There’s a lot more to nuptials than saying “I do.”
In fact, there are so many moving parts that it might make sense for you to hire someone to help out — or several someones. Here’s a look at some of the available professional services to help take some of the stress out of planning and putting on a wedding. Why not simply enjoy your day?
Planning services
Wedding planners are hired to look at the big picture, making sure everything works in concert as your wedding day unfolds. In some cases, you may be able to break apart their responsibilities, but others don’t offer a la carte options. They want to make sure it all unfolds flawlessly. During your initial consultation meeting, you’ll discuss personal expectations, their available packages, and information on coordinating during your actual wedding day.
Don’t worry about a venue if you hire a wedding planner. They will listen carefully to your explanation and then select a series of possible facilities to meet your criteria. Once your big day arrives, the wedding planner will then take control of every aspect of the wedding event. They’ll hire and manage vendors, as needed, while providing directions to guests and your wedding party.
Photographer
You’re going to want lots of documentation from this special event. Don’t rely on friends and family to get the best photos. Make sure a professional photographer is on hand to capture the quality images you’ll keep with you for a lifetime. Ask for referrals before hiring someone, ask people in your circle about their experiences, and look over examples of their previous wedding assignments. Then create a detailed plan based on how the event will unfold, and what you are looking for from the pre-wedding activities and reception.
Florist
You want to get the most out of the bounty of spring, so splurge on an expert in floral arrangements. A florist will help create centerpieces, fun accents and your bouquets, adding pops of color and intrigue. When you meet, explain your expectations and color palette in as much detail as possible. This is a particularly important hire if you have booked a destination wedding, since you’re likely unfamiliar with the local varieties and when they are at their peak.
Spring Wedding Necessities
Spring offers its own natural beauty.
Blossoming flowers complete the gorgeous setting, adding pops of color and fresh scents to your special day. But no spring wedding would be complete without a few other necessities. Here’s a look:
Fresh style looks
The warmer weather opens up all sorts of style options for fashionable brides. Make sure your look matches the moments with soft colors and lightweight material so friends and family can enjoy the nuptials in comfort. Choosing the bridesmaids’ dresses can be particularly fun this time of year, with lots of options in shades of the same color.
Outdoor dancing
Look for venues with space for outdoor dancing, so you can celebrate your new union in the warmth of a starry night. Setting all of this up can add another layer of logistical issues, considering you’ll need both power and lights. Discuss where the band or DJ will need to set up, and ensure the facility has everything needed. Of course, the best venues are old pros at this and will have a detailed plan ready to share. Be sure to update them on the number of guests who are expected to ensure there’s room for everyone.
Hydration station
Everyone is bound to be thirsty after the ceremony, and particularly after cutting a rug for a while at the reception. Be sure there are plenty of drinks on hand to quench their thirst, both non-alcoholic and alcoholic.
Spring is the perfect time for eye-catching libations, from lemonade and margaritas to iced tea and fruity drinks. Ask about clear glass pitchers to show everything off. If the venue can accommodate it, consider making separate stations for different kinds of drinks.
Light desserts
Don’t forget that desserts are about more than the wedding cake. Take advantage of the opportunity to wow your guests by bringing the same level of creativity to the final course of the evening. Besides a wedding cake that’s bound to be beautiful and delicious, create something that makes use of in-season fruits and berries to garnish colorful cookies and pies. Your decorator can complete the look with centerpieces based on similar colors. Spring-themed cakes are always a hit, and you can also have lots of fun with cupcakes. Top it all off with a champagne toast. What better way to celebrate such a huge occasion?
Take it Outside
There’s something special about an outdoor wedding, especially if you’re planning a gorgeous, romantic destination event.
But even if you are planning on having your nuptials in the backyard, there are certain benchmark elements that you’ll need to have in place to pull it all off. Here’s a checklist to make your spring outdoor wedding a stress-free success:
Communication plan
There needs to be a central communication hub so that check-ins and changes can be communicated, whether that’s a group text, a Facebook event page, wedding website or online meeting space. Vendors, guests, friends and members of the wedding party should be able to quickly and easily get in contact if they have questions or concerns. This will become particularly important if there is a major change in plans, but can be helpful in even small situations — such as when someone is running late.
If you don’t hire a wedding planner, designate a family member or friend to monitor the agreed-upon communication hub.
Know the rules
Be aware of local noise and crowd regulations. There may be local statutes or venue guidelines when it comes to how loudly and how long a band or DJ can play music.
You also need to make sure you don’t block traffic, or create other issues for people who live in or are traveling through the area. Make sure you know where and when people are allowed to park. You don’t want to end up with unforeseen issues with neighbors or business owners because of overflow traffic.
If you’re worried about having enough space for all of your guests to park, contact nearby churches or schools — and then direct people there.
Alternate location
The biggest risk with outdoor events of any kind, of course, is bad weather. Your wedding will be planned out months in advance, meaning there’s no way to check the forecast for rain. Create a backup plan just in case. Tour suitable alternate venues or look for outdoor sites that have nearby buildings so everything can be quickly transferred.
Wedding Favors
Wedding favors are your way of saying thank you to everyone who was a part of your special event.
The average cost of these gifts, according to The Knot wedding website, is several hundred dollars. Still, that’s worth it. They let guests know that you care, while providing them with a small special memory of their own from the big day. Here are a few gift ideas:
Go green
Giving plants as a wedding favor is hip and eco-friendly, and they’re especially attractive if your wedding is being held in an outdoor setting. Match with local flora or fauna, and you’re literally allowing your friends and family to take a piece of your wedding home with them. Once it’s home, their plant will become a living memory. Succulents are on trend, and also easy to care for. Stop by a local nursery to ask for specifics, keeping in mind that some native plants may not transfer well when brought back home.
Get going
Destination weddings offer a great opportunity to match the event with a travel theme. Pick fun items like luggage tags, maps and travel snacks, then arrange them in attractive totes. Or go hyper-local, giving your guests things that are only found in the area where you’re getting married. That might be a special food, handmade good, or art object. Having a beach wedding? Don’t forget the sunscreen!
Time to indulge
Trendy items this year include coffee mugs and miniature candles. For the more offbeat, consider heart-shaped tea bags or mini-pizza cutters. Edible wedding favors like small chocolates, jars of honey or cupcakes can both surprise and delight. If you’re already indulging in plenty of flowers, add floral-inspired lollipops in flavors like champagne and roses, lemon and thyme, and rosemary and mint. One memorable offering even has seeds infused into the sticks, so they can be planted afterward.
Fun and games
Add flair with personalized items like napkins, plastic cups, shot glasses, wine glass charms and miniature bottles of liquor, beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages with your names and the wedding date. Other personalized options include koozies, matchboxes, playing cards and mugs which can be made with messages, names, dates or even pictures. Everyone can enjoy them right away at the reception, or bring things home as a special memento from your nuptials.
A New Take on Dairy
Wine and cheese may have long been staples at weddings, but cheese is now having its own moment.
Wedding celebrations are now including everything from upscale charcuterie and exciting cheesecake options to comfort foods like macaroni and cheese and grilled cheese sandwiches. Here’s how to join this growing trend:
Boards and wines
Charcuterie is a French word that originally referred to preparing meats, particularly pork, and then presenting them in a variety of ways. Today, the selection and variety of ingredients have wildly expanded. Ham, sausages, bacon or confit can be paired with complementary cheeses, jams, fruits or nuts of your choosing. Create your own unique charcuterie boards or enticing spreads on a main table, or smaller versions at individual seating areas, so everyone can join in the cheesy fun. They’re attractive and often cost-efficient.
Consider hiring a sommelier, or wine expert, if the budget allows. They’ll know just which libation matches with the unique flavor combinations you’ve created on these charcuterie boards. Ideally, there will be a variety of choices in both whites and reds, so everyone can enjoy the evening. Some couples also choose to pair all of this with craft beer, to add a modern twist.
Comfort foods
Grilled cheese sandwiches and macaroni and cheese aren’t just easy home-cooked meals anymore. Caterers are increasingly including these warm, cheesy delights are part of their wedding reception offerings, but with more polished culinary twists, of course. Nutty Gruyere, gooey fontina and sharp cheddar jazz up mini-bite sandwiches, which are made using inventive breads and spreads. Macaroni and cheese is also being elevated, with inviting new cheese choices and fun pasta shapes. Try cavatappi, penne or rotini. Then dive into Swiss, blue cheese, creamy Alfredo or Gruyere-based sauces. Top it all off with pancetta or crispy bacon, diced tomatoes (particularly welcome if it gets a little too warm at your spring wedding), spicy jalapenos, fresh broccoli or chopped herbs.
After dinner
The multi-tiered wedding cake still rules in all of its confectionery glory. But cheese is elbowing its way to the table too in the form of exciting cheesecake options or cheeses matched with sweets like fresh fruit.
Cheese and fruit are a great alternative if the spouses-to-be or guests are going low-carb or gluten-free.
A look at the Winter Music Series heating up the local scene
With sunny gazebo concerts hovering between distant memory and faint promise, live music has moved indoors for the coming months. Fortunately a lot of venues are stepping up, most with original artists in unique settings like wineries, brewpubs, museums and apres-ski shows.
Here’s a look at a few places using music to help shake winter’s chill.
The Flying Goose Brewpub & Grille is home to New Hampshire’s longest-running listening room series.
“It started in 1993 or 1994,” Tom Pirozzoli, who founded it and played its first show, said recently. “I approached my old friend Tom Mills with the idea … after having released a new CD.”
In the late ’80s Pirozzoli ran a similar effort in Keene at a place called Chalkboard West, doing booking, sound and occasionally performing. The contacts he made there helped to get the Flying Goose effort off the ground.
Every year from autumn to early spring it hosts the cream of New England’s folk and roots scene.
“We try to mix some new acts in each year and also stay true to our longtime friends like Tom Rush, David Mallett and Aztec Two Step,” Pirozzoli said.
Among the performers in the current series is Lucy Kaplansky, who’s taking a quick break from the successful On a Winter’s Night tour with fellow folk singers John Gorka, Cliff Eberhart and Patty Larkin (who’s also appearing this year). Kaplansky, whose most recent album is 2022’s Last Days of Summer, is a returning favorite of the series.
“I’m always so happy to play there,” Kaplansky said by phone from her home in New York City. “The audience is great and people come no matter what the weather is like — one time, it was literally 20 below. Tom does a great job with the sound, the staff is super nice, the food is great. It’s a wonderful gig.”
Thursday, Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m. – New England Bluegrass Band
Thursday, Feb. 8, 7:30 p.m. – Mark Erelli
Thursday, Feb. 29, 7:30 p.m. – Ari Hest
Thursday, March 7, 7:30 p.m. – Lucy Kaplansky
Thursday, March 21, 7:30 p.m. – Patty Larkin
Thursday, April 4, 7:30 p.m. – David Francey
Thursday, April 11, 7:30 p.m. – Ordinary Elephant
Thursday, April 25, 7:30 p.m. – Garnet Rogers
Currier Museum of Art
The Currier Museum of Art is a longtime friend of live music, with its Thursday After Work concerts a prime example. While those are on seasonal hiatus and will be back in the spring, there are currently regular Sunday performances in the museum’s Winter Garden restaurant.
Majed Sabri, the Currier’s Digital Operations Manager, said in a recent phone interview that the museum tends to re-book musicians who connect with the brunch crowd, adding that the performers share a common thread.
“They’re local, and we’re always about uplifting local talent,” he said. “They all have a really great vibe; we don’t want to have an overpowering sound, and they’re really good at being beautiful background music. People ask to have them back.”
Currier Museum (150 Ash St., Manchester, currier.org)
Sunday, Jan. 28, 11 a.m. – Mac Holmes
Sunday, Feb. 4, 11 a.m. – Joey Clark (plays harmonica too), alt country
Sunday, Feb. 11, 11 a.m. – Seth Connolly, original rock and blues, very talented guitarist
Sunday, Feb. 18, 11 a.m. – Mac Holmes
Sunday, Feb. 25, 11 a.m. – Joey Clark (tentative)
Sunday, March 3, 11 a.m. – Joey Clark
Sunday, March 10, 11 a.m. – Seth Connolly
Sunday, March 17, 11 a.m. – Mac Holmes
Sunday, March 24, 11 a.m. – Harry Borch
Hermit Woods Winery
Musician Katie Dobbins launched the Songwriter RoundUp Series at Hermit Woods Winery a year ago. Happening the final Wednesday of the month, each show features Dobbins and two other artists doing original material in a classic “song pull” format. The evening ends with all three joining together for a cover, anything from Sara Bareilles to The Band’s “The Weight.”
Sometimes the guests are people she’s worked with in the past, like Brooks Young, who’ll be at the Feb. 28 event. Other times a performer is one that Dobbins knows by reputation and wants to work with.
“I spend a lot of time… trying to cultivate a bill of folks that will complement each other and make a really special evening,” Dobbins said from her home in the Lakes Region. “A lot of times it’s our first time meeting each other, so you never know quite what’s going to happen. But it’s always been really fun.”
With great sound and sightlines, along with a small capacity, the winery provides an intimate, artist-centric space. Working for an audience that’s completely focused on music “matters a lot,” Dobbins said. “Bar gigs are fun too; there’s a place for them in their own way, but there is something really special about getting away from that.”
Hermit Woods Winery (72 Main St., Meredith, hermitwoods.com)
(tickets $10 to $15 at eventbrite.com)
Wednesday, Jan. 31, 7 p.m. – Katie Dobbins, Dan Fallon & Dylan Patrick Ward
Wednesday, Feb. 28, 7 p.m. – Katie Dobbins, Brooks Young & Tim Winchester
Wednesday, March 27, 7 p.m. – Katie Dobbins, Sam Luke Chase & Jay Psaros
Apres-ski action at Henniker’s Pats Peak resort includes Irish-flavored acoustic group The McMurphys stopping in frequently. This year the big news is Monkeys With Hammers: guitarist Chris Lester (Sully Erna, Mama Kicks), drummer Eric Wagley and bass player Rich Knox who’ll play a one-off reunion show on Saturday, March 2.
Pats Peak Ski Area (686 Flanders Road, Henniker, patspeak.com)
Saturday, Jan. 27, 6 p.m. – Kimayo
Saturday, Feb. 3, 6 p.m. – The McMurphys
Saturday, Feb. 10, 6 p.m. – The 603s
Saturday, Feb. 17, 6 p.m. – The McMurphys
Saturday, Feb. 24, 6 p.m. – April Cushman Trio
Saturday, March 2, 6 p.m. – Monkeys With Hammers
Saturday, March 9, 6 p.m. – River Sang Wild
Sunday, March 10, 6 p.m. – Supernothing
Saturday, March 16, 6 p.m. – Tyler Levs
Saturday, March 23, 6 p.m. – Andrea Paquin
Saturday, March 30, 6 p.m. – The McMurphys
Bank of NH Stage
The Capitol Center for the Arts hosts a recurring afternoon series at its Cantin Room, located upstairs in their Bank of NH Stage’s lounge. The event is curated by NH Music Collective.
“We focus on local performers who often don’t get a chance to see their name up in lights on Main Street,” NHMC’s John McArthur said recently. “The audiences and performers love that everyone is there to listen. It’s a beautiful way for performers to closely connect with their fans without distractions.”
Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St., Concord, ccanh.com)
Sunday, Feb. 4 – Heather Pierson Duo
Sunday, March 3 – Alex Preston
Sunday, April 7 – Senie Hunt
Sunday, May 5 – Run Like Thieves (EP release)
Nippo Lake Golf Club & Restaurant
Acoustic music fans delight in the Nippo Lake Bluegrass Series, which lasts from October through April. The long-running event features some of the region’s finest players and over the years has grown into a Sunday evening tradition.
Nippo Lake Golf Club & Restaurant (88 Stagecoach Road, Barrington – nippobluegrass.com)
Sunday, Jan. 28, 6 p.m. – She Gone
Sunday, Feb. 2, 6 p.m. – New England Bluegrass Band
Sunday, Feb. 18, 6 p.m. – Chicken Shack
Sunday, Feb. 25, 6 p.m. – Lunch at the Dump
Sunday, March 3, 6 p.m. – Cedar Mountain
Sunday, March 10, 6 p.m. – High Range
Sunday, March 24, 6 p.m. – Unsung Heroes
Sunday, April 7, 6 p.m. – Cordwood
Sunday, April 14, 6 p.m. – Wide Open Spaces
Sunday, April 21, 6 p.m. – Old Hat
Joey Clark. Courtesy photo.
The Livery
NH Music Collective’s monthly events at Sunapee’s Livery land on a number of goals, including dinner and fundraising along with music. Upcoming beneficiaries include Full Circle Farm Therapeutic Riding Program and The Newport Recreation Program.
“Through business sponsorships we can bring both local and national touring acts to this intimate 100-seat venue in an historic building,” NHMC’s McArthur said, noting that American Idol favorite Alex Preston is among the performers appearing in coming months.
The Livery in Sunapee Harbor (58 Main St., Sunapee, thelivery.org)
Saturday, Feb. 17 – Slim Volume
Sunday, March 17 – JD and the Stonemasons
Saturday, April 20 – Alex Preston
Sap House Meadery
The NHMC ticketed series at Sap House Meadery offers dinner and music in a bucolic setting. “We curate a very eclectic program that has included international and regional music from Ukraine, Brazil, Cuba, Quebec, India, Ireland, Scotland, Appalachia and West Africa,” NHMC’s McArthur said, calling the varying cuisines “perfect complements to the performances.”
Sap House Meadery (6 Folsom Road, Ossipee, saphousemeadery.com)
Thursday, Feb. 15 – David Hamburger
Thursday, March 14 – Jud Caswell
Thursday, April 18 – Senie Hunt
More winter music series
Front Four Cellars (13 Railroad Ave., Wolfeboro, frontfourcellars.com)
Jan. 26, 5 p.m. – Garrett Smith
Jan. 27, 5 p.m. – Jordan Quinn
Feb. 17, 5 p.m. – Eric Lindberg
Feb. 23, 5 p.m. – Garrett Smith
Feb. 24, 5 p.m. – Chris Lester
March 9, 5 p.m. – Cat Faulkner Duo
March 16, 5 p.m. – Ian Galipeau
March 22, 5 p.m. – Garrett Smith
March 23, 5 p.m. – Mikey G
March 30, 5 p.m. – Tyler Levs
Twin Barns Brewing Co. (194 Daniel Webster Hwy., Meredith, twinbarnsbrewing.com)
Friday, Jan. 26, 5 p.m. – The Lone Wolf Project (Chris Perkins)
Friday, Jan. 27, 5 p.m. – Karen Grenier
Friday, Feb. 2, 5 p.m. – Andrea Paquin
Saturday, Feb. 3, 5 p.m. – Dave Clark
Friday, Feb. 9, 5 p.m. – The Sweetbloods
Saturday, Feb. 10, 5 p.m. – the hArt of Sound
Friday, Feb. 16, 5 p.m. – Dave Zangri
Saturday, Feb. 17, 5 p.m. – Rebecca Turmel
Friday, Feb. 23, 5 p.m. – Tom Boisse
Saturday, Feb. 24, 5 p.m. – Kimayo
Friday, March 1, 5 p.m. – Garrett Smith
Saturday, March 2, 5 p.m. – Slim Volume Duo
Friday, March 8, 5 p.m. – Chris Lester
Saturday, March 9, 5 p.m. – Brooks Young
Friday, March 15, 5 p.m. – Jud Caswell
Saturday, March 16, 5 p.m. – Mikey G
Friday, March 22, 5 p.m. – Henry LaLiberte
Saturday, March 23, 5 p.m. – Eric Lindberg
Friday, March 29, 5 p.m. – Andrea Paquin
Saturday, March 30, 5 p.m. – Ian Galipeau
Gunstock Ski Resort (719 Cherry Valley Road, Gilford, gunstock.com)
Saturday Series – 3 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 10 – Rhys Chalmers
Saturday, Feb. 17 – Arlene Wow!
Saturday, Feb. 24 – Garrett Smith
Saturday, March 2 – B Man
Saturday, March 9 – Paul Warnick
Saturday, March 16 – Arlene Wow!
Saturday, March 23 – Garrett Smith
Saturday, March 30 – Rhys Chalmers
Saturday, April 6 – B Man (Après Annual Pond Skim event)
In Praise of the brick and mortar Bookstore plus recommendations for new reads and book clubs to join
There’s nothing quite like the experience of shopping at your local independent bookstore, and luckily New Hampshire has several. Here’s what those in the business had to say about the local book shopping experience and current reading trends.
Balin Books
Previously the Nashua location of Toadstool Bookshop, Balin Books introduced its new name in early 2023 (Balin rhymes with “gallon,” according to the store’s Facebook page). The store is still under the ownership of one of the original founders.
“We have a new name but … nothing else has changed about our business other than the fact that there’s a different sign above the door,” said manager Michael Joachim. A general book store, Balin Books is able to tailor its stock to what the community wants.
What do people get from shopping at bookstores that they don’t get online? What is that experience like and why do you think people seek it?
Balin Books. Courtesy photo.
It’s interesting because … there was a pretty big crisis following the rise of Borders and Barnes & Noble, which dramatically changed the landscape. Bookstores adjusted and they kind of survived that and then Amazon and other online purchasing came and that was another big crisis that reduced a number of stores, and the people that were left, I think, were the real survivors, the people who figured out how to be an asset to the community and to offer something that people actually wanted rather than just a bunch of companies that opened stores willy-nilly all over the landscape and didn’t really have a way to survive. I think there’s always … a foundation
… of people who, while they might buy books online, they want the experience of wandering through the store and actually seeing what’s available in front of them as opposed to poking on a screen, flip through a book, get a look at what’s actually in it, compare to what else is available in that same category and that same subject and make a decision right away and buy it. They just want to absorb what’s out there and you’re never going to get that online, and that’s very important to a significant number of people, so if you can create that environment where browsing is a pleasurable, informative experience, and have the right selection and the right services, you will survive and do well.
How have local bookstores, and yours specifically, fared with the times and trends of online shopping with sites like Amazon and big bookstores like Barnes & Noble? How have you adapted and changed?
I think you’ve got to be involved in the community. We do a lot of work with the local schools, there are educators that come to us and we help either provide books for the class or get discounts for kids who need it in their classes. We’re connected to the Nashua Public Library pretty well … You have to have a great selection. You [have] to have an inventory that matches what your community is looking to buy, looking to browse. You also have knowledgeable people who know how to help and have some experience and can answer some of those questions. A lot of people are intimidated when they walk into a bookstore because they don’t want to look dumb. They don’t want to ask questions that may make them uncomfortable. If you walk into … a bigger chain store like that where the turnover is more substantial, if that person doesn’t know what you’re trying to find and then you make the customer feel uncomfortable, the whole thing just gets a little weird. People love that when they come in here … [if they] don’t understand what it is they’re looking for we can help them get to the answer without making them feel uncomfortable.
Have you noticed any other patterns or trends of shopping at local bookstores?
I find a lot of people come in and say that they’re really pleased that we’re here. … When I started in the business … almost every town or every couple of towns had a local bookstore where people could come and get what they needed. That’s changed dramatically. You can go 20 miles without a bookstore now. I think for the bookstores that are still here, and the bookstores that are doing well and offer a real service to the community, a lot of people really appreciate that … they want to support a local, independently owned store and that’s gratifying.
When genres seem to be attracting the most interest from readers?
Historically it’s always been children’s books, which is a big age group anywhere from baby books to young adult. That’s a big chunk of our store because a lot of people want to buy books for their children, they want them to read [and] people buy them as gifts. For adults it’s fiction, biography, history. But then we have people who want … self-help books, cookbooks, but within the fiction genre, which is a big chunk of our store, we’ve got mystery, suspense, horror, science fiction, romance — all those things are a big part of what we offer.
Is there any type of book, whether genre or author, that has become popular in the last few years that has surprised you?
There’s been a very big boom in romance, specifically a couple of authors that figured out how to use TikTok to promote themselves and particularly a woman named Colleen Hoover … [who] I believe … came out of nowhere to be the bestselling author in the country two years ago … so it’s been interesting to watch how people can work the market place to promote themselves and how it actually works. … I think an independent store can react a lot more quickly to something like that … we can just jump on it right away, get some books in pretty quickly and respond to the community.
What was the most popular book of 2023 and what books are you excited for in 2024?
There’s a book called Fourth Wing, which was a fantasy book that, again, the author [Rebecca Yarros] did something online to promote herself and it was just a huge book. The sequel Iron Flame came out right around Christmas time and that was big. And Sarah J. Maas, who writes fantasy books, has a new book coming out next month, which should also be gigantic.
What’s the best book you’ve read recently?
I like the last Stephen King book, Holly. … That was a good book, that’s the one that’s sticking with me at the moment.
Balin Books Where: Somerset Plaza, 375 Amherst St. in Nashua; 417-7981, balinbooks.com Hours: Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Upcoming author events: Jeanne Dietsch, to discuss her report New Hampshire: Battleground in the Fight to Dismantle Democracy, on Saturday, Jan. 27, at 11 a.m.
Five recent releases recommended by Balin Books The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride A Stroke of the Pen by Terry Pratchett The Bee Sting by Paul Murray My Effin’ Life by Geddy Lee Gator Country by Rebecca Renner Alfie & Me by Carl Safina
Bookery Manchester
Liz Hitchcock, along with her husband, Jeremy Hitchcock, opened Bookery, a bookstore, gift shop and cafe on Elm Street in Manchester, in 2018 with the goal of creating a venue for civic discourse, community and culture. A general bookstore, Bookery adjusts inventory to align with what the community is reading, and carries other merchandise like candles, socks, puzzles, cards and more. The store hosts events with authors, a monthly book club, weekly storytimes, live music, political talks, workshops and private events.
“We’re really just proactive at seeing what our community’s reading at this time, listening to their feedback on what they want and what they need and following that as our guiding star,” Hitchcock said.
What do people get from shopping at bookstores that they don’t get online? What is that experience like and why do you think people seek it?
I think the main reason why people go to a local bookstore is curation. Obviously I, just like anybody else, can go to Amazon and see … books and some of them have five stars and some of them have three stars, but in the end I want someone to tell me if I read this book then I might enjoy this book … There’s nothing better than someone who’s actually read the book telling you that it’s something that you may enjoy, so it’s really about the process of curation — hand selling is gigantic — and then obviously the ability for us to have authors come into our store to meet our customers is really important as well.
The Bookery. Courtesy photo.
How have local bookstores, and yours specifically, fared with the times and trends of online shopping with sites like Amazon and big bookstores like Barnes & Noble?
I think that in the end we are probably faring a little bit better than places like Barnes & Noble because we do have an entrenched community that we support and we love. I do think that Barnes & Noble is doing a better job at creating that community around them now that they’ve given more free will to the managers of the stores, but I think that we’re doing well even based on the circumstances of the economy and Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Have you noticed any other patterns or trends of shopping at local bookstores?
Not specifically that I can name. We have seen growth year over year, which has been helpful especially with the rising cost of employees and buying books and shipping, so we appreciate that greatly. I think just really the part that still surprises me is adjacent towns that are still surprised when they see that we have a bookstore of our caliber downtown on Elm Street, so even still getting the word and making sure people know that we’re there, what we offer and that we love our community.
When genres seem to be attracting the most interest from readers?
2023 was a huge year for romantasy, a new hybrid sub-genre between romance and fantasy. Sarah J. Maas is a huge staple of this genre, but this year we have a new heavy hitter in Rebecca Yarros! Her two books Fourth Wing and Iron Flame both caused such a stir in the book world this year it was hard for bookstores to keep up! Fourth Wing centers on a dragon rider academy, with an enemies-to-lovers romance to boot with plenty of spice for those interested!
What was the most popular book of 2023 and what books are you excited for in 2024?
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang was a huge book for us this year. R.F. Kuang ended 2022 with a huge book in Babel, and her new literary fiction rode that high and then some. Yellowface is about two authors, one white, one Asian, working on their manuscripts. When the writer of color suddenly dies, the white author takes it upon herself to steal the late writer’s manuscript, finish it, and pass it off as her own under a pseudonym. A great commentary and satire on whitewashing in lucrative industries. [In] 2024 — We’re really looking toward Knife by Salman Rushdie, releasing in April! It’s a memoir from the author about his recently survived assassination attempt in 2022, 30 years after a “fatwa” was ordered against him by the Supreme Leader of Iran calling for his assassination. It promises to be an eye-opening read about his first-hand account of that day and what followed. Can’t wait!
What’s the best book you’ve read recently?
I recently read and loved Prophet Song by Paul Lynch! The hype for this one was crazy, considering it won the Booker Prize in the U.K. before its U.S. publication (I was so excited to read it that I ordered a copy from the U.K. before it came out over here). It tells the story of a civil resistance in Ireland after a nameless government regime cracking down on unions and anti-state sentiments. It’s a harrowing universal tale about government and government overreach, and transcends borders given the exact causes and politics associated with the book’s uprising aren’t given. You really can picture yourself in this novel. [It’s] truly transportative!
Bookery Manchester Where: 844 Elm St., Manchester; 836-6600, bookerymht.com When: Sunday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Upcoming author events:
Joe McQuaid, author of War Fronts Home Fires, on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 2 p.m.
Joseph Carrabis will hold a workshop called “Write Your History, Change Your Life” on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 5 p.m.
Matthew Jones, author of Wish I Could Love You: A Collection of Failed Love Stories on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 5 p.m.
Fox Hollow, author of Heartstrings, on Sunday, Feb. 18, at 3 p.m.
Gibson’s Bookstore
Founded in 1898, Gibson’s Bookstore is the oldest continuously operating retailer in the Concord area and the largest independent bookstore in northern New England, according to its website. Current owner Michael Herrmann bought the business in 1994, expanded the business twice including the move to its current location in 2013 and bought Imagination Village toy store to integrate into the store, which also has a cafe. At this general bookstore with a wide variety of interests, Herrmann said, “our inventory is designed with Concord in mind.”
What do people get from shopping at bookstores that they don’t get online? What is that experience like and why do you think people seek it?
Bookstores of all kinds are great gathering places. They’re community centers, they’re places that build community, and you can’t really can’t replicate that online. There’s also one thing you can get at a physical bookstore that you can’t get online, [which] is discovery. If you go online looking for something you’ll find it but if you don’t know what you want or you might be open for new experiences then the only way really to get that is browsing in the real world.
How have local bookstores, and yours specifically, fared with the times and trends of online shopping with sites like Amazon and big bookstores like Barnes & Noble?
We’ve always had the larger bookstores to contend with probably since the ’80s, and Amazon came along at the end of the ’90s, so … we’ve been getting used to it for a lot longer than other types of operations have, so the independent bookstores that are still with us are well-equipped to compete with online stores like Amazon.
Have you noticed any other patterns or trends of shopping at local bookstores?
Well, certainly our sales are increasing every year and new independent bookstores are starting every year. The channel has been growing since Borders went out of business in 2011. That was sort of like the asteroid getting the dinosaurs and we were the mammals so our channel has been expanding ever since 2011, and Gibson’s Bookstore’s business has been going up pretty much since 2013.
When genres seem to be attracting the most interest from readers?
Fiction. We’ve seen a lot of new interest in genres like genre fiction [such as] romance and horror, mystery, science fiction. We’ve seen a lot of growth in those areas.
Is there any type of book, whether genre or author, that has become popular in the last few years that has surprised you?
Gibson’s Bookstore. Photo by Ryan Clark.
There’s always room for surprise. You don’t want it to be … formulaic at all, that’s why we take a chance on a lot of different … new authors. Where some of the big box stores have scaled back on, for instance, books for young readers like ages 9 to 12, we continue to bring in a lot of new authors in that area just because some of them are going to be important in the future and we want to build relationships and sales with them as early as possible. And there’s always surprises like this holiday season, the big surprise was how well the book by Liz Cheney did [Oath and Honor]. We didn’t have that on our 2023 bingo card but her book really struck a chord with people and … you can’t predict that in advance. You really don’t know, you sort of have to ride the tiger when the tiger gets to you.
What was the most popular book of 2023 and what books are you excited for in 2024?
Ann Patchett’s book Tom Lake was very popular. We did very well with that. In nonfiction David Grann’s book The Wager was extremely popular.
[In 2024] there’s a new novel by Chris Bohjalian coming out that he’s very excited about launching called Princess of Las Vegas, so I’m looking forward to reading that. … [Also] the new novel by Tana French that’s coming out called The Hunter and then there’s a new book by Tommy Orange, who wrote the novel There There, called Wandering Stars and … that’s coming in March [and I’m] also really looking forward to that.
What’s the best book you’ve read recently?
The new Tana French [The Hunter]. I just finished it.
Gibson’s Bookstore Where: 45 S. Main St. in Concord When: Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 4 p.m.
Upcoming author events:
Lloyd Sederer, doctor and author of Caught in the Crosshairs of American Healthcare, on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 6:30 p.m.
Joe McQuaid, author of War Fronts Home Fires, on Wednesday, Jan. 31, at 6:30 p.m.
Chard deNiord, poet and author of seven books of poetry, presented by the Poetry Society of New Hampshire on Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 4:30 p.m.
Leila Philip, author of Beaverland: How One Weird Rodent Made America, on Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.
Upcoming releases recommended by Gibson’s
The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson (April 30); The Women by Kristin Hannah (Feb. 6); Rainbow Black by Maggie Thrush (March 19); Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange (Feb. 27); The Fury by Alex Michaelides (Jan. 16) —recommended by adult book buyer John LeDonne
The Angel of Indian Lake (The Indian Lake Trilogy #3) by Stephen Graham Jones (March 26); Funny Story by Emily Henry (April 23); Love You, Mean It by Jilly Gagnon (April 30); Happy Medium by Sarah Adler (April 30); Kosa by John Durgin (New Hampshire author!) (May 17); Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman (June 25); American Rapture by CJ Leede (Oct. 15); Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay (June 11); The Pairing by Casey McQuiston (Aug. 6) —recommended by bookseller and marketing manager Ryan Clark
MainStreet BookEnds of Warner
Despite being rejected by the bank three times, Katharine Nevins, along with her husband, opened the doors to MainStreet BookEnds of Warner in October 1998 during the Warner Fall Foliage Festival. A community bookstore with toys and games set in a Pillsbury colonial homestead, MainStreet BookEnds is a general bookstore with particular strengths in the children’s, gardening and farming genres. In the attached barn is a gallery featuring the works of local artists.
“Warner is … an area where there are a lot of writers, a lot of musicians, [and] a lot of artists, so we’ve always tried to reflect that,” Nevins said.
What do people get from shopping at bookstores that they don’t get online? What is that experience like and why do you think people seek it?
Independent bookstores are extraordinarily important … for … the culture of the area …. Every single independent bookstore is unique. If you’re traveling and you kind of want to get a sense of where you are and who the people are, you track down an independent bookstore because once you get in there you’re in with all the locals, you’re in there with the things that are happening right there in that community. … If you can break the habit of the quick click, which is a hard habit to break, … you can go into the storefront and experience a community of readers who can recommend things to you or recommend things to your children. People who are experienced in books and can really make recommendations … can make a difference. … I’m fortunate because I have a front row seat of watching that every day and I see people talking with each other and saying, ‘My child had trouble reading and this is what worked for them,’ ‘My mother just died and I really found this book to be extraordinarily helpful.’ … Things like that happen all the time, so it’s really exciting. So you walk into an independent bookstore and you’re walking into, I believe, a piece of magic because you’re seeing exactly what that area has to offer.
How have local bookstores, and yours specifically, fared with the times and trends of online shopping with sites like Amazon and big bookstores like Barnes & Noble?
MainStreet BookEnds. Courtesy photo.
In 1998 the bank turned us down three times. They said there’s no way an independent bookstore is going to survive in these times, and Amazon had just started. Amazon has a ridiculous impact on independent bookstores [and] on every single neighborhood store, so the more you extract yourself from that kind of shopping, the more you’re supporting your community and the more you’re helping your community to thrive and survive … I think more and more people are getting tired of [the online] experience. I can tell you during Covid where we had to close the store for 15 months we kept going and we did curbside … and so forth, but that was when people really kind of woke up to how if we don’t support these little businesses right now, they’re not going to make it, and people came out of the woodwork, it was absolutely fabulous the support that we got. So I think the people … want to experience … being able to go into an independent bookstore and … and just that sense of turning everything off for a half hour, which is really important, and you can’t do that in many places but in a bookstore you can get lost in here for a while and that’s a very healing thing. Strange to say but there’s a lot of healing that goes on in an environment like that [where] people are just allowed to come in and relax and wander and who knows what’s going to happen.
Have you noticed any other patterns or trends of shopping at local bookstores?
We’re really having a return of younger people coming in and just really loving the experience of wandering and talking about books and holding books. … The feelings … that you get when you pick up a book that you read … all those feelings come rushing back to you as to where you were at the time, and you can only get that with a physical book, that’s the only way you can get that.
When genres seem to be attracting the most interest from readers?
We follow the New England Independent Booksellers Association bestsellers list. … We all contribute to what sells the best in our stores and that’s the list that we go by in terms of our bestsellers. … There’s a whole lot of interest in young adult and in graphic novels for young adults. … We have a … section on regional titles in terms of New Hampshire and hiking [that’s] just about sold out … . That’s [a] huge area. People [want] to pick up books about the area and about hiking and enjoying the outdoors … and children’s books are always very, very big.
Is there any type of book, whether genre or author, that has become popular in the last few years that has surprised you?
I think that the popularity is reflected by the times, right? … Right now people are wanting more and more escape and comfort … so when a particular author becomes really popular that surprises us it’s probably because that particular author is providing a really good escape for right now. … You [also] read to learn about other worlds so I think if we’ve had some surprising authors emerge in the last couple of years it’s just been reflective of what we need as a society to cope.
What was the most popular book of 2023 and what books are you excited for in 2024?
Well, books like Demon Copperhead, Barabra Kingssolver’s book, that was huge; Iron Flame [by Rebecca Yarros and] A Court of Thorns and Roses [by Sarah J. Maas]. … [For] what’s coming up, well, I guess we just wait and see what’s going to emerge next — it’s always kind of a surprise … and I know people are excited about some new ones coming out there so I think we just wait and see.
What’s the best book you’ve read recently?
In terms of my favorite reads from 2023, the fiction would be the latest from Sigrid Nunez, The Vulnerables. The nonfiction is The Long Field by Pamela Petro. Children’s picture books would be Thank a Farmer by Maria Gianferrari, and middle-grade novels would be the latest from Ann Braden, Opinions and Opossums.
MainStreet BookEnds of Warner Where: 16 E. Main St. in Warner; 456-2700, mainstreetbookends.com When: Tuesday through Friday, noon to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
MainStreet Recommends
Tana French has a new book coming out, The Hunter (March 5) Sarah Maas’s newest will be huge, House of Flame and Shadow (Jan. 30) A wonderful biography just out on Willa Cather, Chasing Bright Medusas (out now) Sy Montgomery’s latest, Of Time and Turtles (out now) Richard Scarry’s Cars and Trucks and Things That Go celebrates 50 years with a new edition (out now)
More book shops
Here are some additional independent bookstores in the area.
The Lost Page Found Bookshop Where: 35 Main St. in Goffstown; 384-1390, thelostpagefoundbookshop.com Hours: See Facebook for winter hours. Posted hours on are Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Morgan Hill Bookstore Where: 253 Main St., New London; 526-5850, morganhillbookstore.com When: Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
RiverRun Bookstore Where: 32 Daniel St. in Portsmouth; 431-2100, riverrunbookstore.com Hours: Daily, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Toadstool Bookshop Where: 12 Depot St. in Peterborough, 924-3543; toadbooks.com When: Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Water Street Bookstore Where: 125 Water St., Exeter; 778-9731, waterstreetbooks.com When: Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Book Clubs
Gibson’s Bookstore 45 S. Main St., Concord gibsonsbookstore.com/gibsons-book-club When: first Monday of each month at 5:30 p.m. Next up: Feb. 5: The Vanishing Half, by Brit Bennett
Bookery bookerymht.com/our-events 844 Elm St., Manchester Book club When: third Thursday of each month at 6 p.m. Next up: Jan 18: Happy-Go-Lucky, by David Sedaris Romance book club When: last Sunday of each month at 6 p.m. Next up: Jan. 28: By the Book, by Jasmine Guillory
MainStreet BookEnds 16 E. Main St., Warner Mainstreetbookends.com When: Sundays at 4 p.m. Next up: Feb. 4: How the Post Office Created America, by Winifred Gallagher
To Share Brewing 720 Union St., Manchester When: second Thursday of every month at 6 p.m. RSVP to [email protected] to attend Next up: Feb. 8: Love in the Time of Serial Killers, by Alicia Thompson
Northwoods Brewing 1334 First NH Tpke., Northwood When: Books and Brews meets on various Mondays Next up: Jan. 29: Shark Heart: A Love Story, by Emily Habeck Peterborough NH Area Silent Book Club Find them on Facebook When: The newly formed chapter was scheduled to have its first-ever meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at DiVine on Main (32 Main St., Peterborough); a second meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 6 p.m. Next up: whatever you want “Silent Book Club is a global community of readers and introverts reading together in quiet camaraderie. … At Silent Book Club, there’s no assigned reading. Instead, we’re inviting readers to grab a glass of wine, a tasty snack, a cozy seat, and a book of their choosing to read uninterrupted for one hour, with added time for socializing and discussing your book while making new friends,” according to the Peterborough chapter’s post on silentbook.club.
Featured Photo: Gibson’s Bookstore. Photo by Ryan Clark.
Looking for an activity with your friends or a way to make new ones?
Weekly trivia nights abound at area restaurants, breweries and even a movie theater. We talked to two experts about how to put together a team and how the games are crafted and we give you a listing of some of the spots to find trivia. (Know of a trivia night not mentioned here? Let us know at [email protected] to get added to our weekly trivia listings that run in the Nite section.)
Ready for some white hot competition? Sharpen those pencils…
Game maker
Heather Abernathy, a Manchester-based trivia host, runs general knowledge pub trivia at The Farm every Wednesday and themed trivia at Chunky’s every Thursday. In this Q&A, she discusses her transition from player to host, her process for crafting trivia questions, strategies for keeping the atmosphere lively, and how she deals with answer disputes. Additionally, Heather provides advice for aspiring trivia hosts. Her experience spans various themes and formats, catering to a wide range of trivia enthusiasts.
How did you get started with hosting trivia nights?
Heather Abernathy. Courtesy photo.
I have such a wealth of random trivia knowledge, probably from watching Jeopardy! with my grandfather every night as a kid. … I was always that person you wouldn’t want to play against in Trivial Pursuit. … I got started at The Farm in Manchester, because I was a player there. I played pretty consistently for about four years. And when the guy who was hosting before me decided he was done, the owners told him, ‘If you can find somebody you think would make a good host, we’ll hire them.’ He reached out to me and said, ‘You’re smarter than I am … and you’re here every week anyway, so why not get a guaranteed paycheck for it?’ So after a bit of hesitation, I decided, ‘What the heck,’ hung up my playing time, and switched over to hosting. That was in January of 2019.
What do you enjoy most about hosting trivia?
For my real job, I work in health insurance, and I work from home. So, it’s boring, and I don’t see a lot of people. Trivia is my way to get out, to be sociable. I’ve also made some good friends along the way. I really enjoy the interaction with the people that come out and play every week.
Can you describe the type of trivia you host?
At The Farm I mostly stick to general pub trivia, because that’s what my players like. I have thrown in themes once in a while, and my regulars tend to skip those because they prefer coming in and knowing they could be asked anything. Whereas at Chunky’s I do a different theme every single week. For example, tomorrow night, in honor of the new Mean Girls movie, I’ll be doing trivia on the original Mean Girls movie. But once a month I do something more music-themed. This month my music theme is The Beatles, but in the past I’ve done ’80s and ’90s music, which always sell out. Taylor Swift was another big one. And then once a month at Chunky’s on Sundays — because my Thursdays at Chunky’s are a 21-plus event — I do a family-friendly trivia where all ages are welcome. You can bring your kids, and I tend to do more family-oriented themes. So this month, for example, I’m doing Disney music as my family-friendly theme.
How do you create questions for your trivia nights?
For themed trivia, it’s easy. If it’s a movie, I will watch the movie and throw on my subtitles so I can make sure I’m getting quotes or spelling correctly. As I’m watching I’ll think, ‘Oh, that would be a good thing to ask.’ So I jot down what I’m thinking. For the general knowledge trivia, I do a lot of scouring the internet for what strikes me as a good question. One unique thing about my trivia, which I can’t take credit for because I took the format from the guy hosting before me — if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it — is when I ask a question, I follow it up with a song. The song serves two purposes: it gives time for players to hand in their answers and it also acts as a hint for the question. Some weeks I really want an excuse to play a certain song, so I’ll work backward and figure out a question that matches with the song. So for example, last week I asked a question … ‘Who was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year for the very first time in 1927?’ The hint song that I played for that was REO Speedwagon’s ‘Time for me to Fly.’ … Charles Lindbergh was the answer to the question.
How do you maintain a good balance of topics and difficulty levels in your trivia questions?
I have a kind of mental checklist. For example, if I’ve already asked a geography question I’ll move on to science, then maybe something pop culture-related. Generally, as the game progresses, at least for the bar trivia, Round 1 questions are easier than Round 3 questions. Also, my music hints might become less obvious as the game goes on. … My rule of thumb is if I wouldn’t have known the answer, odds are I won’t ask it.
What strategies do you use to keep participants engaged and ensure a fun atmosphere?
The music is a big part of keeping participants engaged. Sometimes I’ll play a hit song and, without realizing it, strike a nerve, and next thing you know half the bar is singing along. I do my best to engage with people. Anyone who knows me knows that I speak fluent sarcasm. I try to let my own personality come through, like engaging in banter with the players. … I just try to keep it light and breezy.
How do you handle disputes or disagreements over answers during trivia nights?
It does come up, because I’m human. There’s a real chance that I might come up with a question and not be right, or there could be an alternate answer. If someone comes up to me with a dispute, I respect that, because when I played I was that person who challenged the host. I’ll do a spot check with my phone or laptop right there while hosting. I’m always open to being corrected. If it’s determined that an alternate answer was acceptable, I’ll admit it, award the points, and eat crow if I have to. On the flip side, if someone’s answer is close but not accurate, I might say, ‘Close enough isn’t good enough,’ and not give points, or I might give half points for being close. I try to be flexible, because the goal at the end of the day is to get people to come back.
What advice would you give to someone interested in becoming a trivia host?
My biggest piece of advice is to have fun with it. … You’ve got to have the confidence to go with it. Just get out there, have fun, and get to know your players. That has been key for me, because after hosting for so long these people are not just random attendees; many of them are now my friends. Establishing that rapport with players is crucial for retention. If people are having fun, they’re going to come back. So try to relax, have fun, and when you see people returning that’s always a good sign.
Game player
Amy Leal (third left) and her trivia team. Courtesy photo.
Amy Leal, 51, from Salem, participates regularly in themed trivia nights at Chunky’s in Manchester. She talked about her involvement in trivia since August 2020, her methods for forming and preparing her trivia team, the competitiveness of the games, challenges faced by the team, and some memorable experiences from the trivia nights.
Can you share a bit about yourself and how you got involved in trivia?
I just like collecting random information about various things. I’ve always enjoyed trivia-type games. For this particular weekly event, I got involved during Covid in August of 2020. Chunky’s couldn’t show movies, so they were hosting a Disney Pixar trivia event. My sister, knowing my interest in trivia and my love for Disney Pixar, saw it and thought I would be interested, so I went with my cousin Trish, who’s the same age as me. We thought, ‘Let’s check this out.’ We loved the format. It was a way to have a night out, kind of low-key during Covid, and do something fun. … Three and a half years later we’re still going just about every week.
How do you go about forming your trivia team?
For this trivia, you can have from one to eight people. Initially it was just my cousin Trish and I regularly. Then, when she couldn’t attend, I invited another friend, who has been going with me ever since. She brought a friend from high school. I also asked a few more cousins, and we all joined based on the themes Heather announced. We base our participation on our interests and strengths. Even if some of us don’t know the specific show or movie, we go just to have a night out. Our team can range from two to eight players weekly, depending on the theme and what’s happening in our lives. We have a diverse team, with people into music, movies, TV series and different genres. Everyone knows a little about everything, and some are experts in certain areas. So, for building a trivia team, the key is finding people interested in a wide knowledge base and looking for a night out, who can commit to more than once or twice a month. It’s about sharing interests, being competitive, and a commitment to winning and being together.
What’s your strategy, and how do you prepare?
Our approach for themed nights, especially if it’s something we’re not familiar with, is to watch the movie or TV show. We’re lucky to know the theme a couple of weeks in advance, so we can plan to watch a movie or brush up on it. If it’s a movie we haven’t seen in 20 years, we rewatch it. For a TV series with multiple seasons, like The Office with eight seasons, different team members will watch different seasons. It’s all just for fun; you can’t remember everything. Our strategy is to watch the content and then have a group chat where we throw out questions to each other for practice, just to keep it top of mind.
How competitive do things get?
Our group is pretty laid back, and we enjoy being together and having something to look forward to every week. But there are times when we get competitive, especially if we disagree with how a question was phrased. We’ll challenge the answer. Ultimately, Heather, who hosts the trivia, has the final say. Sometimes we feel that an answer wasn’t accurate or was a bit twisted, but it’s all in the context of the content. There’s some competitiveness, especially since there are repeat teams. Since August 2020 about six teams have been regulars, and we’ve all gotten to know each other, often on a first-name basis. We congratulate other teams when they win, but we also feel like it should have been us, especially if it was our game to lose. Sometimes we go in overconfident, and depending on the questions we might blow it or win. But at the end of the day it’s a game. We all want to win, but not everybody can.
What kind of hurdles do you run into with trivia and how do you handle them?
A challenge for us is that we don’t always have the same people available every week because life happens. When we’re missing someone we really feel it, especially if it’s a question they would have known. We had a phase where we won almost every week for six to eight months, placing first, second or third each time. It felt great, especially since we won gift cards for Chunky’s, which we used for meals. But not winning can be a downer, and we’re in a bit of a slump right now due to inconsistent team availability during the holidays. We need to get back up and overcome this slump.
Do you have any memorable moments or stories from trivia nights?
Around February 2021, it was my cousin Jamie’s birthday, and we had become friendly with Heather, the host. I sent her a childhood picture of Jamie, the classic school photo with the laser background, and asked her to put it up on the big screen in the theater to wish him a happy birthday. It was hilarious, and she even showed it a few times after just for fun. There was also this funny moment during a music round. We couldn’t remember the artist of a song, so all I pictured was a white guy wearing a vest with chest hair sticking out. That’s what we wrote as our answer. When Heather was reading the answers, she read ours out loud and it got a big laugh in the theater. Now, when we can’t remember something, that’s become our signature answer. And it turns out the artist for that song wasn’t even close to what I was picturing.
Trivia nights
Liven up your weeknights with some fun and games. Know of a trivia night not listed here? Let us know at [email protected].
Monday
Pub Quiz at Shaskeen (909 Elm St., Manchester, 625-0246, shaskeenirishpub.com) at 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday
Able Ebenezer Brewing (31 Columbia Circle, Merrimack, 844-223-2253) at 6 p.m.
Sea Dog Brewing (5 Water St., Exeter, 793-5116) from 6 to 8 p.m.
Second Brook Bar & Grill (1100 Hooksett Road, Hooksett, secondbrook.com) at 7 p.m.
Earth Eagle North (Barclay Square, 350 Route 108, Somersworth, 841-5421, eartheaglebrewings.com) at 6 p.m.
Popovers (11 Brickyard Sq., Epping, 734-4724, popoversonthesquare.com) from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
The Greatest Trivia in the World at Revolution Taproom and Grill (61 N. Main St., Rochester, 244-3042, revolutiontaproomandgrill.com/upcoming-events) at 6:30 p.m.
Don Ramon (6 Whitney St., Merrimack, 420-8468) from 7 to 9 p.m.
KC’s Rib Shack (837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net), sponsored by Mi Campo in Manchester, 7 to 9 p.m..
The New England Trivia Co. at City Hall Pub (8 Hanover St.,Manchester, 232-3751, snhhg.com) 7 to 9 p.m.
World Tavern Trivia at Fody’s Tavern (9 Clinton St. in Nashua, fodystavern.com, 577-9015) at 8 p.m.
Thursday
Reed’s North (2 E. Main St. in Warner, 456-2143, reedsnorth.com) from 6 to 8 p.m.
Mitchell BBQ (50 N. Main St., Rochester, 332-2537, mitchellhillbbq.com) at 6 p.m.
Station 101 (193 Union Sq., Milford, 249-5416) at 6:30 p.m.
Music trivia at Day of the Dead Taqueria (454 Charles Bancroft Hwy. in Litchfield, 377-7664) at 6:30 p.m.
Geeks Who Drink trivia at The Barley House (132 N. Main St., Concord, 228-6363), from 7 to 9 p.m.
Themed trivia at Cheers Bar & Grille (17 Depot St., Concord, 228-0563) at 7 p.m.
Hart’s Turkey Farm (223 Daniel Webster Hwy., Meredith, 279-6212, hartsturkeyfarm.com) from 7 to 9:30 p.m.
Opinionation by Sporcle trivia at Uno Pizzeria & Grill (15 Fort Eddy Road in Concord; 226-8667) at 7 p.m.
Hop Knot (1000 Elm St., Manchester, 232-3731, hopknotnh.com) at 7 p.m.
Liquid Therapy (14 Court St., Nashua, 402-9391) at 7:30 p.m.
Game Changer Sports Bar (4 Orchard View Dr., Londonderry; 216-1396, gamechangersportsbar.com) from 8 to 10 p.m.
Strange Brew (88 Market St., Manchester, 666-4292) at 8 p.m.
Friday
The Biergarten Anheuser-Busch (221 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 595-1202) from 6 to 8 p.m.
Sunday
Mountain Base Brewery (553 Mast Road, No. 111, Goffstown, 315-8382) at 4 p.m.
Other trivia nights
Chunky’s Cinema Pub in Manchester (707 Huse Road in Manchester; chunkys.com) holds regular 21+ trivia nights on Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. with varying themes: The Beatles on Thursday, Jan. 11. General Knowledge on Thursday, Jan. 18. Barbie on Thursday, Jan. 25. Chunky’s also hosts family-friendly trivia nights. Next up is Disney Songs on Sunday, Jan. 14, at 6 p.m.
Take part in Schitt’s Creek trivia night on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at 6:30 p.m. at Vine Thirty Two (25 S. River Road in Bedford; vinethirtytwo.com).
Trivia at Fody’s (9 Clinton St., Nashua; fodystavern.com) the first Thursday of each month at 8 p.m.
Trivia on the first and third Thursday of every month trivia at To Share Brewing (720 Union St., Manchester, tosharebrewing.com) at 6:30 p.m.
Trivia at Park Theatre (19 Main St., Jaffrey; 532-9300, theparktheatre.org) on the second Wednesday of each month at 7:30 p.m.
Find a new wine and more fun for the first month of 2024
Holidays and vacations over, weather uncertain and frequently gray, bills due — January can feel like a bit of a letdown after the hoopla of December. But there are oodles of fun things to look forward to during the first month of 2024. Need a reason to get excited about the forthcoming month? Here are 57 of them.
1. We’ll get snow! Or maybe we won’t! This winter, the excitement is in the not-knowing. Experts at NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center said there is “considerable uncertainty” in the region’s winter outlook, with equal chances for above-, below- or near-normal precipitation. Adding an interesting twist, El Niño years are traditionally associated with increased snowfall; however, with a warmer winter on the horizon, the expected flurry of snowflakes might turn into raindrops. So embrace the element of surprise as we step into a season that could be filled with snowy adventures or cozy rainy days.
2. Disney on Ice presents Into the Magic comes to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St. in Manchester; snhuarena.com, 644-5000) for seven shows Thursday, Jan. 4, through Sunday, Jan. 7. Tickets cost $23 through $103. See disneyonice.com for images from the show.
3. The Greatest Love of All, a tribute to Whitney Houston with Belinda Davis, comes to the Capitol Center for the Arts’ Chubb Theatre (44 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com) on Thursday, Jan. 4, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $53.75 to $79.75. The show is just one of the tribute shows coming to the Cap Center this month: Get the Led Out plays Saturday, Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. and Dirty Deeds (the AC/DC Experience) plays Friday, Jan. 12, at 7:30 p.m.; at the Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord) catch Being Petty (a Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Experience) on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 8 p.m. and The Rock and Roll Playhouse: The Music of Tom Petty for Kids on Sunday, Jan. 14, at noon.
4. Averill House Vineyard (21 Averill Road in Brookline; averillhousevineyard.com) hosts a Fire Tower Winter Wonderland Wine Tasting Experience on Fridays through Sundays with different time slots available to reserve. You’ll enjoy a private, outdoor tasting of four different wines around pellet stoves with a view of the vineyard. Each ticket ($59) accounts for two adults and each additional person will cost $15 for a maximum of eight people. Children under 13 are free and pets are also welcome if on a leash. There is also the option of reserving an igloo or gazebo. Also at Averill House Vineyard is the Vine to Wine Igloo & Gazebo Experience & Wine Pairing on Mondays and Wednesdays through Sundays throughout January. Private Norwegian-themed igloos for two adults and one guest include a manager and tasting associate to serve you, theme lighting, music, a charcuterie board with meat, nuts, cheese and crackers, wine tasting of four wines per person and complimentary parking. Gazebos include all of this as well as a fireplace and fluffy living room. Tickets are $100, which accounts for two people, and can be purchased via eventbrite.
5.Recycled Percussion wraps up its run at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org) with shows Friday, Jan. 5, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 6, at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday, Jan. 7, at 3 and 7 p.m. Find Michael Witthaus’s interview with Justin Spencer in the Nov. 8 issue of the Hippo (e-edition is at hippopress.com).
6. Rivier University Raiders ice hockey will see its next home game at Conway Arena (5 Stadium Drive in Nashua) on Friday, Jan. 5, when the women’s team takes on Potsdam at 8 p.m. (they also face Potsdam on Saturday, Jan. 6, at 7:10 p.m.). The women’s team has two additional home games this month. The men’s team next plays at Conway on Tuesday, Jan. 9, when they take on Potsdam at 7:10 p.m. The men’s team has two additional home games in January. See rivierathletics.com.
7. Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry, 437- 5100, tupelomusichall.com) will feature several tribute shows this January: Captain Fantastic (playing music including songs of Elton John) on Friday, Jan. 5, at 8 p.m.; Eaglemania on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 8 p.m.; Boogie Wonder Band (playing disco hits) on Friday, Jan. 19, at 8 p.m.; Beatle Juice (Beatles songs) on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 8 p.m. and The The Band Band (playing a celebration of The Last Waltz from The Band) on Sunday, Jan. 28, at 7 p.m.
8. Catch comedy most weekends at Chunky’s Cinema Pubs in Manchester (707 Huse Road) and Nashua (151 Coliseum Ave.). This weekend see Steve Bjork in Manchester on Friday, Jan. 5, and Saturday, Jan. 6, at 8:30 p.m. and Will Noonan in Nashua on Saturday, Jan. 6, at 8:30 p.m. Tickets cost $20.
9. The Contoocook Farmers Market offers live music from the NH Music Collective (on Saturday, Jan. 6, it’s Mikey G) as well as locally made treats, produce, soaps and more. (A post from December showed Batulo’s Kitchen serving its meat and veggie hand pies.) Find them at the Maple Street School (194 Maple St. in Contoocook) on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon through April.
10. Cheer Saint Anselm Hawks basketball on Saturday, Jan. 6, at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium (73 College Road on Saint Anselm College campus in Manchester). The women’s team plays Adelphi at 1:30 p.m. and the men’s team plays Adelphi at 3:30 p.m. Tickets to either game cost $10 (kids 5 and under get in free to regular season games) and are available for purchase starting one hour ahead of game time at the Gymnasium ticket booth. Each team has four additional home games in January; see saintanselmhawks.com for the schedule.
11. You can also catch Saint Anselm Hawks ice hockey at home — Sullivan Arena on the college campus — this month. The men’s team will next play at home on Saturday, Jan. 6, at 4 p.m. versus Anna Maria College. The women’s team’s next home game is Friday, Jan. 26, at 6 p.m. versus Long Island University. Tickets cost $10 and are available at the ticket booth one hour ahead of game time. See saintanselmhawks.com.
12. See electric violinist Mia Asano and bagpiper/multi-instrumentalist Ally the Piper when Mia X Ally play Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry, 437- 5100, tupelomusichall.com) on Saturday, Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $40; for an additional $75 attend a VIP meet and greet after the show.
13. Pats Peak Ski Area (686 Flanders Road, Henniker) is lighting up Saturday nights with its POP (Pay One Price) tickets, available through the end of the season in 2024. The POP offer includes skiing, snowboarding, snowtubing, rentals and lesson tips, with prices varying by time of entry: $99 for 4 to 10 p.m.; $89 for 5 to 10 p.m;, and $79 for 6 to10 p.m. Lesson tips are offered from 4 to 6 p.m., and snow tubing runs from 5 to 10 p.m. Groups of 15 or more can receive discounts with advance reservations. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit patspeak.com.
14. Lace up those sneakers and go for a run with the 2024Freeze Your Buns 5K Series run by the Gate City Striders on a relatively flat low-traffic path that kicks off on the road between Conway Arena and Nashua YMCA on five Sundays over the next three months at 9 a.m., starting Sunday, Jan. 7. The cost to join is $20 ($12 for 17 and under); see gatecity.org/freeze-buns-5k-series for details and to register.
15. Find your fixings for Sunday dinner at the Salem NH Farmers Market, which runs Sundays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and through April is at the LaBelle Winery in Derry (14 Route 111), according to salemnhfarmersmarket.org where you can find a list of vendors.
16. The Pizzastock Battle of the Bands 2024 comes to the Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St. in Derry; tupelomusichall.com) on Sunday, Jan. 7. Doors open at noon. The show will feature Glue, Tree Streets and Porcelain Jumpsuit, special guest Sotah and hosts Cozy Throne, according to the Tupelo website, where you can purchase the $20 tickets. Pizzastock is a production of the Jason R. Flood Memorial, which seeks to raise awareness about mental health; see pizzastock.org.
17. The Golden Globes will air Sunday, Jan. 7, at 8 p.m. on CBS and Paramount+ with comedian Jo Koy hosting. Looking for a list of 2023 films worth catching, you could do worse than checking out the nominees at goldenglobes.com/nominations/2024.
18. The next home game for Rivier University Raiders basketball is Monday, Jan. 8, at 4 p.m. when the men’s team takes on Lesley University at Muldoon Fitness Center (440 Main St. in Nashua). The women’s next home game is Saturday, Jan. 13, at 2 p.m. versus Saint Joseph. The men’s team has seven additional home games in January; the women’s team has five. See rivierathletics.com.
19. If holiday carols reminded you how much you like singing, audition for theNew Hampshire Gay Men’s Chorus on Tuesday, Jan. 9, and Tuesday, Jan. 16, from 6:30 to 7 p.m. at the First Congregational Church (508 Union St. in Manchester). New singers are asked to stay for rehearsal from 7 to 9:30 p.m, according to nhgmc.com, where you can find details about auditioning. The chorus seeks singers who are men over the age of 18 (who are gay, straight and male-identifying), the website said. The chorus will have a spring concert series “Putting it All Together” in May.
SNHU Penmen Basketball, Courtesy photo.
20. Southern New Hampshire University Penmen basketball has its next home games Wednesday, Jan. 10, when the women’s team plays at 5:30 p.m., followed by the men’s team at 7:30 p.m., both against American International College. The games take place at Stan Spiro Field House (at the Southern New Hampshire University campus, 2500 River Road in Manchester); regular season games are free to attend. Both teams have two additional home games in January. See snhupenmen.com.
21. Consider roller derby at Granite State Roller Derby’s recruitment night on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 7 to 9 p.m. at the Concord YMCA (15 N. State St. in Concord). The program is the first night of a skating boot camp open to all levels of experience. See granitestaterollerderby.org.
22. Discovering Magic with Andrew Pinard will be the final performance at the current location of the Hatbox Theatre at Steeplegate Mall, 270 Loudon Road in Concord. See the show Wednesday, Jan. 10, at 7:30 p.m. and stay tuned to hatboxnh.com for updates on the theater’s search for a new venue. Tickets to the Jan. 10 show cost $25 for adults, $22 for students and seniors.
23. Southern New Hampshire University Penmen men’s ice hockey has its next home game at The Ice Den Arena (600 Quality Drive in Hooksett) on Wednesday, Jan. 10, at 7:40 p.m. versus SUNY Potsdam. The team has two additional home games this January; see snhupenmen.com.
24. Crotched Mountain (615 Francestown Road, Bennington) is set to host the Over the Moon Rail Jam on Friday, Jan. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. This no-cost event invites skiers and riders to showcase their talents with competitive divisions for Under-13, 14 to 17, Adult Male Skiers, Adult Male Riders, Adult Female Skiers and Adult Female Riders. Registration begins at 6 p.m. at the ATC deck, followed by a practice session, final course prep and the main event. Prizes will be awarded at 8:15 p.m. on the ATC deck. While entry is free, a valid pass or lift ticket is required, with mandatory helmets and signed waivers. Call 588-3668 or visit crotchedmtn.com.
25. Get some Satisfaction, The International Rolling Stones Show on Friday, Jan. 12, at 7:30 p.m. at the Dana Center (Saint Anselm College, 100 Saint Anselm Drive in Manchester; tickets.anselm.edu, 641-7700). Tickets cost $45.
26. Friday Night Comedy at the Rex will feature Corey Rodrigues and Maya Manion on Friday, Jan. 12, at 7:30 p.m. at the Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org). Tickets cost $25.
27. Get some locally made cheese or bread, locally grown meat or produce — and of course look for some tasty baked treats at the Downtown Concord Winter Farmers Market which runs Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon at 7 Eagle Square. Find live music from the NH Music Collective (see the schedule at nhmusiccollective.com for a look at who will be playing on Saturday, Jan. 13). Find a list of vendors and more at downtownconcordwinterfarmersmarket.com.
28. Catch The British Invasion, an evening of music from the bands of the mid-1960s, at the Majestic Theatre (880 Page St. in Manchester; majestictheatre.net, 669-7469) on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $20.
29. Symphony NH and the Spartan Drum & Bugle Corps will present Brass to the Max on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 7:30 p.m. at the Keefe Center for the Arts (117 Elm St. in Nashua) — a concert that promises to be loud (ear plugs will be offered) and is described as a “high-octane performance of brass and percussion favorites.” Tickets cost $10 to $63. See symphonynh.org.
NH Symphony presents Brass to the Max. Courtesy photo.
30. Headliners Comedy Club’s weekly shows at the DoubleTree by Hilton Downtown Manchester continue on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 8:30 p.m. with comedian Steve Bjork and others. Tickets cost $20. Find a complete lineup of upcoming shows at headlinersnh.com.
31. Run in the HPM Insurance Snowflake Shuffle, a 3-mile race in Bedford, on Sunday, Jan. 14, at 9:30 a.m. Registration costs $35 ($30 for under 21). See millenniumrunning.com.
32. Marek Bennett, author of graphic novels such as the The Civil War Diary of Freeman Colby series and The Most Costly Journey, presents “Drawing Community: Creating Comics from Shared Stories,” on Sunday, Jan. 14, at 2 p.m. at Tucker Free Library (31 Western Ave., Henniker, 428-3471) and again Saturday, Jan. 20, at 9:45 a.m. at Peterborough Town Library (2 Concord St., Peterborough, 924-8040). See nhhumanities.org.
33. Culinary Playground (16 Manning St. in Derry; culinary-playground.com), a recreational culinary school in Derry, has plenty of classes planned for January, including new additions and popular favorites, like the single-day Intro to the Mediterranean Diet on Sunday, Jan. 14, at 4 p.m. led by a registered dietitian. On Jan. 28 their three-class artisan bread series begins, in which students will learn the fundamentals and techniques of bread making and baking through the crafting of a wheat sandwich loaf, a boule, an olive rosemary loaf, a cranberry walnut loaf and a sourdough.
34. Learn about the wines of the Rhone and Loire valleys in France at Wine on Main (9 N. Main St. in Concord; wineonmainnh.com, 897-5828) on Tuesday, Jan. 16, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. or Wednesday, Jan. 17, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Taste wine from six bottles, accompanied by light snacks. The cost is $35 per person.
35. The Educational Theatre Collaborative at Plymouth State University will present GypsyWednesday, Jan. 17, through Sunday, Jan. 21, with shows Wednesday through Saturday at 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Flying Monkey (39 S. Main St. in Plymouth; flyingmonkeynh.com, 536-2551). Tickets cost $25 to $38.
36. LaBelle Winery (labellewinery.com) can teach you how to make a cozy soup (Wednesday, Jan. 17, at 6 p.m. at the Derry location, 14 Route 111) or warm you up with a five-course whiskey dinner (Friday, Jan. 19, at 6:30 p.m. at the Amherst location, 345 Route 101). Go online to sign up for these and other LaBelle events.
37. Dancing Queens, billed as the Ultimate ABBA and Disco Tribute, opens Friday, Jan. 19, and runs through Sunday, Feb. 11, at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) with shows at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, plus Thursday, Feb. 8, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $28 to $49.
38. Spend an Evening with TR3 featuring Tim Reynolds, Dave Matthews’ collaborator, on Friday, Jan. 19, at 7:30 p.m. at the Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588). Tickets cost $39 to $49.
39. Saturday, Jan. 20, (the third Saturday in January) is one of two annual Free Fishing Days in New Hampshire. Residents and non-residents can fish in any inland water or saltwater in New Hampshire without a fishing license (though season dates and bag limits are still in effect), according to wildlife.nh.gov, where you can find details about the day and getting a fishing license if you get (sorry, not sorry) hooked on the sport.
40. McIntyre Ski Area (50 Chalet Way, Manchester) presents the Mac Parks Rail Jam on Saturday, Jan. 20, starting at 4 p.m. Test your skills in the terrain park with a chance to win prizes. Registration is $25, including a lift ticket and two runs, with a discounted rate of $15 for season pass holders. Competitive age categories include under-12, 13 to 17, 18 to 29, and 30+. On-site registration opens at 11 a.m., closing 15 minutes before the event. Helmets are required. For details and to secure your spot visit mcintyreskiarea.com.
41. Author Joseph Carrabis will hold a workshop called “Write Your History, Change Your Life” on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 5 p.m. at Bookery Manchester (844 Elm St. in Manchester; bookerymht.com). The event is free; register online to save a spot.
Terrain Park at McIntyre Ski Area. Courtesy
42. Celebrate the best of local theater when the 19th New Hampshire Theatre Awards are handed out on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. at the Capitol Center for the Arts’ Chubb Theatre (44 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com). Tickets cost $45. See nhtheatrealliance.org.
43. Hear the music of Springsteen played live when Bruce in the USA comes to the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St. in Nashua; nashuacenterforthearts.com) on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $29 through $59.
44. The 21+ show Life’s a Drag, described as a fiercely hilarious drag show, comes to Chunky’s Cinema Pub in Manchester (707 Huse Road; chunkys.com) on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 9 p.m. Doors open at 8 p.m. Tickets to this approximately two-hour show cost $25 (plus fees).
45. The Last Command (1928), a silent film starring Emil Jannings, who won the first-ever Academy Award for Best Actor for his role, will screen with live musical accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis on Sunday, Jan. 21, at 2 p.m. at Wilton Town Hall Theatre (40 Main St., Wilton, wiltontownhalltheatre.com, 654-3456). See silentfilmlivemusic.blogspot.com for more on the film.
46. See Bobby Rush with the Eric Lindner Band opening on Sunday, Jan. 21, at 7 p.m. at the Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com). Tickets cost $43.75 to $63.75.
47. Enjoy some wine and learn to curate the cheeses, salame and other treats to create a charcuterie board at Vine 32 Wine and Graze Bar (25 South River Road, Unit 107, in Bedford; vinethirtytwo.com) on Monday, Jan 22, at 6:15 p.m. The class costs $125 (plus fees) and includes local NH charcuterie products for the boards, a New Hampshire-made 20-inch wooden serving board to keep, a $10 wine card and samples during the class, according to the website where you can register.
48. Nominations for the 96th Annual Oscars (which will air on Sunday, March 10) will be announced Tuesday, Jan. 23; the announcement is usually around 8 or 8:30 a.m. Until then, check out the short list of nominee contenders in categories such as documentary feature, international feature, music and sound categories, shorts and more. See oscars.org.
49. Lloyd Sederer, a Concord author and a doctor, will discuss his book Caught in the Crosshairs of American Healthcare, described as “an inspiring true story of how a small group of dedicated leaders achieved radical and relentless change to save McLean, Harvard’s historic psychiatric hospital,” at Gibson’s Bookstore (45 S. Main St. in Concord; gibsonsbookstore.com) on Wednesday, Jan. 24, at 6:30 p.m.
50. After you see the feature film musical (slated for release Wednesday, Jan. 17), see the Palace Youth Theatre’s take on Mean Girls Jr. with performers in grades 2 through 12, at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) on Wednesday, Jan. 24, and Thursday, Jan. 25, at 7 p.m.; Wednesday, Jan. 31, at 7 p.m. and Thursday, Feb. 1, at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $12 to $15.
51. The Black Ice Pond Hockey Festival and Tournament begins with youth hockey night on Thursday, Jan. 25, from 5 to 8 p.m. in White Park in Concord, with games starting at 6 p.m. and a heated spectator tent and concessions. The event continues with games and special events through Sunday, Jan. 28, all in White Park — activities include fireworks on Friday evening, bonfires on Friday and Saturday and public skate on Friday, according to blackicepondhockey.com where you can find the complete schedule and get updates.
Led Zeppelin. Courtesy photo.
52. Find a new wine — specifically, a malbec at WineNot Boutique (25 Main St. in Nashua; 204-5569, winenotboutique.com) which will hold a blind tasting of seven malbec wines on Thursday, Jan. 25, at 6 p.m. The cost to attend is $40 (plus fees) and the wines will be served with cheeses, salami and chocolate, the website said.
53. Drum Tao, a show with costumes and staging centered on Japanese Taiko drums, will be at the Capitol Center for the Arts Chubb Theatre (44 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com) on Thursday, Jan. 25, at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $44 through $76. See drum-tao.com/en for a look at the performance.
54. Concord NH Winterfest takes place Friday, Jan. 26, through Sunday, Jan. 28, with events including the Art & Bloom show and Concord Garden Club show at Kimball Jenkins Estates (opening reception is Thursday, Jan. 25, from 5 to 7 p.m.); ice carvings on the Statehouse lawn; food trucks and vendors from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and a Winterfest Family Dance Party with Mr. Aaron at the Bank of NH Stage on Sunday, Jan. 28, at 2 p.m. See all the details at intownconcord.org.
55. See Lez Zeppelin, the all-girl tribute to Led Zeppelin, on Friday, Jan. 26, at 6 p.m. at Angel City Music Hall (179 Elm St. in Manchester; angelcitymusichall.com). Tickets to this 21+ show cost $25.
56. The Majestic Academy (majestictheatre.net) will present Footloose — Youth Edition at the Derry Opera House (29 W. Broadway in Derry) on Friday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 27, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, Jan. 28, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $10 to $15.
57. Get some laughs at the Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry, 437- 5100, tupelomusichall.com) monthly comedy night, this month on Friday, Jan. 26, at 8 p.m. and featuring comedians Kenny Rogerson, Jody Sloane and David Lamb. Tickets cost $22.
58. Get some local produce at the Milford NH Indoor Farmers Market which runs Saturday, Jan. 27, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Milford Town Hall Auditorium (One Union Square). The market runs five Saturdays through early March; the other markets are Jan. 13, Feb, 10, Feb. 24, and March 9. See milfordnhfarmersmarket.com.
59. Jeanne Dietsch, former New Hampshire senator from Peterborough, will discuss her report New Hampshire: Battleground in the Fight to Dismantle Democracyat Balin Books (Somerset Plaza, 375 Amherst St., in Nashua; balinbooks.com, 417-7981) on Saturday, Jan. 27, at 11 a.m.
60. Sing your heart out at Rockstar Karaoke on Saturday, Jan. 27, at 6 p.m. at the Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com). Admission to this 18+ show is free; sign up to sing on a first come, first served basis.
61. It’s a night of metal at Jewel Music Venue (61 Canal St., Manchester, 819- 9336, jewelmusicvenue.com) with Pyrexia, Immortal Suffering, Goreality, Necronomichist, and Maidenhead on Saturday, Jan. 27, at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $25.
62. Celebrate 85 years of the yellow brick road, ruby slippers and flying monkeys at a screening of The Wizard of Oz(1939) presented by Fathom Events. Catch the movie Sunday, Jan. 28, at 1 p.m. at AMC Londonderry, Cinemark Rockingham Park in Salem, O’neil Cinemas in Epping and Regal Fox Run in Newington and also at 7 p.m. at AMC Londonderry and Regal Fox Run; on Monday, Jan. 29, at 7 p.m. at all of those theaters and on Wednesday, Jan. 31, at 7 p.m. at AMC Londonderry, Cinemark and Regal Fox Run.
63. See the professional dance company Step Afrika! on Tuesday, Jan. 30, 7 p.m. at the Capitol Center for the Arts (44 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com, where you can see videos of the company’s performances). The show is part of the William H. Gile Concert Series, so tickets are free, but go online to reserve seats.
They are a great dessert, a great snack, a satisfying breakfast or mid-morning munchies solution. They are great at parties and great shared after a party while you relax. You can never have too many cookies in your life or too many cookie recipes — particularly fun new recipes with personal, historical and family stories attached.
In that vein, I reached out to ask for recipes — from food types, yes, but also from museums, hospitals, politicians, churches, cultural organizations, basically anybody I thought might have a good cookie recipe and a tasty story to go with it. Here are about four dozen recipes from our — yours and mine — neighbors, swapping cookies (and a few bars, drops and other cookie-ish items) and frequently the tales of how these sweet treats became a part of their baking routine.
Let’s kick things off by going way back in American cookie history, to when the item appeared as a “cookey” in a 1796 cookbook.
Another Christmas Cookey
From Sarah Sycz Jaworski, program manager at American Independence Museum in Exeter, who writes: “We do not have any recipes directly related to our museum but the below recipe would probably have been made or at least known in the family that lived here. The first Christmas cookie recipe printed in America was in Amelia Simmons’ American Cookery. The cookbook was first printed in Hartford in 1796. Cookies of the time were usually called jumbles or biscuits. The word ‘cookie’ is said to be a Dutch word and came from the Dutch in New York, and the second printing of the book was in Albany.”
Amelia’s Christmas Cookey Recipe
To three pounds of flour, sprinkle a teacup of fine powdered coriander seed, rub in one pound of butter, and one and a half pound of sugar, dissolve one teaspoonful of pearlash in a tea cup of milk, knead all well together, roll three-quarters of an inch thick, and cut or stamp into shape or size you please. Bake slowly 15 or 20 minutes; tho’ hard and dry at first, if put into an earthen pot, and dry cellar, or damp room, they will be finer, softer and better when 6 months old.
Modern adaptation from Amanda Moniz, the Assistant Director of the National History Center of the American Historical Association, as it appeared in the Historical Cooking Project Blog, July 2014 (provided by the American Independence Museum)
1 pound (about 3¾ cups) all-purpose flour pinch of salt
1½ Tablespoons ground coriander (or more)
6 ounces (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes
½ pound (1 cup) sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ cup whole milk (more as needed)
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Combine flour, salt and ground coriander in a food processor. Pulse a couple times. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.
Combine baking powder and milk.Add to the dough mixture and stir, adding more milk if it seems too dry. Press the dough together into two balls. Put each ball on plastic wrap, flatten into a disk, and chill for a couple hours.
Roll the dough to the thinness you want (about ⅛ inch is good) and cut out in any shape you want.
Bake, rotating the baking sheets about halfway through baking, until lightly browned around the edges, about 10 minutes.
Acıbadem Kurabiyesi, Turkish Almond Cookies
From the Turkish Cultural Center New Hampshire. The cookies are “a beloved treat often served during special occasions like weddings, religious holidays, or family gatherings in Turkey. These delicately sweet, almond-flavored cookies symbolize warmth and hospitality in Turkish culture, making them a delightful addition to festive celebrations,” according to a description in the email from the center.
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup ground almonds
whole almonds for garnish
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the egg yolk and almond extract, mixing until well-combined.
Gradually add the flour and ground almonds to the mixture, stirring until a dough forms.
Take small portions of the dough and roll them into balls, then flatten them slightly with your palm. Place them on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them apart.
Press a whole almond into the center of each cookie.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are lightly golden.
Remove from oven and let cookies cool on baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Agnès Boucher’s Date Squares
From Nathalie Boucher Hirte, office manager at the Franco-American Centre, host of Franco Foods on YouTube and a native of Quebec, who wrote: “Funny enough, growing up in Quebec, cookies were not the big thing on the table, it was more sweets (like sucre à la crème and fudge) and cakes. A family and Quebec favorite treat growing up was date squares, but that’s not a cookie.”
2 cups chopped dates
½ cup corn syrup (I used light)
½ cup hot water
⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oatmeal
½ cup room temperature unsalted butter
lemon juice (to taste)
pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Prepare square pan: Cover bottom and sides with butter.
Date filling: Combine chopped dates, corn syrup, hot water, lemon juice and vanilla in a saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower temperature and cook over low heat for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
Base and topping: In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and brown sugar. Add the oatmeal, mix well. Cut or rub in the butter until well combined.
Putting it together: Put half of the oatmeal mixture into the prepared pan. Press well to make the base. Spread the date filling. Cover with the remaining oatmeal mixture and press gently. Bake for 25 minutes. Let cool, cut into squares and enjoy!
Candy Cane Cookies
From Jan Warren, who describes herself as the baker in the office at Deerfield Family Dentistry. She says she’s been making these cookies for about 40 years. She wrote that she had just made a batch of the cookies: “It makes more than the 4 1/2 dozen that it says it does. I used the peppermint flavoring instead of almond. When you put the 2 colors together, roll them as you would when rolling them into 4 inch logs, they stick together better when twisting them.”
1 cup powdered sugar
½ cup softened butter
½ cup shortening
1 egg
1½ teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
2½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon red food coloring
½ cup crushed peppermint candy
½ cup granulated sugar
Heat oven to 375°F. Mix powdered sugar, butter, shortening, egg, almond extract and vanilla. Stir in flour and salt. Divide dough into halves. Tint one half with food color. For each candy cane, shape 1 teaspoon dough from each part into 4-inch rope. For smooth, even strips, roll back and forth on lightly floured board. Place one red and one white strip side by side, press together lightly and twist. Complete cookies one at a time. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Curve top down to form handle of cane. Bake until set and very light brown, about 9 minutes. Mix crushed candy and granulated sugar, immediately sprinkle over cookies. Remove from cookie sheet. Makes 4 dozen.
Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
“Between votes in Washington and traveling across New Hampshire, I don’t get to bake as often as I’d like. When I do, I usually rely on the recipe on the back of the bag of chocolate chips as a guide. However, one of my staffers brought in the following recipe that is quickly becoming an office favorite. These cookies have a great pumpkin flavor, perfect for the fall and winter months (and it’s also New Hampshire’s state fruit!).” — U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, in an email from staff. The recipe is from Sally’s Baking Addiction (sallysbakingaddiction.com).
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus extra for the tops
Whisk the melted butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar together in a medium bowl until no brown sugar lumps remain. Whisk in the vanilla and pumpkin until smooth. Set aside.
Whisk the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice together in a large bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together with a large spoon or rubber spatula. The dough will be very soft. Fold in ½ semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Cover the dough and chill for 30 minutes or up to 3 days.
Remove dough from the refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Scoop about 1½ Tablespoons of dough for each cookie and roll into balls. Arrange on cookie sheet 3 inches apart. Using the back of a spoon, slightly flatten the tops.
Bake for 11 to 12 minutes until the edges appear set. Press a few chocolate chips into the top of the cookies (which will look very soft in the center). Let cool for at least 10 minutes on the pan.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Brian Csaky, Director of Culinary Operations at Saint Anselm College, wrote this is “our chocolate chip cookie recipe that we use in Davison Hall. During lunch last year, we had a table set up for the students to try [two] kinds of cookie and they got to vote on their favorite. This recipe ended up being the winner between the two.”
⅜ pound brown sugar
⅓ pound sugar
½ pound unsalted butter
2 ounces eggs
¼ ounce vanilla extract
⅔ pound all-purpose flour
¼ ounce iodized salt
⅛ ounce baking soda
10 ounces chocolate chips
Cream sugars and butter. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Add flour, salt and baking soda. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop in scoops onto baking sheets. Bake at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes.
Chruściki (Angel Wings or Bow Ties)
Karen Sobiechowski at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Manchester said in an email she spoke to her bakers before sending along recipes, the first of which she describes this way: “Chrusciki are often referred to as angel wings (because of the powdered sugar) or bow ties (because of the shape). When the dough is rolled very thin, the cookies are light and crisp. Some recipes call for a small amount of alcohol (such as vodka, whiskey, or rum) in the dough to keep it from absorbing too much oil during the frying.”
6 egg yolks
3 Tablespoons orange zest
½ teaspoon salt
8 ounces sour cream
3 cups flour
1 cup powdered sugar
oil for deep frying
powdered sugar to dust
Beat egg yolks with a fork. Add orange zest, salt and sour cream. Add 2½ cups of the flour and powdered sugar to egg mixture. Combine. Add the last ½ cup of flour, working by hand to form a soft dough.
On a floured board, roll out the dough a quarter at a time. Roll thin. Cut dough in small rectangles and cut a slit in the center. Put one end through to make a bow. Fry in hot oil, only until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels. Dust with powdered sugar.
Crisp Oatmeal Cookies
“The following recipe is a Belisle family favorite. My mother makes it for our annual family Christmas get-together. It is a tradition that is asked for every year. My mom modified it slightly. She has been making these cookies since I was a little kid (almost 60 years). The original recipe was submitted by Jean Engborg and was in a handwritten cookbook from Cape Porpoise, Maine.” — Ann Hamilton, a food safety specialist for UNH Cooperative Extension
1 cup shortening
½ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda mixed in ¼ cup boiling water
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ to 1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sifted flour
3 cups rolled oats (either quick or regular)
raisins
Oven temperature 375°F. Makes about 5½ dozen 2½-inch cookies.
Cream the shortening with the sugars. Dissolve the baking soda in boiling water and add to the sugar mixture. Add vanilla. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Drop by teaspoon on a greased cookie sheet. Flatten with fork and bake about 10 minutes or until a golden color. Put on wire rack to cool. Add a raisin, if desired, in the center of the cookies before cooking. These cookies are crisp and crunchy. NOTE: Needs watching — can burn quickly.
Crystalized Ginger Shortbread
From Charlene Nichols, director of sales at Hippo, who writes that she adapted this recipe from themom100.com by Katie Workman, doubling it and adding about a teaspoon of ground ginger to up the overall gingerness.
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
4½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the counter
1½ cup finely chopped crystalized ginger
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar. Beat in the salt, then the flour, then the vanilla and ground ginger. Lastly, beat in the crystallized ginger. The dough will appear crumbly but hold together when you pinch it.
Press the dough into a large cookie sheet, scoring into 64 2-inch squares. Place pan in freezer for 20 minutes or in the refrigerator for at least an hour, until it firms up slightly.
Bake for about 40 minutes until very slightly colored, with edges just a bit browned. Put the pan on a wire rack and cool for 20 to 30 minutes. Then flip the shortbread to remove from the pan, turn right side up and cool completely on the rack.
Place the shortbread on a cutting board and using a large sharp knife cut into squares following the lines you’ve scored in the dough.
Danish Dapples
“Danish dapples … comes from the Girl Scout Cookbook [pictured] which was published by the Girl Scouts of the USA in 1971. We have a copy of this book in the Max I. Silber Scouting Library. We chose this Danish recipe to reflect the interest that the Girl Scouts have had in World Scouting over the years.”— Doug Aykroyd, Curator of the Lee Scouting Museum in Manchester
¾ cup shortening
1½ cups brown sugar
1 cup rolled oats
2 eggs
2 cups sifted flour
1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
½ teaspoon powdered nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon soda
2 cups peeled, chopped apples
½ cup coarsely chopped almonds or hazelnuts
1 Tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon milk
¾ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350°F. Cream shortening and sugar together; add oats, and beat well. Beat in eggs. Sift flour together with salt, soda and spices; add to sugar-shortening-egg mixture and mix well. Stir in apples and nuts.
Drop batter by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until cookies are lightly browned. Use last four ingredients for frosting, as follows: Melt butter and heat 1 teaspoon of milk with it. Pour into small mixing bowl with powdered sugar and vanilla; mix until smooth. Spread over tops of cookies. Let cool until frosting sets before serving or storing.
Eldress Bertha Lindsay’s Lemon Verbena Cookies
From Eldress Bertha Lindsay’s Seasoned With Grace: My Generation of Shaker Cooking (1988) and provided by the Canterbury Shaker Village.
2½ cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup milk
½ teaspoon lemon juice
⅓ cup vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
2 Tablespoons crushed lemon verbena leaves, or substitute ½ teaspoon lemon extract
In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. In a separate small bow, mix milk, lemon juice, oil and egg. Add lemon verbena or lemon extract to the liquid. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until well-mixed.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Drop by teaspoonfuls on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Makes 4 dozen.
Finikia (Assumption’s Recipe)
From the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church in Manchester Ladies Philoptochos Society, which writes: “Finikia are considered the most popular Greek Christmas cookie. In some regions of Greece, they are also known as melomakarona. These delicious, moist, honey-drenched cookies can be made with a date or walnut center filling, or left plain in the center. All varieties are topped with crushed walnuts, cinnamon and sugar. … The Ladies Philoptochos Society of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church make and bake hundreds of finikia annually for their food fests, spring and fall bake sales, and Greekfest.”
Dough:
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted (sweet) butter – at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup canola oil
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice – at room temperature
2 egg yolks – at room temperature
1 ounce Metaxa or brandy
2 teaspoons baking powder
⅓ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
7 to 8 cups of flour
Center-filling (optional):
10 ounces date paste or 20 pureed pitted dates
½ cup granulated sugar
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Syrup:
4 cups granulated sugar
4 cups water
1 cup honey
Cookie coating:
1½ cups finely chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
Dough
In mixer, beat butter, oil and sugar together very well. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, into the mixture while the mixer is working. Gradually add orange juice and Metaxa (or brandy) and mix well.
In a separate bowl, sift together flour with the baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir. Start by adding half the flour mixture and keep incorporating the remainder of the flour, a little at a time, until you have a smooth dough that is neither too soft nor too hard. Take dough out of bowl and knead until dough forms a ball.
Center-filling (optional)
In small saucepan, mix together dates, granulated sugar, walnuts, cinnamon and vanilla extract. On lowest setting, cook until warm. Set aside.
Syrup
In a large pot, combine granulated sugar and water and bring to a boil; boil for 10 minutes. Add honey and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
Cookie Coating
In a separate bowl, mix together walnuts, cinnamon and granulated sugar.
Shaping and baking:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Roll and shape dough into small oval balls about 1½ to 2 inches long and 1 inch wide.
Using your fingers, press one side of the ball flat like a small pancake. If making center-filled finikia, add 1 rounded teaspoon of filling in the center of cookies.
Fold dough over and pinch ends of oval cookies together. Place fold-side down on parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Bake in preheated oven 20 to 25 minutes until golden in color. Do not overbake; otherwise syrup won’t be absorbed into each cookie. Set cookies aside to cool. Once cooled, transfer cookies to a large casserole dish.
Prepare syrup. Once the syrup is boiled and hot, pour over the cooled cookies making sure all cookies are completely covered in syrup. With a wooden spoon, turn the cookies over a few times ensuring the tops and bottoms are fully covered in syrup. Turn cookies in syrup a full 5 to 7 minutes.
Remove honey-drenched cookies and place in individual paper baking cups. Sprinkle the walnut mixture over the finikia.
Should yield roughly 60 pieces.
Finikia (St. Philip’s recipe)
Vivian Karafotias of St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church in Nashua also sent along a recipe for finikia, one of three recipes she sent that come from the cookbook the church sells at its annual festival in May. She writes: “The cookie is oval-shaped with walnuts on top and dipped in syrup. This cookie originated from Smyrni, Asia Minor.”
1 cup margarine
2 cup vegetable oil
½ cup sugar
8 ounces orange juice
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1½ ounces whiskey
⅓ teaspoon ground clove
3 teaspoons baking powder
6 to 8 cups of flour
Beat margarine, add oil and beat well. Add sugar, juice, rind, whiskey, ground clove and baking powder. Add flour slowly, using only as much as needed to form soft cookie dough. Form into slightly flattened egg-shaped cookies. Bake on ungreased baking sheet at 350°F for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool. Dip cookies in hot syrup for a few minutes. Remove and sprinkle with nut mixture.
Syrup
2 cups sugar
2 cup water
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup honey
1 lemon, quartered
Place all syrup ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for approximately 10 minutes.
Nut mixture
2 cups finely chopped walnuts mixed with 3 to 4 teaspoons cinnamon
Flourless Ooey-Gooey Double Chocolate Cookies
“Makes 16 cookies. I seldom use Dutch process cocoa; natural cacao works great.” — from Roxanne Macaig, Hippo account executive.
5 ounces excellent-quality dark chocolate, chopped
½ stick + 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
¾ cup superfine or granulated sugar
2 eggs
⅓ cup cocoa or cacao powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon vanilla
½ cup chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate (or preference milk or white chocolate)
¼ to ½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Preheat to 350°F.
In a heat-proof bowl (either in the microwave or on the stove over a pot of simmering water), melt the chocolate and butter together until smooth and glossy. Set aside to cool down to lukewarm.
Using either a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or a hand mixer fitted with the double beaters, whisk sugar and eggs together until pale, very fluffy and about tripled in volume. About 5 minutes on a high speed until the “ribbon stage.”
Pour the lukewarm chocolate mixture into the whisked egg mixture, and whisk until just combined. Stir in vanilla and salt. SIFT in the cocoa powder and salt, and whisk until you get a smooth, glossy batter — it will be pretty runny. Add the chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate) and small diced walnuts if desired, mixing throughout the batter.
Chill the batter in the fridge for 8 minutes, until slightly thickened. It will still be fairly loose, but it will mostly hold its shape when you scoop onto the cookie sheet.
Scoop onto a cookie sheet using a 2-Tablespoon ice cream or cookie scoop; leave about 1½ inches between for them to spread.
Bake, one baking sheet at a time, at 350ºF (180ºC) for 8 to 9 minutes or until slightly puffed up. The center should be a little underbaked so they’ll be gooey and delicious when cooled. They will have a glossy, cracked crust and be puffed up mounds, but they will settle when cooled.
Directly out of the oven, while they’re still hot, you can use a glass (larger than the cookie diameter) to bump the overflow edges to a perfectly round shape.
Ginger Cookies
From Mrs. Thomas Chalmers in The Bazaar Cook Book compiled by The Ladies in the First Congregational Church in Manchester, published in 1901, according to Kristy Ellsworth, Director of Education at the Manchester Historic Association’s Millyard Museum.
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup molasses
1 dessertspoonful each of ginger, vinegar and soda
Mix with 6 cups of flour and enough more to roll out. Bake ¼ inch thick.
Gingerbread Cookies
“This holiday cookie recipe is pure comfort. The aroma of ginger meeting cinnamon on the baking sheet is irresistible. Sometimes the icing and decoration toppings don’t make it to each cookie as I have sampled a bare cookie or two beforehand.” — Marilyn Mills, dietitian at Elliot Health System.
3 cups all-purpose, unbleached or try white wheat flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger (for more ginger flavor squeeze another teaspoon of refrigerated ginger paste)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup molasses
1 egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Mix flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt in large bowl. Set aside. In another large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add molasses, egg, and vanilla; mix well. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until well mixed. Press dough into a thick flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out dough to ¼-inch thickness on lightly floured work surface. Cut into gingerbread cookie shapes with 5-inch cookie cutter. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges of cookies are set and just begin to brown.
Cool on baking sheets for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Decorate cooled cookies as desired. Store cookies in airtight container for up to five days.
Hearty Energy Cookies. Photo courtesy of Katie Welch.
Hearty Energy Cookies
“Katie Welch, Senior Director of Member Experience for the YMCA Allard Center of Goffstown, shares her Hearty Energy Cookie recipe — one that her mom started cooking for her when she was in high school and both were active runners craving a more nutritious cookie yet still gooey and chocolatey! Katie now makes these hearty energy cookies to share at the Y with coworkers, members, and friends.” — Jamie Demetry, VP of marketing and communications at the Granite YMCA.
½ cup (1 stick) softened butter
1⅓ cups dark brown sugar
¾ cup peanut butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
½ wheat germ
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup buttermilk
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped dates
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Mix butter, sugar and peanut butter until creamed. Add eggs, one at a time, and then stir in the vanilla. Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix well. Add dry ingredients to the butter and sugar mixture. Finally, add the buttermilk. The batter will be sticky, but handle-able. Roll out golf-ball sized balls, and slightly flatten onto your cookie sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes, until the edges just turn golden. Cool on the sheet for 5 minutes. Enjoy!
Hermits
From Mary Whitcher’s Shaker House-Keeper (1882) and provided by the Canterbury Shaker Village.
Mix one cup of raisins, stoned and chopped; a cup of butter, two cups of sugar, a teaspoon each of cinnamon and clove, half a teaspoon of soda dissolved in a little milk; one teaspoon nutmeg, three eggs, and enough flour to roll out. Roll the dough to the thickness of a quarter of an inch, and cut it with a round tin. Bake the cakes about 12 minutes, in a rather quick oven (375°F).
Homemade Nutter Butters
From a dietitian at the Elliot, sent by Dawn Fernald, System Vice President of Marketing and Communications at SolutionHealth.
½ cup peanut butter
¼ cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅔ cup almond flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Mix together peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla, then fold in the almond flour and baking powder. Roll dough into ½-teaspoon-size balls and place them side by side on parchment paper-covered baking sheet. Once dough is all divided out, use fork and press down gently on each ball, then rotate 90 degrees and repeat.
Bake cookies for 12 to 14 minutes. Once fully cooled (10 to 15 minutes), stir together ¼ cup peanut butter with 1 Tablespoon maple syrup, then stuff two cookies and press together.
Inside-Out Chocolate Chip Cookies
“The recipe for the Boy Scout cookie comes from a recipe book produced by Troop 177 in Hampton, New Hampshire. This book was produced in 2006 as a fundraising project. Members of the troop sought out recipes from family and friends… The recipe for Inside-Out Chocolate Chip Cookies came from the dessert section. It was submitted by a Star Scout in the troop, Joey Silveria.” — Doug Aykroyd, Curator of the Lee Scouting Museum in Manchester
1 cup sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
¾ cup butter (softened)
½ cup shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2½ cups flour
½ cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1½ vanilla milk chips
1 cup nuts (chopped)
Heat oven to 350°F.
Mix sugars, butter, shortening, vanilla and eggs in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Stir in vanilla milk chips and chopped nuts. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Cool one minute before moving to wire rack.
Kate Smith’s Grape-Nut Chocolate Drops
“My grandmother Pauline, on my Mum’s side, was first-generation French Canadian. Her mother, Imelda Lemoine, passed away when Pauline was 19. Pauline married my grandfather when she was 23 and was mother to seven children and a prodigious cook. These chocolates were made every year at Christmas and were originally found by Imelda from Kate Smith’s radio show. She sent away and received a promotional recipe card. My mother made them at Christmas and some of my earliest memories are stirring the bowl and licking the chocolate off the spoon when we were done scooping them out. Don’t fear the strange ingredients. They are delicious and best eaten within a week if they even last that long. (Also known in our family as Grape-Nut Clusters)” — Jessica Traynor, Auburn, New Hampshire
1 12-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Grape-Nuts
Melt chocolate chips in a double boiler. Remove from heat and stir in the condensed milk and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Stir in Grape-Nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax or parchment paper. Cool on counter. Makes about 5 dozen.
Kolaczki
Karen Sobiechowski at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Manchester describes kolaczki this way: “Kolaczki consist of a rich pastry filled with fruit preserves or jam. I like to use Solo filling. Using a variety of fillings (apricot, prune, cherry, etc.) makes for a nice presentation. The same cookie is enjoyed with a slightly different name in the various Eastern European countries.”
1 envelope yeast
4 Tablespoons sour cream, room temperature
2¾ cups sifted flour
1 egg yolk
½ pound butter, softened
Solo fruit filling (apricot, cherry, prune, etc.)
powdered sugar
Dissolve yeast in sour cream; add a pinch of sugar. Add flour, egg yolk and butter; mix well. Divide dough into three parts. Roll out ⅛ inch thick. Cut into circles or squares. Fill center with ½ teaspoon fruit filling. On squares, bring corners to center of filling. Bake at 350˚F for 10 minutes. Cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Koulourakia Epirus (Assumption’s recipe)
From the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church in Manchester Ladies Philoptochos Society, which writes: “This buttery-based, shiny egg glazed versatile cookie (crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside) is a staple in most Greek households. Koulourakia are made and enjoyed in times of happiness (holidays and celebrations), simply over a cup of coffee or tea, or offered in times of sorrow. The ingredients are delicious and native to the region of Northern Epirus.”
16 ounces (4 sticks) unsalted (sweet) butter – at room temperature
1 Tablespoon Crisco
3 cups granulated sugar
3 egg yolks – at room temperature
1 egg beaten for glaze
6 extra-large eggs – at room temperature
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice – at room temperature
1 orange rind grated
¼ cup vanilla
¼ cup baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
8 to 10 cups of flour
In mixer, cream butter and 1 Tablespoon Crisco very well. Add sugar and mix until light and fluffy. One at a time, and slowly, add the egg yolks and eggs into the mixture while the mixer is working. Beat well.
Add ½ teaspoon baking soda to orange juice and then blend together with the mixture. Add ¼ cup vanilla and orange rind to mixture and continue beating with the mixer.
Mix 2 cups of flour with ¼ cup baking powder. Add to mixture and slowly blend together. Keep incorporating the remainder of the flour, a little at a time, to the mixture to make a soft dough. If the mixture is sticky, slowly keep incorporating more flour until the dough is pliable but not sticky.
Take dough out of mixer, place in bowl, cover with parchment paper or a clean towel and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll and shape koulourakia into desired shape and size and place on parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Brush with egg glaze. Bake in preheated oven 20 to 25 minutes until golden in color. Should yield roughly 120 pieces (depending on shape and size).
Koulourakia — Butter Cookies (St. Philip’s recipe)
From Vivian Karafotias of St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church in Nashua: “Here is a traditional Greek butter cookie that is made during Christmas and Easter. They are traced back to Crete during the Minoan period. They are delicious. We sell them at our festival.”
1 pound butter, softened
1 cup oil
2½ cups sugar
1 Tablespoon whiskey
2 teaspoons vanilla
juice of ½ orange (approx. ⅓ cup)
2 teaspoons orange rind
8 large eggs
7 teaspoons baking powder
approximately 4 pounds sifted flour
Glaze:
beaten eggs
sesame seeds
Cream butter. Add oil, sugar, whiskey, vanilla, orange juice and rind and mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until creamy. Sift the baking powder with 2 cups of flour and stir into dough. Transfer to large bowl and add flour, a little at a time, to form a soft dough. Using the hands to mix in the flour is the best method of forming the dough. Approximately 15 cups of sifted flour is needed, being careful to add just enough to form a soft workable dough that can be shaped. Using a small amount of dough, roll with hands into a rope about ½ inch in diameter. Form into circles or twists. The amount of dough to be used for each cookie can be measured by filling an ice cream scoop with dough and then dividing into quarters. Each quarter is the amount of dough needed to make the koulourakia the proper size.
Place cookies on greased cookie sheet or parchment-lined cookie pan. Mix sesame seeds with several beaten eggs and brush mixture on top of cookies to form a glaze. Bake in a 375°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.
Kourabiedes (St. Philip’s recipe)
From Vivian Karafotias of St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church in Nashua, who says “This is a traditional butter … with powdered sugar on top. It originated in 7th century Persia. This cookie has European origins as well.”
1 pound sweet butter
½ cup confectioner’s sugar
1 egg yolk
1½ ounces whiskey
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
¼ cup toasted chopped almonds
5 cups sifted flour
3 cups confectioner’s sugar
Beat butter and the ½ cup sugar until creamy. Add egg yolk, whiskey and flavorings. Continuing to mix with electric beaters, slowly add half of the flour. Stir in the almonds and continue to beat another minute. Using hands, mix in remaining four. Knead dough a few minutes until soft and smooth. Pinch off small pieces and shape into crescents. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake in 350-degree oven for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow to cool slightly. Sift confectioner’s sugar over cookies. Place individual cookies in paper baking cups that have also been sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar. Dough can be refrigerated overnight before shaping and baking cookies.
Kourambiethes (St. Nicholas’ recipe)
From St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Manchester. Barbara George, parish president writes:” We bake these throughout the year however they are especially popular at Christmas time. This recipe is one that has been passed on by one of our members, Tina. It was her mother’s recipe so it’s been used for generations!”
1 pound unsalted butter
½ cup confectioner’s sugar
1 shot glass of whiskey or brandy
1 egg yolk
1½ teaspoons vanilla
4¼ cups flour
1 small can chopped walnuts finely ground into small bits
Combine butter and confectioner’s sugar. Beat until creamy. Add whiskey or brandy, add egg yolk, vanilla, flour and walnuts. Mix all ingredients well, then take a small amount, press to form a circle. Place on a cookie sheet and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. Rotate pans halfway through.
When done, remove cookies and place on wax paper that has been dusted with confectioner’s sugar if using a sifter. More confectioner’s sugar may be added if desired when ready to serve.
LaBelle Winery Thumbprint Cookies
“This recipe is one Amy [winery owner Amy LaBelle] would make with her kids when they were young and still makes yearly as it’s a family tradition. Her kids loved to add the dollop of The Winemaker’s Kitchen Three Kings raspberry jam to each cookie!” — according to Michelle Thornton, marketing and business development director at LaBelle’s Winery. The Winemaker’s Kitchen are Amy’s culinary brand of products.
3 sticks unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon Winemaker’s Kitchen vanilla
2 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
3½ cups unbleached flour
1 egg, beaten
1 cup flaked coconut
1 jar Winemaker’s Kitchen Three Kings Red Raspberry jam
1 jar Winemaker’s Kitchen Apricot Riesling jam
In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until they are just combined and then add the vanilla and blend in two eggs. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour and salt, then, with the mixer on slowest speed, begin to add dry mixture to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix until the dough comes together in a loose ball. Dump onto a floured board and roll together into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill disk for at least 30 minutes.
Roll the dough into 1½-inch balls (if possible, weigh them to 1 ounce). Dip each ball in beaten egg and then roll it in coconut. Place the balls on an ungreased cookie sheet with a silpat or parchment paper lining if possible. Press a light indentation into the top of each cookie with your finger or thumb and drip ¼ teaspoon of jam into each indentation. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the coconut is a golden brown. Cool and serve.
Lumberjack Cookies
A family recipe from Det. Adrienne Davenport of the Manchester Police Department.
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar (separately)
1 cup shortening
1 cup dark molasses
2 eggs
4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
Preheat oven to 350°F and grease cookie sheet.
Cream together sugar and shortening. Add molasses and eggs. Mix well.
Sift together the dry ingredients and stir into mixture a little at a time.
Pinch off a piece of dough and roll into a 1- to 1½-inch ball. Place dough balls on greased cookie sheet 3 inches apart. Using the ¼ cup of sugar, sprinkle a pinch of sugar onto the top of dough balls. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.
Macaroons
From Alyse Savage, account executive at The Hippo.
4 large egg whites
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract (optional but delish)
4¾ cups sweetened shredded coconut
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
In a large bowl, using a hand mixer with paddle, combine the egg whites, sugar and vanilla on medium high speed until foamy and most of the sugar is dissolved — at least 2 minutes.
Fold in the shredded coconut, making sure the coconut is evenly moistened.
Using a large cookie scoop, scoop 2 to 3 Tablespoons of the batter and drop onto the baking sheet at least 2 inches apart. Will look like little mounds. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. You can rotate the pan halfway through to ensure even baking.
They will stay in the refrigerator up to five days, or three days at room temperature. They freeze well too.
Have fun with this recipe! You can be creative, adding dark chocolate chips or melting them on top once cooled; you can press whole almonds into the top prior to cooking, and white chocolate and cranberry is delish too.
Mandelbrot (Jewish Biscotti)
Laurie Medrek, past president and former treasurer of Etz Hayim Synagogue in Derry, said: “Here’s one that I put in our interfaith cookbook that Etz Hayim Synagogue created with the Church of the Transfiguration next door a number of years ago. I actually stole this recipe from an old cookbook from another synagogue sisterhood. There’s another version I love by Tori Avey and used her recipe for doing a baking video for the Jewish Federation of New Hampshire. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made either of these. Mandelbrot (or Mandel Bread) translated from Yiddish means almond bread, which was popular with Ashkenazi (Eastern European Jews). Sometimes I sub almond extract and mix in slivered almonds; then it’s more authentically ‘almond’ bread. It’s very similar to Italian biscotti and can be made with various mix-ins.”
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups (heaping) flour
1½ cup total: chocolate chips, raisins, maraschino cherries, coconut
Preheat oven to 350°F. Blend butter and sugar until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla, baking powder and flour and mix by hand. Add fruit, nuts, etc. Line cookie sheet with tin foil or parchment paper. Divide dough into three portions and pat into oval shape. Bake 50 minutes. Allow to cool, then slice into 1-inch strips. Return to oven and toast on each side until lightly browned.
Oat CranberryPistachio Cookies
“These are from my sister Loony, who has been a great inspiration to me for many years … She is also, hands down, my favorite baker of muffins, Peanut Butter Pie (we sell), Chocolate Fudge Sauce (sold here), Chocolate Caramel Walnut Tortes and so many other delicious things.” — Steven Freeman, owner of Angela’s Pasta & Cheese
Use the Quaker oat cookie recipe (“Quaker’s Best Oatmeal Cookies” from quakeroats.com):
1¼ cups (2½ sticks) margarine or butter, softened
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt (optional)
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 cups Quaker Oats (quick or old-fashioned, uncooked)
Add:
1 cup shelled pistachios
1 small bag Ocean Spray dried cranberries.
Heat oven to 375°F.
In large bowl, beat margarine and sugars until creamy. Add egg and vanilla; beat well.
Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg; mix well.
Add oats; mix well.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 9 minutes for a chewy cookie or 10 to 11 minutes for a crisp cookie. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. When cookies have completely cooled, drizzle with glaze. Store tightly covered.
Glaze: Place 1 cup sifted confectioner’s sugar into a bowl, add 1 Tablespoon half-and-half and whisk until smooth. Keep adding half-and-half until you reach your desired consistency. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla and stir well. Using a fork or a spoon, drizzle glaze over cookies. Let cookies sit until glaze is set.
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bites
From Beth Violette, a nutritionist at Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, who wrote: “This sweet and simple recipe combines fiber-rich whole rolled oats, creamy nut butter and heart-healthy flaxseed rich in omega-3 fatty acids. A delicious hybrid between a cookie and a bar, these bites will satisfy your sweet tooth and any mid-afternoon hunger. (Recipe is taken from AICR American Institute for Cancer Research).”
2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup almond flour
¾ cup ground flaxseed
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ cup mini unsweetened chocolate chips
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup pure maple syrup
½ cup natural almond butter
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Combine dry ingredients including chocolate chips in large bowl. In another bowl, mix wet ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir to combine.
Drop dough into 24 even mounds on greased baking sheet. Lightly press down to flatten (cookies will not flatten much during cooking). Or pour batter into greased 9×13-inch baking pan.
Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until cookies are set in the center.
Old-Fashioned Sugar Cookies
From Nathalie Boucher Hirte, office manager at the Franco-American Centre, host of Franco Foods on YouTube and a native of Quebec, who said: “This might not be a Franco recipe, but one that my family enjoys. We make them every year. Cut them out in a bunch of fun shapes and decorate them on Christmas Eve. When my kids were younger, they would each decorate a special one for Santa that would be left on a special plate with a glass of milk in front of the fireplace.”
1 cup butter
2 cups granulated sugar
¼ cup packed brown sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 eggs
2 to 3 Tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 cups all-purpose flour
Beat butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt; beat until combined. Add eggs, milk and vanilla; beat until well-combined.
Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer (if you have a large stand mixer, you’re set!). Stir in any remaining flour with a wooden spoon. Divide dough in half; cover and chill for several hours or overnight if necessary for easier handling (dough soft).
Roll dough on lightly floured surface to ⅛-inch thickness. Cut with desired cutters. Place cutouts 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet (or with a silicone mat or parchment paper). Bake in a 375°F oven for 6 to 7 minutes or until the edges or firm and the bottoms are lightly browned. Cool completely before decorating. Makes about 96 cookies (depending on size of cutter).
Original Girl Scout Cookie Recipe from 1922
As it appears on the blog Old School Pastry at oldschoolpastry.pastrysampler.com, as pointed out by Ginger Kozlowski, communications and public relations manager at the Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains. As Kozlowski explains, “back in the day, Girl Scouts had to bake their own cookies to sell, and the recipe is a basic sugar cookie, which looks easy and tasty!” (She also added a reminder that 2024 cookie season starts soon — Jan. 1 for sales Girls collecting orders.)
1 cup butter or butter substitute
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
additional sugar for sprinkling
Cream the butter and sugar. Add in the eggs, then milk and flavoring, scraping the bottom well. Mix in the flour and baking powder. Roll out, cut, then bake in a preheated 375°F oven. Sprinkle with sugar as soon as they come out of the oven.
Original Toll House Cookies
Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig sent the “well-used cookie recipe [pictured above] passed down from Mayor Craig’s grandmother, Beatrice Hopkins,” according to an email from staff.
Sift together 2¼ cups sifted flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt, set aside.
Blend 1 cup soft butter or shortening; ¾ cup granulated sugar; ¾ cup brown sugar, packed; 1 teaspoon vanilla; ½ teaspoon water. Beat in 2 eggs.
Add flour mixture, mix well. Stir in 1 package of chocolate chips, 1 cup coarsely chopped nuts. Drop by the spoonful onto greased cookie sheet.
350-degree oven. Time: 10 minutes.
Pecan Crescent Cookies
“These cookies are easy and so tasty, I add them to Yankee swap gifts every year, It doesn’t matter what the actual gift is. One year I offered up a 10-inch frying pan filled with these cookies it went around and around until the person that got it took the cookies out of the pan and said that is all I want, and gave the pan to the person that really needed a pan.” — Tammie Boucher, Hippo ads coordinator
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup finely chopped pecans
Confectioners sugar
In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour. stir in the pecans.
Shape rounded spoonfuls of dough into 2 1/2 inch logs and shape into crescents. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
Bake at 325 for 20-22 minutes or until set and the bottoms are lightly browned. Let stand for 2-3 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool. Dust with confectioners before serving.
Potato Chip Cookies
From Eldress Bertha Lindsay’s Seasoned With Grace: My Generation of Shaker Cooking (1988) and provided by the Canterbury Shaker Village.
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter
2 eggs, well-beaten
2 cups flour
2 cups oatmeal
2 cups crushed potato chips
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup dates or raisins
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
Cream sugar and butter, add beaten eggs. Mix together all other ingredients and drop by teaspoonfuls on greased baking sheet. Bake at 375°F for 10 to 15 minutes.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Snickerdoodles
“My son found the recipe some time ago and asked me to make them for Christmas one year. Christmas equals cookies at our house. My husband will mutter and swear under his breath when he knows I’m making them. His willpower doesn’t extend to these cookies and he’ll eat every one he can get his hands on that my son hasn’t eaten first. It is a little intimidating for the rest of us. We like them, too.” — Cindy Berling, Auburn, New Hampshire
3¾ cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Filling:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
¼ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Cinnamon-sugar coating:
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
dash allspice
Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In a mixer with a paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Blend in pumpkin puree, beat in egg, and then add vanilla. Slowly add dry ingredients on low speed just until combined. Cover and chill the dough for an hour.
Blend cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla together to make the cream cheese filling. Chill for one hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and spices for the coating and set aside.
To make the cookies, take a tablespoon of the cookie dough, flatten it like a pancake and place a teaspoon of the cream cheese in the center. Form another tablespoon of the cookie batter into a flat pancake shape and place it on top of the cream cheese. Pinch the edges together, sealing in the cream cheese, and roll into a ball. Roll in the cinnamon sugar coating and place on the prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart.
Repeat until the dough is gone and flatten the cookie dough balls with a heavy-bottomed glass or measuring cup. Bake the cookies for 10 to 15 minutes or until the tops start to crack. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes and transfer to a wire rack. Enjoy!
Raspberry and Almond Shortbread Thumbprints
Neva Cole, Communications Director of the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire. Courtesy photo.
A staff favorite from the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire in Dover, courtesy Communications Director Neva Cole.
1 cup butter, softened
⅔ cup white sugar
½ teaspoon almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup seedless raspberry jam
½ cup confectioner’s sugar
¾ teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon milk
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a medium bowl, cream together butter and white sugar until smooth. Mix in ½ teaspoon almond extract. Mix in flour until dough comes together. Roll dough into 1½-inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheets. Make a small hole in the center of each ball, using your thumb and finger, and fill the hole with preserves.
Bake for 14 to 18 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Let cool 1 minute on the cookie sheet.
In a medium bowl, mix together the confectioner’s sugar, ¾ teaspoon almond extract, and milk until smooth. Drizzle lightly over cooled cookies.
Rogaliki (Sour Cream Horns)
Karen Sobiechowski at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Manchester on rogaliki: “Rogaliki, cinnamon sugar and nut-filled crescents, are my go-to cookie for holidays and special occasions. They are tasty and simple to make.”
½ pound margarine
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 cups sifted flour
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg yolk
Cream margarine with a fork or pastry blender. Add sifted flour, one cup at a time. Add sour cream and egg yolk; mix well. Divide dough into three balls, place on floured wax paper and refrigerate 2 to 3 hours or overnight. Remove one piece at a time and roll as for pie crust.
Mix walnuts, sugar and cinnamon together. Sprinkle ⅓ of mixture over dough. Cut dough into triangles. Roll to form crescents. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 375°F for 20 minutes or till golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
Repeat with remaining two sections of dough. Yield: approximately five dozen small cookies.
Shaker Giant Rosemary-Ginger Cookies
From the Canterbury Shaker Village.
2 cups flour
¾ cup butter, cut into several pieces
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 Tablespoons crumbled dried rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1¼ cup sugar, divided
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 egg
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup molasses
¼ teaspoon clove
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and clove together in a bowl.
Combine butter and rosemary in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Add 1 cup of sugar, the egg, molasses and vanilla. Process until blended. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the butter mixture and pulse until the flour is blended and a stiff dough forms on the top of the blade.
Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap and flatten into a disk. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two cookie sheets or line with parchment paper. Place remaining ¼ cup sugar in a small bowl. Using lightly floured hands, form dough into 1½-inch-diameter balls. Roll balls in sugar and place on cookie sheets about 3 inches apart. Bake for 11 to 14 minutes at 350°F.
Ski Bars
“Though not technically cookies, these chocolate peanut butter Rice Krispie bars have been a favorite in my family for decades. They are named after my mom’s family tradition of always whipping up a big batch of these to bring along on weekend ski trips. If you can resist the temptation to dig into them before reaching the ski lodge, Ski Bars pair excellently with a mug of hot cocoa and warming up between ski runs (or avoiding the slopes altogether). I’ve pulled the recipe from a family cookbook that my mom made for my sister on her first Christmas (so it’s written from her point of view).” — Berit Brown, events and marketing director at Intown Concord.
1 cup peanut butter
5 cups Rice Krispies
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup corn syrup
1 cup chocolate chips
Heat corn syrup and peanut butter together until smooth. Stir in Rice Krispies. Press into a buttered pan. Melt chocolate chips and butterscotch chips together. Spread on top of bars. Cool.
Swedish Brownies
“Here is a holiday recipe from the New Hampshire Historical Society. This is from one of our staff: ‘It was my grandmother’s recipe — it’s probably not the real name, but this is what we always called it in the family, because my grandmother was, well, Swedish.’” — William Dunlop, President of the New Hampshire Historical Society
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (olive oil works just fine)
4 teaspoons of almond extract
1½ cups flour
dash of salt
sliced almonds
Preheat oven to 350°F, and grease a 9×13” pan.
With a mixer, combine eggs, oil and sugar; then add extract and beat well. Add flour and salt. Pour into the pan and sprinkle the top with sugar and sliced almonds. Bake for 35 minutes. That’s it — easy-peasy!
Umbrian Tozzetti
From Barbara George at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church — but this recipe is from her personal stash. She recently visited Italy and took a cooking class at a winery. “We made these cookies and when I saw how much chocolate was going in it was an amazing amount but they are delicious!”
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
½ cup olive oil
a pinch of salt
grated lemon zest as needed
2 eggs
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
80 grams chopped dark chocolate
80 grams chopped almonds (optional)
flour as needed for the work surface
Mix all the dry ingredients in one bowl.
Whisk together the vanilla extract, eggs and oil. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry along with the chopped chocolate and the almonds (if you’re using them), and use a wooden spoon or your hands to mix.
Divide the dough into two equal pieces and shape into logs 2 inches wide. Place the logs of dough onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Bake for about 25 minutes at 350°F or until the logs are golden brown and barely firm to the touch. Remove the logs from the oven. Cool for 10 minutes, then use a sharp knife to cut them into ¾-inch slices. Lay the slices flat and bake an additional 7 minutes.
Thumbprint Cookies
The recipe is from Chef Paul. “His grandmother used to make these cookies for his family gatherings. While serving overseas in the Army, they were always a care package favorite.” — Tiffany Sweatt, Culinary & Nutrition Programs Director at the New Hampshire Food Bank in Manchester.
1 large egg, separated
½ cup butter, softened
¼ cup packed brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup finely chopped walnuts
⅔ cup any flavor fruit jam
Preheat oven to 300°F. Grease two cookie sheets and set aside.
Whisk egg white in a small bowl. Place chopped walnuts in another small bowl.
Cream butter, brown sugar, and egg yolk in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add flour, vanilla, and salt; mix until well combined.
Scoop dough into 1½-inch balls. Dip in egg white, then roll in walnuts until coated. Place 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets. Bake in the preheated oven until slightly puffed, about 5 minutes. Remove cookies from the oven. Use your thumb to gently press an indent in the center of each cookie. Spoon jam into each thumbprint, filling it to the brim.
Return cookies to oven and bake until set, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Vanilla Pudding Snickerdoodles
From Emily Vassar at the Office of the Mayor in Nashua, who had this to say about this recipe: “I took a poll here in the office, and Snickerdoodles were the winner! This particular recipe is my favorite: it results in the softest cookies every time!”
½ cup butter softened
½ cup vegetable shortening
¾ cup sugar divided
½ cup powdered sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 package instant vanilla pudding & pie filling (3.5 ounces)
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon baking soda
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl of your stand mixer, cream the butter, shortening, ½ cup sugar, and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla and dry pudding mix.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cream of tartar and baking soda; gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and beat until just combined.
In a small bowl, combine the remaining ¼ cup sugar and the cinnamon.
Roll the dough into ½-Tablespoon-sized balls. Toss the balls into the cinnamon sugar mixture until well-coated and then place the dough on the prepared baking sheets, a few inches apart.
Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.
White Chocolate Dipped Molasses Cookies
White Chocolate Dipped Molasses Cookies. Photo courtesy of Michael Witthaus.
Witthaus family recipe from Michael Witthaus, Hippo’s music writer.
¾ cup shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup molasses
1 egg
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
12 ounces white chocolate chips
extra granulated sugar for rolling
Melt shortening in pan; let cool. Add sugar, molasses and egg, and beat well.
In separate bowl, sift remaining dry ingredients.
Combine wet and dry ingredients. Refrigerate for one hour.
Roll dough into walnut-size balls, then roll in granulated sugar. Bake at 375°F for 7 to 10 minutes.
In double boiler, melt white chocolate chips, and let cool slightly. Dip half of each cookie in white chocolate, then set on parchment paper
Wine Cookies
Recipe is by infobabe on allrecipes.com, as recommended byCharlene Nichols, director of sales at Hippo, who writes:“I’ve been making [Italian wine cookies] for years, trying different recipes from Pinterest, trying desperately to match cookies that I’ve only ever had from a shop in Providence, Rhode Island, to no avail. However, these are good, not sweet, dry and subtle, kind of like a good dunking biscuit. Easy to make.”
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 Tablespoons white sugar
1 cup dry red wine
½ cup vegetable oil
⅓ cup granulated sugar for decoration
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder and sugar. Add the wine and oil. Mix with a large fork and then with your hands.
Roll small pieces of dough between hands to make “logs,” then shape into circles. The circles should be no bigger than 2 inches in diameter. Roll cookies in extra sugar and place on cookie sheet. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 25 minutes or until slightly brown. After cookies cool they should be hard and crisp.
