Darn you! I hope nobody I know reads the blog, because I never, ever, ever tell people about the Secret Ingredient that makes Vanilla Dreams totally unlike any other homemade cookie! *sulk* Now *everybody's* gonna know. You might issue a tiny caution not to sample the raw dough, as it can cause minor burns to the oral mucosa, and this might not be the best recipe for kids to help with, at least until the raw dough is baked. I love working with bakers ammonia (at least from a results perspective - I dislike the kitchen that smells like a beauty shop and the watering eyes) - the results are so darned. . . professional. It's ideal added to spritz cookies and homemade crackers as well. Gosh, Eric, you must use a lot more baker's ammonia than I do. I don't experience any of that - I taste the dough no problem, don't smell anything while the cookies are baking, no watering eyes... I can imagine if you used a lot of it that would happen, but 1/2 teaspoon really isn't going to produce all of those 'side effects"! And BTW - I hope YOUR friends don't read this, so your secret remains safe! PJH

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