In a much less ambitious nod to Julie and Julia, I've been trying to cook my way through my family cookbook. I recently dug out an oldie, but a a goodie: my mom's recipe for Smartie cookies. These cookies were beloved when I was a child, especially by my brother Greg, who still gets mooney-eyed if he thinks about them. They're not quite as magical as I remember, but still pretty good.

The key to these cookies is to use Smarties. Not M&Ms. I know this poses a problem to you American readers, but it really is essential. So do whatever you can do to find some Smarties for these cookies. If you really want to make them and want a girl to hook you up, I'll see what I can do.

Smartie Cookies

1 cup butter (softened)
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup Smarties, plus extra to put on top

Mix all the ingredients together (except Smarties) in the way you usually would do for cookies (i.e. cream butter and sugar, add wet, sift in dry). Carefully stir in the Smarties. Roll into balls and put on cookie sheet. Put one Smartie on top of each cookie (this part would be fun for a child helper to do). Bake at 375 for 11 minutes.