Executive Pastry Chef Debra Mitchell

There is perhaps nothing more familiar during this time of year than the aroma of fresh-baked cookies. For some, decorating the tree and wrapping presents are seasonal events that occur only after a plate of warm-from-the-oven cookies has been passed around the home.

Debra Mitchell is one of those persons. She’s been the executive pastry chef at TI since it opened a decade ago and she says her holiday memories from growing up are as strong as ever. “I remember making the absolute best apple fritters with my grandmother, who was Pennsylvania Dutch.” Mitchell believes that winter is the perfect time for baking because, with the windows shut to keep out the cold, the scent of warm dough pleasantly lingers throughout every room of the house.

But Mitchell says that nothing compared to the thrill of putting out milk and homemade cookies for Santa Claus and then discovering what had happened to them every Christmas morning. “When you saw that the milk was half gone and the cookies were nibbled at—you just knew who had been there,” says Mitchell with a smile.

RECIPES

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecans and Raisins

Vanilla Parfait

Her Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecans and Raisins are delicious and if you have enough willpower to save some for Santa, you’re sure to be rewarded on Christmas Day. The easy-to-follow recipe is one she created on an occasion to honor her employees. “I have to work most holidays, and so we—the staff—become family to each other. I certainly wish them, along with all my guests, the best for the holidays.”