago bakery, and the frosting on her special “Passionate Hearts” cookies is very popular. With the help of a special formula created by her best friend and business partner, Dan, a scientific genius, the frosting provides a little erotic kick to female pheromones, helping women who eat them get any man they desire.

Now, I have never had a cookie that did that, exactly, but a few that come close. One family recipe for a cookie we often make is my husband’s favorite, and when I make them, he certainly gets a spark in his eye — a rich cookie wrapped around a mix of fudge and nuts, dusted with powdered sugar. I brought some to the Toronto Harlequin offices on my last visit, and I don’t know if they sparked any libidos, but I did get notes from people who seemed to like them just as much as my friends and family do. My own personal favorite is a simple but delicate sugar cookie I make (and I do shape them into hearts and frost them) and they really melt in your mouth. I grew up making cookies, especially all kinds of ethnic, Italian and Ukrainian recipes that I learned from my mom and her friends, and they are a regular fixture at Christmas and holidays.

However, I love store cookies, too. Pepperidge Farms make the most sinful ones, I think, especially their Amaretto Milanos, though Brussels are my absolutely favorites. On a more everyday level, I won’t pass up an Oreo, and love Nutter-Butter cookies, too! I will say one cookie I never did enjoy was a Fig Newton, but I know several people who love them.

So what is your favorite cookie? Does your family have special cookie recipes you always use, or that everyone loves? Share, and one commenter will win a copy of MAKE YOUR MOVE along with these gorgeous Harry and David cookies (US shipping only), and two others will win signed copies of MAKE YOUR MOVE (all eligible).