Thanksgiving is just around the corner. That means one thing for the bakers in the family: Time to start stocking up on sugar, flour and butter to make cookies.

Tables don’t disappear under a blanket of the sweet treats just when someone’s getting married in Western Pennsylvania (or beyond, if you follow the wedding cookie table tradition). We’re just as crazy about cookies during the holidays, be they crunchy, sparkly, soft, chewy or cut into the shape of a Christmas tree.

This is the fifth year for the Post-Gazette’s annual holiday cookie challenge. And as in years past, we’re looking for the best cookie bakers in the region to go spatula-to-spatula in a friendly battle of taste, texture and presentation.

You don’t even have to tie on an apron and turn on the stove to enter the bake-o

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