Christmas and cookies go hand in hand. You can’t have one without the other. Christmas is famous for its cookies, especially for having various cookies. But having a large array of cookies requires a lot of baking (or buying). The solution? Host a cookie exchange party. Invite all your friends, have everyone bring their favorite holiday cookies (store-bought or homemade), and then swap. Everyone will leave with a cookie collection, and you also get to embrace the holiday spirit and celebrate with friends. Did I mention there will be cookies there?
Like most parties, a cookie exchange party will require some planning. Lucky for you, I have thought it all out. From shopping to cleaning up, I have the perfect cookie exchange party planned. Follow my instructions to have the coolest cookie swap party.
Planning
As always, the best way to reach an objective is to make a plan. The first step is to figure out how many cookies you want to give each of your guests, and how many cookies each guest should bring. Most cookie exchange parties give out six to 12 cookies per person. My roommate, Aly, and I gave 10 cookies to each of our guests. The second step is to invite everyone. This can be as easy as creating a text chain group chat with everyone, or if you want an extra flare, send invitations using Canva. Here’s my invitation as an example. The third step is to figure out what cookies you want to make, and then make a list of all the ingredients you need. If you are buying your cookies, disregard this step.
Cookie Recipes
The hardest part of this whole process is deciding what cookies to make and gift your friends. To help make this decision a little easier, I have a couple of ideas. Levain cookies are known for being delicious, and you can make them at home with this Levian-inspired cookie recipe. You could also make butter cookies or nut-filled shortbread cookies. For gluten-free or vegan people, try these sugar cookies. If you’re a Swifty, you absolutely must try the chai sugar cookies inspired by Taylor Swift’s recipe. Another idea is to use the Pillsbury cookie dough we all know and love and elevate it. You could add a sugar cookie on top of the dough, make it into an ice cream sandwich, or turn your dough into the shape of a tree. The final idea that I’ll leave you with is my personal favorite: the snickerdoodle.
Shopping
Then, it’s time to go to the store. For this party, I recommend going to Target or Walmart so that you can buy everything you need in one place. If you’re looking for specific holiday snacks, you could also try Trader Joe’s. First, pick up all the ingredients you need to make your cookies. Since Aly and I were making snickerdoodles, we grabbed butter, sugar, flour, eggs, vanilla, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
We also picked up some extra supplies for appetizers, snacks, and drinks. For drinks, we grabbed a hot chocolate mix, milk, and peppermint marshmallows to make hot chocolate. We also grabbed the other holiday festive drink: apple cider. For snacks, we snagged pizza dough, mozzarella sticks, butter, parmesan cheese, and garlic powder to make pull-away bread in a Christmas tree shape. We also grabbed vegetables to cut up and dip in ranch and pretzels. We also picked up some big zip-lock bags. You’ll want these. They will be important later.
Along with food, you should also pick up some decorations. My advice is to buy any decor that speaks to you. If you love the decorations, you’ll love the party. However, string lights are a necessity. They provide lighting that fits the mood and are super cute. Aly and I also got a wooden Christmas tree figurine set, a paper village house, and a pink Nutcracker. For the rest of the decor, we used my old decorations from previous years, which included pom-pom Christmas trees and snow globes. We also picked up some red and green tinsel from the Dollar Tree to hang on the walls.
Setting up
Before you set up, make your cookies. Since I was hosting, I made extra snickerdoodles and some chocolate chip cookies just in case of an emergency. Then, you want to clean and put up your decorations. Also, make your appetizers and plate all your food on a table that is big enough for everyone to crowd around. I also took it upon myself to give everyone a zip-lock bag to carry their cookies home. I set out a zip-lock bag for each guest, and I wrote their names on it in red Sharpie. I also drew snowflakes, snowmen, and reindeer on each plastic bag to give it a fun holiday flare. Also if you’re like me and love music, you might want to put on a holiday playlist that will get everyone in the holiday spirit.