The holiday cookie swap is an evergreen tradition, a terrific way to share sweetness and celebrate community (and lighten our holiday baking loads!).
The premise is simple: Each guest is tasked with bringing a few dozen home-baked cookies. At the party, everyone gets to sample and share, and then towards the end, each guest assembles a container of assorted cookies from all of the bakers present.
The result? A whole lot of different cookies for the price of baking a double batch of one recipe. Some tips for putting together a cookie exchange for friends, work colleagues, neighbors, your school community and more: Eight to 12 guests is a good number for a manageable cookie exchange with a wide variety of baked goods. You can send invitations by email, online or, if you have time, mail a paper invite. During this busy time of year, give people as much notice as you can. A Sunday afternoon might be a good choice, or perhaps early on a weeknight. Websites like SignUp Genius are handy for this, and let you send invitations, reminders, and changes in plans, too. Ask your guests not to duplicate a previous signup, so you have a lot of variety. . Give a deadline for signing up, so everyone can lock in their recipe and shop for ingredients. Be conscious of allergies. If you are not going to vet recipes for common allergens like nuts and dairy, then mention that up front so guests can decide if this is the right event for them. If you are going to layer on dietary parameters, such as no nut products, be very clear. Ask people to bring a printout of their recipe for reference. Let guests know if they should bring their own serving platters and/or take away containers, or if you will be providing them. In either case, you’ll want to have extra containers on hand. Keep the cookie buffet simple, using the containers people brought, or if you want to get fancier, put out the treats on plates, platters, maybe tiered stands. Think about creating labels for each cookie offering. You can ask guests to submit their cookie name and ingredient list ahead of time, and create the labels yourself , or tell each person to bring a card with the name and ingredients clearly written out. Have some extra blank labels available. Create a simple, self-service drinks bar. Perhaps wine and beer, some non-alcoholic drinks, plus sparkling water. This might be a good occasion to whip up a batch of eggnog or coquito! Think about a warm beverage, such as mulled cider, mulled wine, hot cocoa, or even tea and coffee. To share recipes electronically, you can set up a shared Google doc, Facebook group or other community portal.
Holidays General News Business Lifestyle
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
L.A. Times Releases Guide to 101 Best Restaurants in CaliforniaThe expanded restaurant guide features a curated list of the best dining establishments from across the state by The Times’ award-winning restaurant critic Bill Addison.
Read more »
Your artificial Christmas tree will cost more this year, thanks in part to tariffsIf you're planning on buying an artificial Christmas tree this year, you may want to make your purchase sooner rather than later.
Read more »
World Press Photo’s Print Sale Lets You Own Part of Photography’s HistoryWorld Press Photo's limited-time print sale lets people purchase 70 prints from 70 different photographers.
Read more »
Wicked: For Good Director Teases Elphaba's Arc After Her Gravity-Defying Choice In Part OneElphaba and Glinda in Wicked: For Good
Read more »
Nuclear-Waste Arks Are a Bold Experiment in Protecting Future GenerationsDesigning nuclear-waste repositories is part engineering, part anthropology—and part mythmaking
Read more »
Dallas foodie 101: Rose’s hamburgers on Greenville Avenue was topsRose’s Bluebonnet Sandwich Shop — Rose’s Hamburgers to some — was a tiny, alley-entry burger shop that once operated off Greenville Avenue in Dallas.
Read more »