Name: Aunt Lisl's Butter Cookies
Yield: Makes about 48 cookies
Ingredients: 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter or margarine, softened; 3/4 cup sugar; 2 eggs; 1 tablespoon brandy (optional); Dash of salt; 1/2 teaspoon vanilla; 3 1/2 cups flour; 1 egg yolk; Chopped nuts and raisins or 1 egg white; Coarse sugar colored with blue food coloring; Measuring cup; Measuring spoons; Mixing bowl; Wooden spoon; Cookie cutters or toothpicks; Rolling pin; Greased baking sheet; Pastry brush; Metal spatula; Cooling rack

When I was a little girl, my Aunt Lisl always made butter cookies at Hanukkah time. We decorated them. The cookies were stored in her garage in airtight containers. Sometimes we got to take some of them home. Other times, we just nibbled on them at her house.

One of the best things about cooking with relatives is that it's a great time to ask for family stories. While we baked, Aunt Lisl told wonderful tales of my father's boyhood in Germany.

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