How to Host a Cookie Swap - Spritz Cookies Included
Nov 30th 2017
Have you ever been to a Cookie Exchange? If not, you should give it a try!
It will certainly get you in the holiday sprit and is a great opportunity to get together with friends and go home with a huge variety of cookies that you don't have to bake yourself! In a nutshell, a group of friends get together, each person bakes one kind of cookie, you bring them to the party, and you all swap cookies.
SO... how do you host a cookie exchange? It's MUCH easier than you think!
1. Invite your guests.
2. Ask each to make a few dozen batches of the their favorite cookie. If you like, you might also ask them to email you with a copy of their recipe that you can distribute, should you want to share recipes.
3. Purchase containers or bakery boxes for each person to go home with or ask each guest to bring some containers with them for filling.
4. When guests arrive, bring each person's cookies to the table and add a name card with the type of cookie.
5. Enjoy some food, drinks, and mingling.
6. Sample! Let everyone go around the room tasting the variety of cookies.
7. Time to swap. Invite guests to walk around the cookie table, filling their containers with each variety of cookie so that each person goes home with a very impressive assortment of cookies.
8. If you are in the mood, have ribbons, tissue, etc. to decorate the cookie containers.
Put your own personal spin on the swap. Make it fancy, make it simple, make it women-only, make it kid-friendly, make people wear a holiday sweater to the party.... you get the idea... show your style and have fun.
The classic for any Cookie Exchange is Spritz Cookies. They always look festive and you can make so many shapes and flavors using different doughs. It is a holiday must-have!
With the Hutzler Easy Action Cookie Press, you can make spritz cookies faster than you ever thought possible! With each light click of the handle, a cookie is cut and there is no struggling or squeezing, which we love! Even young kids find this cookie press to be fun and easy to use.
And take a look at all the different shapes you can make.
Our favorite recipe is COOKIES DELUXE.
For all of these recipes, you can make the dough in advance and freeze it until ready, which is great when we are so busy this time of year! Just be sure to bring the dough to room temperature before using the dough in the Cookie Press.
COOKIES DELUXE
1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups sifted flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, separated
Cream butter, gradually add sugar and beat until light. Add egg yolks and mix. Sift flour and salt together and add to creamed mixture. Stir until dough forms a ball. Refrigerate dough for 1 hours. Bring dough back to room temperature. Fill cookie press and form the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Brush with egg whites. Bake at 350° F for 10-15 minutes (until edges are slightly browned. Yield: 48 cookies.
SPRITZ COOKIES
1 cup butter
2 cups sifted flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
Cream butter and vanilla extract. Add sugar gradually, beating until fluffy. Add egg yolk and beat thoroughly. Sift flour, baking powder and alt together. Slowly add creamed mixture, blending after each addition. Fill cookie press and form the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° F for 12 minutes. Yield: 60 cookies.
SPRITZ SANDWICHES
Follow recipe for Spritz cookies. After cookies are baked and cooled, spread chocolate frosting or jam on the bottom of some cookies. Cover with unfrosted cookies of the same shape to form sandwiches.
CHOCOLATE-DIPPED SPRITZ COOKIES
Follow recipe for Spritz cookies. After cookies are baked and cooled, dip half of each cookie in the Chocolate Glaze (see recipe). Optional: dip into chopped nuts or crushed peppermint-stick candy. Place on wire rack until glaze is set.
CHOCOLATE GLAZE
Partially melt 3 ounces (1/2 cup) of semi-sweet chocolate pieces in the top of a double boiler. Stir until chocolate is melted. Remove from heat and blend in 3 tablespoons butter.
CHOCOLATE COOKIES
1 cup shortening
2 cups sifted flour
5 tablespoons cocoa
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
dash of salt
Cream shortening, gradually add sugar. Add unbeaten egg and vanilla. Sift cocoa, baking powder, salt and flour together. Mix gradually with the creamed mixture. Fill cookie press and form the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 400° F for 10-15 minutes. Yield: 60 cookies.
PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
1/2 cup shortening
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1-1/4 cup sifted flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1 tablespoon hot water
Cream shortening, gradually add sugars and beat until light. Add egg then peanut butter and hot water. Sift flour and baking soda together and gradually add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir until dough forms a ball. Refrigerate dough for 1 hour. Fill cookie press and form the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375° F for 10-15 minutes. Yield: 60 cookies.
ALMOND COOKIES
3/4 cup almonds
1 egg
7 ounces margarine
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Grind almonds in a blender or food processor. Cream margarine and sugar. Add the almonds, egg and flour. Refrigerate dough for 1 hour. Fill cookie press and squirt dough into 4-inch long pieces, using star/extruding disc. Form the pieces into rings on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 400° F for 7 minutes. Yield: 50 cookies.
CARMEL COOKIES
1-1/4 cup shortening
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
3-1/2 cups sifted flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Cream shortening and gradually add both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Sift flour, salt and baking soda together and mix gradually with the creamed mixture. Fill cookie press and form the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° F for 10-15 minutes. Yield: 70 cookies.
ORANGE COOKIES
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2-1/2 cups sifted flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
dash of salt
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
Cream butter and gradually add sugars and beat until light. Add orange juice and mix well. Add egg and grated orange rind. Sift flour, salt and baking soda together and gradually add to the creamed mixture. Fill cookie press and form the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350° F for 10-15 minutes. Yield: 72 cookies.