Last year's cookie exchange!
As the holidays quickly approach, I’m sure you’ve all been thinking about holiday gifts. You might have your Christmas shopping done for your immediate family and close friends (and if you don’t – hey, I’m not judging!)…but what about all of those special people in your life who you may not know well enough to merit a full-blown purchase?
We’ve been talking a lot about homemade gifts from your kitchen here at Mr. Food, but what if you don’t have the time to bake for your mailman, your hair stylist, your kids’ teachers, your neighbors, your co-workers, your babysitter, your landscaper or lawnmower…guys, the list goes on and on!
And the answer is surprisingly simple: Host a cookie swap party!
Offer pretty tins and boxes for your guests...
What’s a cookie swap, you ask? Well, the general idea is that it’s easier to bake several batches of one type of cookie than it would be to bake lots of different kinds. If you can get a group together, you can each bake a different type of cookie and then trade with one another to create cookie gift plates or tins for all of those people you need gifts for.
This is how it works: You get a group of friends or relatives together. Each person chooses a type of cookie they’d like to make. Each person then bakes several dozen cookies – usually about a dozen per people in your group total. I would recommend a group of 6 to 10 people; you want to get enough of a variety of different types of cookies, but you probably don’t want to be baking more than 10 dozen cookies! If you wanted, you could also each bake an additional dozen for sampling, but I think a dozen per person attending will still give you plenty. You want to make sure that each person makes a different type of cookie, so that you end up with a nice variety – so make sure to plan that out in advance.
Here are my cookies from last year: Whoopie Pies!
You’ll then host a get-together where everyone can bring their cookies to swap. I like to offer display cards for guests to write the name of their cookies. Allow guests to set their cookies out on a large table, and offer plenty of napkins and small plates for sampling.
Appetizers and cocktails are a must, in my book. If you’re the host, I think it’s nice for the rest of the group to help out by bringing a favorite hors d’oeuvre or a bottle of wine. You’ll need something to break up all that sugar – trust me! I like to offer a festive specialty cocktail as well – preferably something in a pitcher or a punch bowl that you can make in advance, something that will be easy for a group.
To make things easier on yourself, you could ask your guests to each bring their own containers to carry their cookies home. But, I think offering some nice tins and boxes (you can pick them up at your local craft store) with pretty ribbons and tissue paper is a lovely way to do it. Again, feel free to ask a few of your guests to help you with this! If you have enough containers, people can even make their own little cookie packages to give as gifts right there at the party.
Ready to rock? Keep this article on How to Host a Cookie Exchange handy so that you remember all the rules. Now, it’s time to find some friends and get baking!
Have you ever hosted or attended a cookie exchange before? If you have any pointers or tips, we’d love to hear them in the comments below!
Worlds Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup Brown Sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
4 tbsp cocoa (optional, only if you want to make double chocolate)
2 cups flour
2 cups chocolate chips
mix ingredients together.
Bake at 350° for 8 minutes for chewy cookies or 10 Minutes for more crunchy cookies
We have done cookie exchanges for many years. The one thing I think is the best is for the guests to have all the cookies bagged or boxed (not on a paper or styrofoam plate) that are to be given out. They can then place the cookies that are to be eaten at the party on something dispossiable for ease. Each guest should also bring a large gift bag with her cookies to be given out in so she has a bag to take home her stash.
I also like the idea of a “Cookie Walk”. We went to a few in Canada and now I have found one here where we live in WNY. Usually a “Cookie Walk” is put on by a group of “church ladies”. They all bake cookies and bring them to one place on a date in early Dec. and they are arranged all on tables set up in a large hall. Then at the set time (usually a Sat. between 9-12) the buying public will come to purchase the cookies. As you walk in (usually when called because the hall can only handle so many people at a time) you get a white bakery box and a plastic glove. You go around the tables and place what ever kind of cookies you want in your box. Be kind and don’t take all of one kind….leave some for others….and when you are done your box must close and usually taped closed…then you pay what ever is the set price (could be as low as $5 for a small box to $10-12 for a larger box) and you take your cookies home or to where ever you want them to be. Some places will let you get more than one box but that depends on how many people show up and how many cookies they have. If you are going to do one of these as a customer make sure you go early. Most times the cookies are all gone in an hour or so and if they are giving out numbers the high numbers have a good chance of not getting any cookies at all. I tell everyone that this is a “no brainer fund raiser”.
Trina, that sounds like a great recipe for chocolate chip cookies! Thank you for sharing it with us.
Christine, I also love your idea for a “Cookie Walk.” What a delicious way to raise money for a good cause! And I agree, it’s a good idea to tell guests to each bring their own bag to take home their stashes.
[...] Days of Christmas Cookies also includes a simple, how-to guide on hosting a cookie exchange. Cookie swaps are a great way to shortcut your holiday baking, and they’re also a good [...]