“A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies” (The Harvard Common Press, 2003) has just about everything a holiday cookie baker needs in a kitchen resource. Author Dede Wilson (she of the seminal “Christmas Cooking for Dummies”) carefully organizes more than 75 you’ve-got-to-bake-these recipes, devoting facing pages to each cookie; on the left is a slightly larger than life-size color photo and a treasure trove of opinionated information, and the recipe follows on the right, sorted by five criteria: dough freezes well, cookies keep well, fun to make with kids, quick to make and sturdy enough to mail.

Wilson’s Snickerdoodles segment reads like this:

Type: Shaped cookie
Habitat: United States
Description: This is a deceptively simple sugar cookie recipe. The ingredients are quite basic - butter, sugar, cinnamon - but the result is more than a sum of its parts; these cookies come together just perfectly in terms of balancing ease of preparation, common ingredients, crunch and flavor. They are so simple, I didn’t think my kids would like them, but then one twin determined them to be his favorite cookie in the book.
Field notes: These hail from New England, with versions dating from the mid-to-late 1800s. The name’s origin, however, is a bit more elusive. Some food historians say it’s just a made-up nonsense word that seems to appeal to kids and adults alike.
Lifespan: 2 weeks at room temperature in airtight container.

What’s not to like? The recipes work like a dream (Wilson includes lots of first-hand-experience baking tips that are specific to particular cookies), and the assortment covers a vast amount of ground. Unlike a tome from Martha Stewart Inc., this one clocks in at a very affordable $17.95 (the spiral binding probably has something to do with that). The verdict? Buy it. It’s even cheaper on amazon.com, just $15.16.

Here’s an oldie-but-goodie cookie that I’ve made the Dede Wilson way at least a half-dozen times; it’s the best recipe I’ve encountered for this particularly popular cookie. The one thing that Wilson doesn’t improve upon? How to unwrap all those Hershey’s Kisses without going bonkers.

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE KISS COOKIES
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.
Note: This recipe must be prepared in advance. From “A Baker’s Field Guide to Christmas Cookies” by Dede Wilson.

1 1/4 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 c. smooth, unsalted natural (not hydrogenated) peanut butter
1/2 c. granulated sugar, plus more for coating
1/2 c. firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
34 milk chocolate kisses, such as Hershey’s Kisses, unwrapped

Directions
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and peanut butter until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla extract and mix until incorporated. Add egg and beat until smooth. Reduce speed to low and add about 1/3 of flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Gradually add remaining flour, mixing until just blended. Scrape dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Use wrap to help shape into a large, flat disc, then cover completely with wrap. Refrigerate until dough is firm enough to roll into balls, at least 1 hour or overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough between your palms into 1 1/2-inch balls. Roll balls in granulated sugar to coat completely. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Gently press down on dough, just enough so balls don’t roll off baking sheet. Bake about 18 minutes, until cookies are lightly golden brown on bottoms (peek to check). Remove from oven and quickly press a chocolate kiss into center of each cookie (they might crack, that’s OK) and return to oven for 1 minute. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes, then carefully transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Can store for up to 2 weeks at room temperature in an airtight container in a single layer.

Each Thursday in December we’ll be profiling a different cookie cookbook. This week it’s “Field Guide to Cookies” by Anita Chu.

The book’s subtitle says it all: “How to identify and bake virtually every cookie imaginable.” That might be a little bit of a stretch; after all, the book contains only about 100 recipes. That’s a big “only,” though, because a hundred is still a heck of a lot, especially in a book that’s smaller than most romance novels. That handy size makes it easy to toss in a drawer, ready on a moment’s notice when the cookie-baking mood strikes. Its diminuitive size also has plenty of stocking-stuffer potential.

All 100 cookies are photographed and filed in a single section, designed so readers can quickly flip through and spy a tempting-looking treat. While they’re aren’t a lot of surprises - which makes this a great resource for beginning bakers - the recipes are easy to follow and clearly written, and Chu includes plenty of helpful tips. Another bonus is the brief but fascinating cookie history that precedes each recipe. The selection covers a lot of baking bases: there are drop cookies, bar cookies, sandwich cookies, cutout cookies, decorated cookies, the works. Here’s another reason to buy: it’s $15.95.

Here’s a recipe that immediately caught my eye:

PECAN SANDIES
Makes 2 to 3 dozen cookies.
Note: This recipe must be prepared in advance. From “The Field Guide to Cookies” by Anita Chu (Quirk Books, $15.95).

1 1/2 c. pecans, toasted
1/3 c. powdered sugar
1/3 c. light brown sugar
1 1/2 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. plus 2 tbsp. (1 3/4 sticks) cold unsalted butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
About 30 pecan halves for decoration

Directions
In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine pecans, powdered sugar and brown sugar and pulse until pecans are finely ground. Add flour and salt and pulse until well-combined. Cut butter into small pieces, scatter butter over pecan-flour mixture and pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add egg and vanilla extract and pulse until dough comes together. Turn dough out onto a piece of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness (sprinkle dough and rolling pin with a little flour if dough is too sticky). Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 1 hour or until firm. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a 2-inch cookie cutter, cut out cookies from chilled dough. Transfer dough to baking sheets, spacing cookies 2 inches apart. Place a pecan half in center of each cookie. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until edges of cookies turn golden brown, rotating cookie sheets halfway through baking. Remove from oven, cool for 2 minutes then transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Are you baking out of this book? What’s your review?