Have you ever dreamed of having so many different cookies at Christmas and you didn’t have to bake them all yourself? Well, here’s were a Cookie Exchange comes into play. With a bit of planning ahead, you can have a great exchange with little effort.
First thing to do when planning a Cookie Exchange is determine the number of guests you would like to invite and send out invitations. Be sure to include the number of cookies each person should bring with them. At my home, in a warm moist climate, cookies always get soft real fast, so what I do is have each person bring 1/2 cookies per bag times the number of people attending and a couple extra bags for serving with coffee, tea or punch.
Start thinking of what kind of decorations you would like to use. Believe me, this is the really fun part! I’ve had many Cookie Exchanges and each year I try to come up with a new theme so that everyone is pleasantly surprised. This doesn’t have to be stressful at all. Do you have heirloom ornaments from your grandparents, use them, how about handmade ornaments that your children made in school, this makes a really family oriented setting. Everyone loves to see a warm, inviting setting, whatever you may choose.
Another feature of a Cookie Exchange are the games. There are so many options, my favorite being Christmas Bingo. This is always a big hit. Download pictures from the internet, I did 35 in all and make up bingo cards for each guest using a variety of these pictures. Other games include Christmas movie trivia and word scramble. Whatever you choose, their will be plenty of laughs going around. I purchase small, less then $5.00, gifts all year long and store them just for this occasion.
Be sure to ask your guests to bring a copy of their cookie recipe with them. I gather these recipes and make a small Cookie Cookbook each year to give everyone. This can be especially challenging for those you purchase their cookies, but hey, it’s about the social aspect of the evening and not necessarily the cookies. Okay, it’s about the cookies too!
Last, but certainly not least, is to have fun! I tell my guests that it’s not really about the cookies it’s about sharing some time with friends around a plate of these tasty morsels! If you feel it’s too much work for you during the holiday season, why not ask a good friend or relative to co-sponsor the event with you. This way everyone has a great time and no one is stressed out. Whatever you choose, have fun and eat a cookie for me!
Learn more about Christmas Cookie Exchanges. Stop by Marion Wilkinson’s site where you can find out all about new cookie recipes.