Honorable mention: Recipes we couldn't resist

LEMON COCONUT COOKIES

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

"A few years ago I stopped by my cousin's home in a small west-central town," wrote Barb Roles of Chokio, Minn. "She served these wonderful little tea cookies with coffee. They have been a family favorite ever since. I make them at Christmas time and when I have special tea parties with my granddaughters."

For cookies:

• 3/4 c. (11/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

• 1/2 c. granulated sugar, plus extra for pressing dough

• 1 egg yolk

• 1/2 tsp. lemon extract

• 11/2 c. flour

• 11/2 c. flake coconut

For icing:

• 4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) butter, at room temperature

• 2 c. powdered sugar

• 1 tsp. freshly grated lemon zest

• 4 to 6 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

To prepare cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Form dough into walnut-size balls and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Dip a fork in sugar and press dough balls flat. Bake until lightly golden, about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 2 minutes before transferring cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

To prepare icing: In a bowl of an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, salt, powdered sugar, lemon zest and 4 teaspoons lemon juice until thoroughly combined. If icing is too thick, add more lemon juice, 1 teaspoon at a time, to reach desired consistency. Spread icing over cookies.

HOLIDAY BREW PINWHEELS

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Note: This dough must be prepared in advance. A pale ale may be used in place of the Blue Moon brand beer. "Every family has at least one member with great aspirations," wrote Jenna and Dori Duesterhoeft of Minneapolis. "In our family we have an aspiring brewmaster. We decided to try a cookie that would feature some of his wonderful home-brewed beer. For this recipe we used Blue Moon since the holiday brews are still aging. A sweet beer reduction syrup is used to flavor the date filling in this orange spice cookie. The smells while baking -- and the taste of the cookie -- both say 'Christmas.'"

• 2 (12-oz.) bottles Blue Moon beer

• 5 tbsp. honey

For filling:

• 8 oz. chopped dates

• 3/4 c. granulated sugar

• 21/2 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice

For cookies:

• 4 c. flour

• 1 tsp. baking soda

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves

• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

• 1 c. (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

• 1 c. brown sugar

• 1 c. granulated sugar

• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice

• Freshly grated zest from 1 orange

For glaze:

• 1 c. powdered sugar

• 2 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice

• Granulated sugar and freshly grated orange zest, for garnish

Directions

To prepare beer syrup: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine beer and honey and cook until mixture reduces to 1/2 cup. Remove from heat and cool.

To prepare filling: In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine dates, sugar, 1/3 cup beer syrup and orange juice. Bring to a boil and cook until mixture is thick. Remove from heat and cool.

In a bowl of an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract, orange juice and orange zest, and beat until thoroughly combined. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Divide dough in half, shape into discs, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Unwrap 1 dough disc and place between 2 sheets of wax paper. Using a rolling pin, roll dough into a rectangle, about 1/4-inch thick. Remove top sheet of wax paper. Using half the filling, spread evenly over dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border on each edge. Start with the dough's long side and roll dough, jelly roll fashion, peeling away bottom layer of wax paper as you go. Wrap dough log in plastic wrap. Repeat with second dough disc. Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.

To prepare glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon beer syrup and orange juice, and reserve.

To assemble cookies: When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap dough and trim off uneven ends. Cut dough into 1/4 -inch slices and place cookies (flat side down) 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake until lightly golden, about 9 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 2 minutes before transferring cookies to a wire rack. Spread glaze across cookies and sprinkle with orange zest and sugar, then cool completely.

PINWHEEL KOLACZKI

"It all started when I fell in love with a Polish boy," wrote Rachel Sherwood of Minneapolis. "Little did I know it would turn my world of cooking upside down. Myself being of German and Italian descent, I had never heard of half the items my new fiancé wanted to eat. I set out with determination to make things like pierogi, borscht and cabbage rolls. Then it all changed when I turned to sweets to make Kolaczki, traditionally a semisweet wedding cookie filled with jam. ... I decided to tie my Italian cooking skills into the Polish world, and decided to create the Pinwheel Kolaczki. I remember having this little, date-filled pinwheel cookie when I was traveling in Italy. Many Polish sweets tend to use poppyseeds, so I thought I would put them together. Since Kolaczki are traditionally served at weddings, I plan to make my new Italian/Polish treat the first of many blended family traditions at my wedding next year."

For dough:

• 2 c. flour, plus extra for rolling dough

• 11/2 c. (3 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

• 1/2 tsp. salt

For filling:

• 1 c. poppyseeds

• 1/4 c. raisins

• 2 tbsp. butter

• 1/4 c. superfine sugar

• 2 tbsp. honey

• 1/2 tsp. almond extract

• 1 egg white, slightly beaten

For icing:

• 1 tbsp. butter, melted

• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice

• 1/4 tsp. almond extract

Directions

To prepare dough: In a bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine flour, butter and salt, and pulse until butter is finely cut into flour. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue to pulse until dough just begins to come together.

On a lightly floured work surface, shape dough into a rectangle, short end toward you and long end pointing away. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough out lengthwise away from you, until it is about 18 to 24 inches long. The dough may stick to the rolling pin; it is just the butter beginning to get worked in. Just wipe off the dough on the rolling pin, re-flour the rolling pin and keep rolling.

Press dough together slightly to form a small rectangle, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

To prepare filling: Grind poppyseeds in a coffee grinder. Place ground seeds in a bowl, cover with boiling water and set aside 30 minutes to soften. Drain seeds into a strainer set with a clean flour sack towel to catch all the seeds, and gently squeeze out the excess water.

In a bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, add raisins and pulse until finely chopped.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add poppyseeds, raisins, sugar, milk, honey and almond extract, and bring mixture to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until filling is slightly thickened and most of the moisture is gone, about 5 to 8 minutes (it will look like a slightly wet paste). Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Add egg white to filling and stir to combine.

To prepare cookies: Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Carefully roll the dough over filling, jelly roll style, ending just before the 11/2-inch border. Brush the 11/2-inch open side with water and slightly pinch dough together to seal the seam. Place the tube seam-side down and, using a sharp serrated knife, trim off uneven ends. Cut dough into 1/4 -inch slices and place cookies (flat side down) 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake until slightly golden on the edges, about 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 2 minutes before transferring cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.