Publishing the Book

So, I have been uploading completed files to both AdoramaPix and LuLu, and have a problem at the LuLu site. Page bleed. The images all have to be resized with a border around them that can be cropped off, or we will lose important parts of the pages. I don't have this problem at AdoramaPix, so I know that book will be posted faster.

I am trying to find the exact printed area and bleed sizes for the pages, the outside edge has a larger cropped bleed area than the other edges, so the mat will have to be off center. I can write an action for Photoshop that will handle it for me in batches, as soon as I find the info. One action for right-hand pages, one for left. No big deal, just a bit of extra processing time and seperate files for that site :/

Anyway, here are tips & opinions for the first few recipes:

• Mrs. Fuller's Cookies: soft cake-like molasses cookies, these are very good.
• Nut Cookies: These are good too, I used walnuts and all-purpose flour (it calls for pastry flour)
• Sour Cream cookies: Yummy! I used raisins instead of dates, and walnuts.
• Pineapple cookies: These were very good too, soft and easy to make.
• Rolled cookies: easy to make, better with frosting. Excellent for decorating!
• Soft sugar cookies: they really are soft, excellent flavor
• Coconut squares: I'm not a fan of coconut, but these are good!
• Devil cookies: these turned out tasting like eggs, like something is missing from the recipe. I followed all the directions and had all listed ingredients, but trashed the pan of these. The gum drops were a nightmare to cut up too, then they stuck to everything!
• Chocolate Marvel Pie: this was very good! we put whip cream on ours.
• Chocolate swirls: peanut butter meets chocolate, these could have been Reese's cookies. Worth the effort of rolling up, chilling and cutting. Delicious!
• Russian Tea Cakes: Like pecan sandies, very yummy!
• Edith's Oatmeal Cookies: Boil the raisins before mixing the dough! These are great, very soft cookies.
• Swedish King's Cookies: These are good, a light jelly-rolled cookie with sugar and almond filling. They take time, be prepared to spend a couple days making these. They are worth it!
• Peanut butter cookies: mine were good but a little on the dry side. Have them with some milk or hot chocolate!
• Tom Thumbs: Great bar cookie, coconut again but yummy!
• Rusk Pie: Grandma made this for me, so I don't have any cooking notes. It was very good though, and nice to have a baking break!
• Rooks (not rocks, for sure!): Delicious raisin-nut cookie, cake-like consistency. Stays soft when sealed in a tight container.
• Rum Balls: These had a strong rum flavor, and needed to sit a few days before eating for the best flavor. I made mine with coconut rum (go figure, when I don't like coconut!) and the added flavor was nice. I think spiced rum would be good too.
• Helen Hansen's Molasses Cookies: Good crisp molasses cookies, rolled into balls and rolled in sugar. Lighter molasses flavor than the first ones.

Okay, that's enough noted for now :) I have to look back at some of the pictures to remind myself of the cookies before continuing. If I ever take on a project like this again, I will take notes of tip, impressions, and helps while cooking, instead of trying to recall later! I made some of these a few years ago, my memory is getting fuzzy on which was which :/

TIP: IF YOU WRITE OUT A RECIPE TO MAKE LATER, INCLUDE *ALL* OF THE DIRECTIONS!

people like me will thank you for it!