The Cookie Swap - A Christmas Tradition

by Jennifer Yarbrough

​     Tis’ the Seaon for parties galore!  There are cocktail parties and sit-down dinners, potlucks and breakroom treats, but my favorite is the Cookie Swap!  The Cookie Swap has become a highly anticipated event among my friends and family, every year a week or so before Christmas we gather to enjoy each others’ homemade creations and to swap cookies!  Everyone goes home with a variety of goodies to share at their Holiday parties and dinner. 

What is a Cookie Swap and how does it work?
A cookie swap is a party where guests bring a specified amount of one type of cookie that they bake themselves.  The amount depends on how many you want your guests to take home.  Some Cookie Swaps send each guest home with a dozen of each cookies and suggest you invite ten guests, so your guests would need to bring 11 dozen cookies, one dozen for each guest and one for tasting and sharing at the party.  I don’t require my guests to bring that many cookies, usually only 3-4 dozen.  One dozen for sharing at the party (I limit my party to 12 guests or less), and the rest for taking home.

Who do you invite?
I invite friends and family that love to bake.  Since this party requires bringing homemade goodies, I don’t want to put pressure on anyone who might not enjoy baking.

What do eat and drink at the party? Just cookies?
To balance all of the sugar at the party, I serve a meat and cheese tray and veggie platter.  Any nibbly, appetizers are good, too!  For drinks, I set out a Coffee and Hot Chocolate station with a few flavored coffee creamers, marshmallows and candy canes for stirring. 

How do you box up the Cookies that your guests will take home?
Some hosts box up the treats themselves while guests are mingling, but I take a relaxed approach.  I set out Christmas-themed Shirt boxes pre-lined with tissue paper that guests grab and fill up with treats before they go. 

What kinds of cookies should guests bring?
Any kinds you want! I let guests choose what they will bake and bring, but you can pick a theme if you like.  Don’t limit yourself or your guests to cookies, though!  Bourbon and Rum balls are delicious, so are Blondies and other Cookie “Bars!”