It is my happy time! Baking season is upon us! Every grocery store end-caps are brimming with brown sugar, chocolate chips, vanilla, spices and all we need to satisfy that sweet tooth ( that seems to be especially insatiable this time of year…) My groaning pantry has been laden with golden dried apricots and tart cranberries, fragrant cinnamon and crunchy nuts… all waiting for the baking frenzy about to ensue. My Pintrest “Cookie Monster” board is filled with delicious cookies from bloggers and chefs from all over the world… waiting to be brought to life. To answer the call of the cookie, I decided this year to try a new project: The cookie swap! No, I did not start my own - especially not this first time, but I relied on pros, who have done this before. I joined the cookie swap organized by Giulia Scarpaleggia of Juls’ Kitchen in Tuscany. Feel free to drool over her beautiful blog and binge on her Tuscan food and life. Can’t say enough how much I love spending my time with her writing, podcasts and recipes…

I was matched with 2 bakers: one from California and one from Pennsylvania to share goodies and recipes. Drowning in piles of recipes, I tried to settle on which to choose for this swap: new and innovative recipes? Chocolate? fruit? Middle Eastern, American favorites? Why do I make things so complicated sometimes, when the answer is yelling in my ear the whole time? Do you do that too? Because when I thought of the cookies as an introduction, sort of a calling card - introducing me and my baking to my cookie pals across the country - the selection is quite obvious.

One of the cookie I make most often is Hershey Bar Bars from the Minneapolis Mount Sinai Auxiliary (notice the sorry shape of that cookbook - deeply loved and often used…). Buttery, enriched shortbread dough hugs a thick layer of gigantic Hershey Bars nesting in a vanilla embrace. Cut into small squares while still hot from the oven, this cookie is rich, indulgent and a seasoned traveler to my kids, nieces & nephews. It is often the “go to” cookie requested in my care packages, for parties and to have on hand for guests. Bake at your own peril as you have been forewarned: THEY ARE ADDICTIVE!

The next beckoning cookie came right out of the vintage recipe box that I inherited from Great Grandma Frances, or GG as we referred to her. Great Grandma Frances was a bit of a mouthful for my kids… Now, GG was not your typical family elder, baking cookies, smelling of cinnamon and sporting an apron. She traveled the world, volunteered in every imaginable organization, worked in retail for years and participated in classes and seminars throughout her life. Divorced later in life, she was not one for the domestic life. She was fierce and opinionated, loyal and sharp… and somehow a few of her recipes became classics in our family. This Mandle Bread recipe of hers is a Jewish version of Biscotti, which I and my sister in law, Lee, who is an excellent baker, have made dozens of times. Crispy, light and flavorful, these golden cookies are wonderful dipped in tea, coffee or espresso. I tweaked some of her ingredients and added some. Hope you like it!

My last choice was a Macadamia White Chocolate cookie from Ghirardelli, that I have been making for years with the addition of bright red dried cranberries. This makes for a festive and flavorful cookie. Just remember to underbake the cookie a little or it will dry out and instead of a soft chewy cookie you will have a crispy crunchy one. (Which is ok if that’s what you are going for… no judgement here!)

So, dig into your pantry and try these 3 recipes that found a warm home in California and Pennsylvania with families that seemed to fall in love with them almost as we have. Oh, and if you are wondering what I received? I got 2 lovely shipments of delicious cookies! Red velvet cookies with cream cheese frosting and walnuts from Pennsylvania and Malted Milk Flower cookies plus Fruit Biscuits with Candied Papaya from California. Those last ones were my favorite as they were unique AND delicious! Hope you find your new favorite too!

Hershey Bars

Biscotti/Mandle Bread

Macadamia White chocolate Chips Cookies