Sounds like a great book for my classroom!
Breakfast was yogurt with flaxseed and cinnamon. For lunch I had a carrot and baked lentils/rice. Afternoon snack of a graham cracker and a cup of coffee. And dinner was squash and kale casserole with some pumpkin bread pudding for dessert.

Not sure about this one. The flavor profile may be too ‘adult’ for me, but, then again, I’ve never known Alice Medrich to steer us wrong.

I love these cookies! Specifically, I love the flat molds that are used to make them (see picture in recipe). These Springerle molds are an ancient tradition in Switzerland and Germany and come in a dizzying array of designs (look at http://www.houseonthehill.net/ for a sampling). They were brought to this country in the 1700s by the Pennyslvania Dutch (Amish and Mennonites). I am not a fan of the anise, but I had the good fortune to walk into the Springerle shop in Strasburg PA in October, where I discovered I could substitute lemon, orange, hazelnut, almond, or even chocolate.

This strikes me as the Italian take on a traditional English fruitcake. I would love to try aging it, a la fruitcake, in a soak of some traditionally Italian alcohol like grappa.

I love this spice combo. It reminds me of the Scandinavian flavor palate. It’s intriguing to me how each country has it’s own signature Christmas cookie.

Sounds lovely.

These sound delicious. I like to add Earl Gray tea to the ganache for an added kick.

Joan Nathan’s cookbooks are worth reading, just for the information about the recipes alone. Her dessert book would be amazing.

Charles Chocolates is one of our local chocolatiers. Would love to taste more of his treats! And can’t help but smile inside, everytime someone mentions Charles and his new chocolate factory in Emeryville.