16 Tips For Throwing A Cookie Swap This Holiday Season

Office Christmas parties? No thanks. Obligatory family dinners with relatives you haven't seen since the same event last year? We'll skip those too. But a cookie swap? Count us in. 

For those unfamiliar with the best get-together of the holiday season, these curated events involve guests each bringing a batch of cookies to a party and trading, giving, and, best of all, tasting them. Unlike other holiday parties often thrown together last-minute with boxed wine, cheese fondue, and a bag of chips, organizing a cookie swap requires careful planning that starts well before the cookie-baking season begins. As a cookie swap enthusiast, I've thrown many of these exchanges before — some of which went much better than others. These are some of my best tips for planning, setting up, and baking for the most impressive cookie swap this holiday season, which will leave your guests full of cookies and memories from an event brimming with all things merry and bright.

A cookie swap isn't a party that you can plan the day before. Realistically, you should plan for your cookie swap about a month before holding your event. Set a date that works for your schedule, and consider that the holidays are a busy time for people between shopping, gift-giving, and traveling. Therefore, giving people about a month's notice will allow everyone on your guest list to build your event into their schedule, stock up on their baking supplies, and pick a recipe or two to make. 

Luckily, there are many different options for sending out invitations that don't require waiting a few business days for them to be mailed out. Turn to paperless invitation software like Evite to help you make a beautiful invitation without any paper or stamps involved. You can also create a Facebook event to invite your friends. 

The primary purpose of a cookie swap is for everyone to master a sweet recipe or two, and come home with a fabulous array of cookies provided by other guests. The key to this function is to have boxes and other containers available for your guests to take their treats home. You can ask guests to each bring a container for their selection, but you should plan to provide a few extra boxes if folks forget. You can also get creative with elaborately decorated cookie tins. 

Besides containers, you'll also need to consider if you'll be supplying trays for displaying the cookies, or if you should ask guests to bring their own. If you want to control the aesthetics of your party, you might be more inclined to shop for cookie trays rather than have guests bring every possible size and color of Tupperware.

Have you ever tried to eat a dozen different types of cookies in a single sitting? It's rough on your palate, and sends you straight into a sugar crash afterward. 

To break up some of the monotony of your cookie swap, be sure to serve some light bites that aren't cookies at your event. This may look like a simple charcuterie board with cheese, meat, fruit, and nuts, or it could be finger food like herby pigs in a blanket or chips and dip. Regardless of the foods you're serving, be sure to keep small plates and napkins available for easy eating. 

Luckily, there's a formula to help determine how many appetizers you'll need for your holiday party. Plan for each person to eat about four to six bite-sized appetizers over the course of your event, while plenty of cookies will also be available for snacking. And be sure to select light and easy appetizers, since you don't want to spoil the main course (in this case, cookies). 

The morning of your cookie swap is not the time to go shopping and bake your most elaborate cookie recipe ever. If you're the host of the party, your primary concern needs to be setting up the venue before greeting and entertaining your guests, rather than spending all of your time baking. The easy remedy to this is slice-and-bake cookies, which you can make the night before and roll up into a log, so all you have to do is slice cookies off with a sharp knife and pop them on a baking sheet. 

These slice-and-bake cookies, also called icebox cookies or refrigerator cookies, are not applicable to every type of recipe. You should use a specifically indicated icebox-cookie recipe, or one that explicitly states that the dough can be rolled up and baked as needed. Once your icebox cookies are baked and cooled, you can add personal touches with sprinkles, icing, or powdered sugar. 

Although the cookie swap is aptly named, there are tons of ways to incorporate other desserts that aren't cookies. Brownies can be easily transformed into seasonal sweets by including ingredients like drizzled chocolate and red and green M&M's, or slicing them into triangles to create edible little Christmas trees. You can also take a bite out of history with a fruitcake recipe filled with dried fruits and ginger. 

Other Christmas dessert recipes can be modified to make them handheld and perfect for serving at your party. For example, pastry enthusiasts can make cream puffs adorned with a sprinkle of powdered sugar on top, or create bite-sized layer cakes filled with jam and coated with decadent frosting. Although your cookie swap might quickly turn into a dessert swap, everyone will still leave with enough sweet treats to enjoy the holiday season. 

Guests should depart your cookie swap with two things: a delectable selection of cookies to enjoy, and a few recipes for newly discovered cookies. Guests can bring paper copies of their recipes to the exchange, or you can take care of this by asking for recipes ahead of time and printing copies to put alongside cookie trays. You can also collect the recipes and send out a thank-you note to swap attendees with recipes attached. The latter method is less of a hassle for the organizer, but doesn't provide the feeling of holding a cookie recipe in your hands. Paper recipe cards also allow bakers the chance to add a personal touch to their offerings, and include specific instructions in their own handwriting. 

If asking your guests to provide recipe printouts, make sure that they include ingredients, directions, specific oven temperatures and baking times, and the amount of cookies produced by the recipe. This allows others to accurately replicate the recipe in their own kitchens. 

Cookie swaps don't just have to be about good cheer — they can also be the site of some stiff competition. You can have a fun contest for certain cookie superlatives, like "best decorated" or "most creative" or any laudatory category you choose. Have your cookie swap guests vote on the cookies, and celebrate winners with a gift card, bottle of wine, or gift basket. You can also introduce a variety of other competitions at your cookie swap, including for the best ugly sweater. 

Alternatively, make your cookie swap more intriguing by having guests guess the ingredients in each type of cookie, and presenting a small prize to the person whose guess is closest to an actual recipe. Or, create another mystery-solving game by having your guests drop their batch of cookies in the kitchen anonymously, before everyone votes on who they think brought each sweet treat to the party. 

Your cookie swap can be an occasion for other holiday events, too. If you're only inviting folks who are in the same friend group, you can encourage them to use the party as a gift swap, or host a white elephant exchange (Yankee swap, for the Northerners in the audience) for guests who might not know each other. If you plan on organizing one of these events, be sure to inform your guests beforehand so they bring gifts. It's a fun event to get the laughs going, and fill your home with holiday cheer and memories. 

You can also have folks tune into some favorite Christmas movies for a low-maintenance party idea. Once the hot chocolate flows and the cookies are crunching, your home will embody all things merry and bright. After all, spending time with loved ones and snacking on powdered-sugar-covered cookies is what the holiday season is all about.