Shut off the mixer and scrape down the bowl again. At low speed, mix in half of the flour. When that’s incorporated, mix in the sour cream.

Scrape down the bowl again and add the rest of the flour. Beat until it’s fully incorporated.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and give it a stir with a spoon. Mix in the pecan pieces by hand. (A firm rubber spatula works nicely.)

Use a teaspoon to spoon the dough onto the foil-lined cookie sheets, 12 cookies to a standard-sized sheet. (If the dough is too sticky for you to work with, chill it for a half-hour or so, and try again.) Bake the cookies at 350 degrees F., for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they rise and become firm.

Slide the foil from the cookie sheets and onto a wire rack. Let the cookies cool on the rack while the next sheet of cookies is baking. When the next sheet of cookies is ready, pull the cooled cookies onto the counter or table and slide the foil with the hot cookies onto the rack. Keep alternating until all the dough has been baked.

When all the cookies are cool, set them out on waxed paper for frosting.

Chocolate Butter Frosting:

2 one-ounce squares unsweetened baking chocolate, melted

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

2 cups powdered (confectioners’) sugar

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Approximately 2 Tablespoons cream (or milk)

Unwrap the squares of chocolate and break them apart. Put them in a small microwave-safe bowl. (I use a 16-ounce measuring cup.) Melt them for 90 seconds on HIGH. Stir them until they’re smooth and set them aside to cool.

When the chocolate is cool, mix in the butter. Then stir in the powdered sugar. (There’s no need to sift unless it has big lumps.)

Mix in the vanilla extract and the cream. Beat the frosting until it’s of spreading consistency.

Hannah’s 2nd Note: This frosting is the no-fail type. If it’s too thick, add a bit more cream. If it’s too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.

Frost your cookies and leave them on the waxed paper until the frosting has hardened. (If you’re like me, you’ll sneak one while the frosting is still soft, just to test it, of course.)

When the frosting has hardened, arrange the cookies on a pretty platter and enjoy. They store well in a covered container if you separate the layers with wax paper.

Hannah’s 3rd Note: Lisa says that when she’s in a hurry and doesn’t have time to make a frosting, she just sprinkles the cookies with a little powdered sugar while they’re still warm. She does a second sprinkling when they’re cool and calls it a day.

Yield: Approximately 6 dozen cookies

Chapter Eight

It was four days before Christmas and Hal & Rose’s Café was decorated for the season. There was a silver metal Christmas tree in the corner that was illuminated by a spotlight with a slowly revolving color wheel. The tree was red for ten seconds, blue for ten seconds, green for ten seconds, and yellow for ten seconds. Then the cycle started all over again. Hal had purchased the tree from Hannah’s father at Lake Eden Hardware in the seventies, and it was still going strong.