'C' is for 'cookie,' 'G' is for 'giveaway'!

It takes a heck of a lot for a book to make my mouth water.

The pictures must be enticing and vivid, the writing concise but descriptive, and the content... enthralling.

Take a look at Julia M. Usher's new book "Cookie Swap: Creative Treats to Share Throughout the Year" -- check, check and check.



The book -- 160 pages of pure DELIGHT -- is part cookbook, part guide to entertaining, all at its most elegant.

If you've ever found yourself in need of ideas for holiday or occasion cookies, look no further. Not only does Usher showcase beautiful ideas for seasonal treats, she lets you into her personal stash of recipes and tips for decorating cookies for any swap or event, from weddings, to baby showers, Halloween to Christmas, and everything in between.

One treat in particular that caught my eye -- the "Under Her Thumb(print) Cookies" will certainly be gracing my Christmas party this year. Not only is the recipe (like many in the book) easy and do-able even for cookie novices like myself, the finished product is beautiful and professional-looking with minimal effort required.

Julia has a fantastic website with tons of ideas, recipes (not just cookies!) and entertaining advice, and I highly recommend you check it out. You can visit her at http://www.juliausher.com.

In the past few weeks, I've blogged about how excited I am to be hosting my own swap with some of my amazing followers. In the spirit of giving, Julia sent me a copy of "Cookie Swap" to give away to one of my lucky readers!

Would you like to win a copy? Here's how!

Mandatory entry: Leave me a comment on this post telling me your favorite kind of cookie. Is it your mom's sugar cookies? Your own peanut butter? Grandma's oatmeal raisin? Tell me! Please be sure you include a valid email address so I can contact you if you’re the lucky winner! Please note – you do not have to be a blogger to win!

Extra chances to win – each is worth another entry. Please leave a separate comment for each extra...

- Follow Madame Menu on Google Friend Connect

- Become a fan of Madame Menu on Facebook

- Blog about this giveaway and link back to this post

- Tweet the giveaway (once a day -- leave a link to your status)

You can enter immediately, up through midnight PST on Wednesday, December 15, 2010. The winner will be chosen December 16th, 2010 -– via Random Integer Generator -- from all entries submitted, and notified immediately through email. I apologize to my non-US friends, but this giveaway is only open to all legal residents of the United States.

Christmas is almost upon us! Why not beautify your holiday table with some amazing new recipes from Julia? Enter now!

Boozy Pumpkin Madeleines

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and as a last minute dessert, I decided to do something a little different. My husband and I are heading to my mother- and father-in-law's house for dinner, and I hate showing up empty-handed. Instead of the usual cookies or cake, I wanted to go a different direction, and since I'd recently bought a madeleine pan, I figured this was a good opportunity to try it out.

In case you're not familiar with madeleines, they're a spongy French butter cake. They're tiny (about cookie-sized) and look like shells. You need a special pan to make them, here's mine --



...which I assumed would be expensive, but I was able to buy off Amazon for just over $10.

Being that it's autumn and the perfect time of year for pumpkin, I decided to put a little New England fall twist on these, and flavor them with pumpkin. I also put a glaze on them just for a little extra sweetness (hence the "boozy" in the title), which you could skip, especially if you're making them for kids.



Boozy Pumpkin Madeleines
Makes 16

1/2 cup salted butter (1 stick), melted
2 eggs
1 cup flour
2 1/2 tablespoons canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking powder

For the glaze:
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons salted butter
1 tablespoon brandy
1 tablespoon canned pumpkin

Grease pan with butter and flour or Pam cooking spray, preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Melt the butter in a saucepan and set aside until completely cool.

In a mixing bowl, beat sugar, eggs and vanilla together. When combined, add pumpkin, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix until smooth -- there should be no visible chunks/lumps of pumpkin.

Pour in melted butter slowly, and mix to well-incorporate. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time, mixing just to incorporate each time. Do not overmix or the cakes will be too dense.

Spoon a heaping tablespoon of batter into each mold, careful not to overfill.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until tops and edges begin to turn golden brown.

Allow pan to cool before attempting to remove the cakes -- which should slide out easily -- or you WILL burn yourself! Set the cakes on a cooling rack.

For the glaze, melt butter and sugar together in a pan on medium-high heat, continually stirring. Once they are melted together, add brandy and pumpkin, and continue to cook until bubbly (about 3 minutes) and frothy. Set aside for 2 minutes for mixture to settle, then drizzle over the cakes.



Enjoy!