How do I get through a particularly rough week? Baking and country music. This week's been a doozey and I thank God for Kenney Chesney and Fine Cooking. Today I turned to the magazine's recipe for lemon rosemary cut out cookies for solace. It's been perched (and occasionally blown off) a 6-inch pile of recipes I printed out over the course of the year.
I always have basic baking supplies on-hand and happened to have a lemon teetering about each time I opened the fridge. I planted rosemary in my plot at the community garden. I plucked several sprigs for the Thanksgiving turkey, but that was before the snow. I was wondering whether this member of the mint family had survived the recent blanketing. When I stopped by the garden, I found the top half of the plant poking through the white surface. The effort of its spindly branches reminded me of Charlie Brown's tree - pure and vulnerable. I stood in wonder, waiting for Linus's enlightened voice to kick in. When the moment passed, I harvested several branches and crunched back home, over the snow.
I found that the best part of this recipe is prepping the rosemary and lemon. The fine mincing that's required leaves the most remarkable fragrance on your fingers. Next time, I'll add a bit more sugar than the recipe calls for. Seehttp://www.finecooking.com/recipes/lemon
