The introduction is courtesy of Monty Python: “And now for something completely different.”

Act 1: The Way the Cookies Crumble

It all started the minute I walked into my usual supermarket. I was surprised and delighted when I encountered a stack of orange boxes.

When I see Sweetzels Spiced Wafers, I feel happy and secure that we have entered my favorite time of year: the calendar September and meteorological fall.

Fair play demands I note that it’s only a matter of time before I also see shelves full of the equally, well-loved “Ivins’ Famous Spiced Wafers.”

Oh, the sweetness, the drama! I’ve written before about this cookie saga. The two were separately established in Philadelphia more than a century ago, both drawing on European baking traditions.

Even with years passing, they remai

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