Weezie the Cookie Warrior: Making 2011 Better

Hello! This is my first attempt at blogging, so bear with me. Old dog, new tricks, etc.

Why am I starting this blog? Well, 2010 was a pretty terrible year for me.  There were too many deaths of people (and pets) who were dear to me.  The most traumatic being my mother, who died almost a year after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, in October of 2010.  Around Christmas, I was looking through my cookbooks, trying to plan Christmas dinner, when I came across the one pictured below.

My mom had given it to me a few years back, as she was trying to scale back her collection.  When I came across it I thought of her, which put a smile on my face.  Too often, I noticed, the memories of her I had were not good ones.  I can be a bit critical at times, and throughout the years she often bore the brunt of that, whether she knew it or not.  So when I saw the cookbook, I was pleased that it brought up memories which made me smile. As I flipped through it, I realized I had hardly used the thing.  I love to cook, but I'm not much of a baker, so I came up with the brilliant idea of baking my way through the book.  None of the recipes looked too complicated, so it wasn't like I was going to start out trying to make croissants. And yes, I had heard of "Julie and Julia",  and liked the idea of not picking and choosing what I wanted out of the cookbook, but plowing my way through the thing. And last, but not least, I hoped that every time I picked up the book, it would keep the memories of my mother sweet.

So, in the spirit of all of these things, I thought I would give "The Great Cookie Project of 2011" a shot.  I started in January, but never thought about blogging about my efforts until a fabulous friend suggested it (thank you Alexis!). So, here I am, Weezie the weekend cookie warrior, attempting the Great Cookie Project of 2011.  Every weekend I will be baking 2-3 different selections, and recording my experiences.  Of course there will be photos, food porn, as my husband likes to say.  That's actually something else I am hoping will improve over the course of this project: My photography skills are, well, they aren't, lets just say that.

The book my mother gave me

So with all of that said, here is what is on the agenda for next weekend:
Domino Sugar Cookies (Yes Domino as in the brand of sugar-blatant advertising much?  Will they come out awful if I use generic sugar?)
Date-Nut Macaroons
Double Lemon Delights

Stay tuned!


Phyllis is the resident eye candy-she will not be used in any recipes