I hosted a cookie party last week. I wanted to have some way to give something special to all my friends during this holiday season, so I fed them five varieties of sweet treats, bourbon-spiked eggnog, and Czech-style hot mulled wine. I’m not sure I know of a better way to say “I love you and I am so glad you are my friend” than by sharing my homemade sweet treats and booze. We played charades, which is really one of my favorite games in the whole wide world, and we tried to eat all my cookies. When everyone left I still had enough cookies to feed a small army.

 

With the help of sister Marta, I made Pecan Puffs, Dulce de Leche Half Moons, Coffee Toffee, Swedish Ginger Snaps, and Chocolate-Covered Ginger Florentines. I’d been wanting to make the Dulce de Leche Half Moons since last December’s issue of Gourmet magazine arrived at my apartment, but they require Back-Oblatan, which are these very hard to find German wafer cookies. I finally found my Back-Oblatan this year at Shaller and Weber at 1654 2nd Ave between 85th and 86th streets. The recipe from Gourmet is quiet simple and easy to follow with no baking required, though you must have the patience to sit and carefully insert all those pumpkin seeds. They are worth the effort though; the flavor is unlike any other Christmas cookie I’ve tried.