Fudge, Cookies and the U.S.A.

The other night I decided to make Halloween cookies. Only, once I got home I realized that I didn't have a pumpkin cookie cutter, which I'm POSITIVE is either a) wrong. (I know I have one!) or b) a sign of early-onset Alzheimer's that I thought I had one and don't or have misplaced it and don't know where to look.


No problem, I thought. I'll make ghosts. Only, I don't have a ghost cookie cutter. So I tried a bunny head upside down, thinking that the ears would look like the bottom of the ghost. No such luck. It looked like a cross between a breast cancer ribbon, an upside down bunny head and a fish. So I ate them, which is when I realized that the Party Skirt cookie cutter from my Princess Cookie Cutter set, would make a perfect ghost. Voila!

So anyway, I told my friend (who came to Cape Cod with us and who lives in New York) about my ghost cookies and sent a picture and he told me to bring him one when I came to New York (where I am right now as I type).

The problem was, when we came back from Cape Cod, I brought a box of fudge for my Dad, who likes fudge. It was the only thing we bought, so when the customs lady asked us what we spent $10 on, we said: Fudge.

She: So that's dairy, then?

Me: Huh-what-pardon me?

She: SO....THAT'S....DAIRY....THEN.

Me: Oh. Okay. I guess. (But really I was thinking, What?)

So then the customs woman circles Dairy and writes "FUDGE" on that form that has all the REALLY BAD THINGS you're not supposed to bring into Canada, like nuts and seeds and fruit and farmers. And well, yes, dairy was on the list, but I mean, it's not like I was bringing a jug of milk straight from the cow's udder, right?

After all, isn't chocolate like the most popular souvenir item that people bring back from vacation? And that's dairy. Does that mean you can't bring chocolate anymore?

So anyway, I was sure we were going to have to pay duty or a fine or go to jail or something but when we got to the next stop after customs where you hand in the card, the guy took it, looked at it and sent us on our way. With the fudge.

So I was glad, but still it didn't really make any sense at all.

Anyway, I told my friend what happened at the border -- and the icing on the cookies has milk in it so there you go, does that mean I can't bring a cookie across the border?

My friend said that if the dairy item is cooked it's probably free of bacteria (which makes complete sense, actually) but if that were true, then the fudge should have been fine, since it's fully cooked. Whereas the icing ON the cookie is not cooked at all.

What to do?

He suggested I try to bring it. If they didn't let me, I'll have an excuse to eat a cookie at 7 a.m.

Which actually sounded like a good plan.

So that's what I did. And then, when they asked me if I was bringing anything in, I said No sir. Nothing at all. I'm so bad. Oh brother. (Though my friend liked the cookie, so it was all worth it).

Now, if only I could find the perfect pair of boots before I head back to Toronto.

In other news, I've chosen a random winner of the Sweetmama.ca Spa Day tickets.

Congratulations to Sarah M. You'll be emailed the tix! Enjoy! And thanks to everyone who emailed!

Happy weekend!