'Tis the season for family rituals, and one of our favorites is baking (and eating) holiday cookies. Need fresh recipes to add to the old standbys? The Web is a terrific place to begin filling your cookie jar.

Traditional favorites and favorites with a twist can be found at Mimi's Christmas Cookie Archive (Molasses Crinkles, Lemon Macaroons) or check out Santa's Favorites where you'll find a recipe for Amish Sugar Cookies.

The holidays are a great time to explore your family's heritage. An easy way to incorporate your ancestry into holiday festivities is to bake cookies from your countries of origin. CookieRecipe.Com offers recipes for Krumkake from Norway, Cherry Bell Cookies from China, Spritsar from Sweden, Apricot Kolaches from Czechoslvakia and more. The Web also offers a variety of Kwanzaa and Hanukkah cookie recipes. Check out JewishFamily.Com for a traditional Hanukkah sugar cookie recipe and Kwanzaa Recipes for sesame seed cookies called "Benne Cakes."




For experts and novices alike, the Internet offers practical baking advice. Hershey's home page is filled with basic baking instruction. Learn the difference between folding and blending, the effects of butter vs. margarine and more. The site reminds visitors to read recipes carefully, measure exactly (challenging "just throw a handful in" bakers), and pay very close attention to expiration dates on ingredients. CookieRecipe.Com can help you modify cookie recipes to meet dietary restrictions. The site lists recipes for eggless, sugar-free and gluten-free goodies and offers tips on lowering fat content.

If you're looking for a long lost recipe, want to exchange recipes or have hard-to-answer questions, join the Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Talk group. Submit questions and await insightful and creative answers from people from around the country.

There's only one question left...got milk?