Every day in December through Christmas, we’re sharing a cookie recipe. Because we believe that a cookie a day keeps the Grinch away.

Raspberry Swirl Cookies (Credit: Ashley Rodriguez)

This is one of those old entertaining tricks that even helpful publications like ours tend to keep under wraps, but it’s close enough to Christmastime to get a little generous. So, here it is: hypnotize your guests. The dark green and red of the seasonal decorations already gets the hypnotic mood going (though the colorblind are, sadly, immune), and a repetitive horn- and bell-heavy soundtrack is known to further enhance the trance, but a little dash of disorientation never hurts.

And that’s where these Raspberry Swirl Cookies come in. Knowing you, your guests probably won’t be too surprised that they taste great, but just a moment too long spent gazing into the raspberry swirl, and they’re as suggestible as a toddler in a toy store. With just a little verbal prodding, you can herd your family around the party however you please, making sure that the politics don’t get too heated and Aunt Pam doesn’t loiter near the liquor cabinet.

Here’s the recipe, but don’t abuse this power, please–funny as it seems at first, little cousins who think they’re chickens start to get old after New Years.

See all of our cookie recipes: Holiday Cookie-a-Day Slideshow