Turkeys and pumpkins are the classic shapes for Thanksgiving cutout cookies. They can be crazy or elegant, but decorating them reminds me that this is the time to think about all the people I’m thankful to have in my life. My favorite way to let them know how much they mean to me is to give them cookies. On the “big day” the dessert table may be loaded with pies, but when it’s time to go home, everyone leaves with a cookie or two for the road. There’s always room for a cookie. Right?

My sister asked me to make cookies as a gift for her art teacher. I knew I had to make something pretty...afterall she’s an artist, right? I also knew it had to be delicious because my sister’s art class has been the recipient of a lot of my cookie “experiments,” and some of them, although tasty, were not very pretty to look at. A birthday required a delicious and beautiful cookie.

When you’re a small child, dressing up for Halloween is so exciting. You get to hide in plain sight. Before putting on the costume, you’re just you, but after putting it on you’re Cinderella or Spiderman, or a pirate or a bumblebee. Come to think of it, cutout cookies are like that in a way. They regularly take on a new identify the minute you dip them in glaze or pipe on a coat of royal icing. The more embellishments you add, the better the “cover up.” Hooray for the cookie in disguise!