How to Plan a Stress-Free Christmas Cookie Exchange
Updated: Mar. 09, 2023
Gather your neighbors, friends, co-workers or cousins for the most epic Christmas cookie exchange ever. These tips and timeline will make you the host with the most!
Ask any home baker about favorite Christmas traditions, and an annual cookie exchange—aka cookie swap—just may top the list. These parties save you time in the kitchen (you only have to bake one type of cookie!) while offering a chance to gather with family and friends. Hosting a cookie exchange is easier than you might think, thanks to these timely tips (these, too!) and handy timeline to keep party planning on the right track.
- Make it convenient. Weekday evenings or weekend afternoons work well because people may be less busy. Schedule the party to be about 2 hours long so guests aren’t required to set aside a lot of time. It’s the holiday season, after all!
- Remember: the more, the merrier—and the more types of cookies and candies you’ll get. Invite 8 to 12 people. You might also encourage them to bring an extra dozen for sampling at the party.
- Ask what each person is making to avoid duplicates. There’s no point to the exchange if everyone arrives with sugar cookies.
- Stock up on storage containers. If the gathering is small, guests may want to bring the batches already individually wrapped.
- Keep your menu to a minimum by focusing on the sweet treats. Simply serve a selection of beverages and the extra cookies and candies. Of if you prefer, offer a few hot and cold appetizers.
- Display all the goodies on a long table or counter, leaving enough room for folks to walk around. Label the containers with the recipe name.
- For party favors, gather all the different recipe cards into bundles, tie with festive ribbons and hand them out as guests leave.
Cookie and Candy Exchange Timeline
Four to Six Weeks Before:
- Send out the invitations. Ask each person to bring 8 to 10 dozen of the same cookie, copies of their recipe and large containers in which to take cookies home.
- As guests RSVP, keep track of who is bringing what so there are no duplicates. Remind them to bring copies of their recipe to share.
Two to Three Weeks Before:
- Bake and freeze your cookies. These make-ahead cookies freeze like a charm.
- Plan your menu.
The Day Before:
- Make any food you plan on serving. Gather plates and napkins.
- Set up the table where the cookies will be displayed.
The Day of the Party:
- As guests arrive, have them set their cookies and copies of the recipe on the display table.
- Serve food and beverages, and enjoy the company!
- Near the end of the party, have guests fill their containers with a dozen of each kind of cookie and candy.
Stumped on what cookies to bake? This'll help.
Cherry SnowballsMaraschino cherries are nestled inside a sweet dough made with butter, flour and quick-cooking oats, dipped in sugar and milk, then rolled in coconut. Et voila, you have a light and crunchy treat with a sweet surprise inside.
Peppermint KissesFor best results, beat room-temperature egg whites with an electric beater on medium until stiff and glossy peaks form. These whimsical cookies bake for up to two hours in the oven, so you'll have time to watch a movie…or better yet, make more cookies!
Basic Chocolate Pinwheel CookiesDon't let the fancy-looking spiral shape dissaude you—they're easier to make then you'd think. Roll out each layer with a rolling pin, then tightly roll both layers together, jelly-roll style, to create the classic look.
Snowy Mountain CookiesPresenting a surprising new addition to your Christmas dessert platter: snowy mountain cookies. They're ready in half an hour and make a whopping seven dozen cookies.
Flourless Peanut Butter ThumbprintsThe secret ingredient to these naturally gluten-free sweets is Nutella, a delicious chocolate-hazelnut spread. A sprinkle of coarse sea salt on top makes them extra fancy.
Cathedral CookiesThese treats get their name because they look a bit like stained glass when they're sliced. It's an impressive effect, but the recipe itself is simple, with only six ingredients.
Holiday Meringue MiniaturesThese swirly, melt-in-your-mouth confections look like the work of a candy store, but they're actually simple to whip up at home. The secret: Paint five stripes of food coloring inside the length of a pastry bag before filling it with meringue and piping out small dollops.
Nuts-About-You Cookie SticksGive store-bought Pirouette cookies a holiday makeover with peanut butter, nuts and chocolate chips. If you don't want to tell anyone at the potluck it's a semi-homemade recipe, your secret is safe with us.
Cream Cheese Cookie CupsWith five ingredients and only 25 minutes of prep and cooking time, these cream cheese cuties are about to become our signature Christmas cookie. Keep them in the fridge until you're ready to serve them.
Frosted Gingerbread Nut CookiesWe've never met a gingerbread cookie recipe we didn't like, and this frosted, walnut-topped upgrade has quickly become one of our favorites. If you don't like nuts, just skip them!
Coconut Cranberry YummiesRaisins are so last Christmas. This year, combine a cup of fresh or frozen cranberries with condensed milk, shredded coconut, white baking chips, ground almonds and almond extract for sweet and tangy macaroons (not to be confused with the more complicated macarons).
Chocolate Peppermint Spritz CookiesSpritz cookies require a cookie press, but once you have one, you can whip up all sorts of spritz cookie recipes—including this version that's topped with crushed peppermint candies. If the dough is sticking to the press, pop it back in the fridge for a few minutes and try again.
Butterscotch Toffee CookiesA holiday favorite among our readers, this recipe uses only five ingredients thanks to a package of butter pecan cake mix. Pair them with a cup of coffee or hot cocoa on a blustery night.
Fudgy Mint CookiesDecadent, melt-in-your-mouth crinkle cookies get a hand from a package of store-bought devil's food cake. One reader recommends making an extra batch and swapping the candy in the center for peanut butter cups…genius!
Popcorn CookiesOur two favorite snacks, together at last. Cookies laced with crushed popcorn and chocolate chips are both sweet and salty, satisfying every craving. They'll be the talk of the dessert table.
Cream Cheese SpritzSo vintage! Spritz cookies are a Christmas classic, and the dusting of red-and-green colored sugar will bring back instant nostalgia.
3-Ingredient Peanut Butter CookiesIf you have an egg, a cup of sugar and a cup of peanut butter in your pantry, you can whip up these ridiculously easy peanut butter cookies. Even better, you'll be eating them in just about half an hour.
Butterscotch Gingerbread CookiesYou'll be the guest of honor when you arrive at a holiday party with these delicate gingerbread treats in tow. While they look and taste like they were made by a professional baker, they're easy to make at home in about 25 minutes.
Originally Published: December 19, 2017
