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THE ULTIMATE MINNESOTA COOKIE BOOK hybrid launch event with the Friends of the Hennepin County Library, Lee Svitak Dean, and Rick Nelson

November 12 @ 6:30 pm

Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson will join the Friends of the Hennepin County Library on Thursday November 12, 2024, to celebrate the launch of their new book, The Ultimate Minnesota Cookie Book, and 20 years of the Star Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest. Doors open at 6:00 p.m.; please check in by 6:20.

This event is free and open to the public, but advance registration is required. Virtual-only attendance is welcome; please register for in-person or virtual participation below.


Cold winters call for warm kitchens and cookie baking, especially around the holidays. The Ultimate Minnesota Cookie Book, a compendium of Minnesota’s rich baking traditions and innovative recipes, stirs up winning treats from twenty years of the Star Tribune’s popular holiday cookie contest.

Significantly expanding and updating its 2018 predecessor, The Great Minnesota Cookie Book, this collection features thirty-five new recipes, including Grasshoppers and Dark Chocolate Fig Rolls, Tiramisu Twists and Cardamom Cherry Buttons, Diablo Snowballs, Spumoni Squares, and Maple-Roasted Walnut Delights. This sweet-tooth treasure trove of cookie recipes will inspire bakers to discover how many ways flour, sugar, butter, and eggs (plus several unexpected ingredients) can be combined to create new favorites for the holidays—or any time of year.

The best of the best, these contest-winning cookies are accompanied by beautiful photographs and baking tips, insights, and essays about favorite cookie memories. Indulge in these delightful, mouth-watering recipes while Minnesota’s best bakers share stories of cherished holiday traditions, recall memorable cookie moments, and celebrate how baking brings us together.

Lee Svitak Dean was the longtime food editor at the Star Tribune, where she guided the Taste section to multiple James Beard Awards, an Emmy, and national recognition as “Best Food Section.” She is author of Come One, Come All: Easy Entertaining with Seasonal Menus.

Rick Nelson was the Star Tribune’s restaurant critic and food writer for twenty-four years. He is a James Beard Award winner, and his writing has been included in four editions of the annual Best Food Writing anthology, which highlights the finest American food journalism.

Pohlad Hall, Minneapolis Central Library

300 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401 United States
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612-543-8100