The three winning cookie recipes for the 39th annual Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest all pay tribute to bakers from years ago; whether it’s a mother, grandmother or a best friend’s mom.

Here are the recipes for Pracny-Inspired Nut Crescents, the first-place recipe by Janet Lapen; Eggnog Crème Brûlée Cookies, the second-place recipe by Lauren Wagner; and MMMM Cookies (Mom’s Mandelbread Modified for Marty), the third-place recipe by Elyse Tish.

To learn about what inspired these readers to create these recipes, read the story here. Happy baking!

My favorite cookie of all time is the Czech pracny. I first tasted this cookie at age 6, soon after my family moved to Forest Park. That’s where I met my best friend, Marion, whose mother, Blanche, was an exceptional baker. Every Christmas, Blanche

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