Cookie

Doris Jacobson of Anaheim, California, writes: "I host many family gatherings, and I always get requests for my lemon bars. They're easy to make and perfect for picnics at the beach or an evening at the Hollywood Bowl. Plus, they can be made ahead." Lots of lemon zest and lemon juice with all the pulp set these bars apart.

These icebox cookies are perfect for a party because the dough can be made ahead and chilled or frozen until you are ready to slice and bake.

Bake and freeze the Triple-Chocolate Cookies a day before filling them with ice cream. For convenience, you can make the homemade ice cream up to three days in advance. Purchased strawberry ice cream (softened slightly at room temperature until spreadable) also works in these sandwiches.

Food Editor: Ian Knauer
Father: Robert M. Knauer, Allentown, PA
As a mother of seven, my grandmother was always in the kitchen and often made these bell-shaped cookies. Now, when I make them for my father from her handwritten recipe, he says the taste takes him back to his childhood.

In some Latin American countries, these cookies, called alfajores, are made with Pisco — brandy distilled from white Muscat grapes grown in Peru, Chile, and Bolivia — but regular brandy works fine.

These sweet-crisp cookies can be baked days ahead and, because the recipe is so generous, you can send your guests home with some.

Bev Heinecke of San Anselmo, California, writes: "Many of our favorite family recipes come from my mother-in-law, Hannah, who was a wonderful cook. When my sons were younger I made her chocolate macaroons and pancakes all the time. I don't make them quite as often as I used to, but they're still a hit with my husband."

A corkscrew shape gives these light cookies a new look.

A giant cookie is topped with coarsely crushed peppermint candies and melted white chocolate, then broken into irregular pieces.

Use a variety of holiday cookie cutters to make these classic French shortbreads.

Chunks of fresh cranberries and dark, milk, and white chocolate chips dress up oatmeal cookies for the holidays.

This delicious bar cookie comes courtesy of the author's mother and is a nice follow-up to the fondue. The shortbread layer is topped with a very moist apricot-walnut cake layer.

The dough needs to chill overnight before rolling out, so plan accordingly.

These soft ginger cookies are dipped in dark chocolate for sophisticated fun.

Yvonne M. Parnes of Batavia, Ohio, got the recipe for these rich, buttery cookies in an e-mail from the McCormick spice company. We like them plain, but drizzled with espresso icing and bittersweet chocolate, they are truly out of this world.

The zing of ginger and the sweetness of molasses combine in perfect proportions in this cookie, sent to us by Jane Booth Vollers of Chester, Connecticut. Her grandmother, Helen Dougherty, made batches and batches of them every holiday season.