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Celebrate the season wh sweet treats and festive sips Is there a better way to spread holiday cheer than through cookies and cocktails? Seasoned food writer Katherine Cobbs of Birmingham has curated a decadent collection of this classic duo in her debut cookbook, "Cookies and Cocktails." It features creamy libations and delicious desserts sure to satisfy any sweet tooth. Cobbs has worked in the cookbook publishing industry for 25 years, beginning in San Francisco where she worked for the publisher who produced the Williams Sonoma books. When she moved to Alabama in 2003 to her husband's hometown, she worked on cookbooks with two famous local chefs, helping produce "Frank Stitt's Southern Table," "Bottega Favorita with Chef Stitt," and "e Hot & Hot Fish Club" with Chris Hastings. She worked with Martina McBride on her first cookbook, "Around the Southern Table," and Atlanta chef Todd Richards on his acclaimed "Soul" cookbook. The f irst cookbook in her new series of food and beverage pairings with Simon and Schuster, "Cookies & Cocktails" highlights 20 cocktails from bartenders coast to coast and points in between. Cobbs used the cocktails that she received from these bartenders as the inspiration for sweet or savory cookie pairings that she developed to complement the f lavor prof ile of the drink. "Cocktails are festive by nature, and, frankly, cookies are an indulgence, too," says Cobbs. "For the holidays, you can't go wrong with any of these pairings, in my mind." When it comes to her favorite cookie and cocktail pairing for the holidays, Cobbs says there are many choices. "I'm definitely a lover of all things salty," she says. "I'd say one of my favorite pairings in the whole book is the Pecan Milk Cowboy Russian contributed by chef Chris Castro of this funky bookstore-restaurant hybrid the Kitchen at Commonplace Books in Oklahoma City. It's a classic bourbon milk punch that relies on the distinctive flavor of non-dairy nut milks. Pecan is such a terrific pairing with bourbon as is the homemade coffee liqueur he weaves into the mix." Cobbs coupled that cocktail with a sandwich cookie filled with maple frosting that gets a salty rim of crispy bacon crumbles. It works well with that cocktail, and she loves the sweet-savory mashup of flavors. If you're looking to make your own cookie and cocktail combinations this holiday, Cobbs offers a few tips that she's learned along the way. "Many don't realize how much the right glass can impact the enjoyment of a drink because it can affect aroma, temperature and, thus, flavor," she says. "I provide a guide called 'Know How to Hold 'Em' in the book that shines a light on matching a particular style of drink to a glass." She suggests that the glass can also make a drink feel extra-special. Aer all, who doesn't love to sip Champagne out of a coupe? It just feels Old World and elegant. When it comes to baking cookies, Cobbs suggests that you read recipes all the way through at least twice and then set your items in place, so that all the ingredients are at your fingertips when you are ready to get started. "Pay attention to whether butter or eggs should be chilled or room temperature," she suggests. "Baking just isn't as forgiving as cooking, but the recipes in this book are all pretty basic and approachable, so I think you will find that they are pretty easy, even for the novice baker." By Susan Ray 15 apcshorelines.com