Cookie exchange party

Parent Cafe
1

<p>I am going to a cookie exchange party early in December at a new friend’s home. I won’t know anybody except her. We met while walking our small dogs who are now in “love.” It’s funny that many of my friendships in this town came because of my children’s friends, now the kids are grown and it’s happening with the dog!</p>

<p>I am considering this recipe. She said it would be fine to bring, but it’s not quite a cookie, so maybe others wouldn’t like it. It is an unbaked recipe and I also do not know how long it would keep in the fridge and if it would be ok to store at room temp. It does taste like cookie dough without the salmonella risk of raw dough.</p>

<p>I also have a yummy bar cookie recipe that is based on choc chip cookie and has a brown sugar merangue top. Other than that I do, sugar, spritz, choc chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter w/hershey kiss. Those are my options. I love to bake cookies, but I only do the basics.</p>

<p>Paul Deen recipe (I omit nuts and use milk choc chips for coating)</p>

<p>Ingredients Add to grocery list</p>

<p>1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cup all-purpose flour
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (this is why I think it needs refrigeration)
1/2 cup semisweet mini chocolate morsels
1 cup finely chopped pecans
1 1/2 lb chocolate bark candy coating, melted
Directions</p>

<p>In a large bowl cream butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed until creamy. Add vanilla. Gradually beat in flour and add milk. Add chocolate morsels and pecans, mixing well. Shape into 1-inch balls. Place on waxed paper; chill 2 hours.</p>

<p>*Cook’s Note: Since the dough is sticky, roll your fingers into flour. This will make it easier to roll. </p>

<p>Melt chocolate bark candy coating in a double boiler. Using 2 forks, dip cookie balls into candy coating to cover. Place on waxed paper and chill to set. Store in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.</p>

2

<p>njfootballmom - I have gone to a couple of cookie exchanges at the holidays hosted by people I know. My suggestion is to take cookies that you know most people will like. I do a really good chocolate chip cookie that everyone I know always asks me to make. I went to a cookie party two years ago and there were some really strange cookies people brought. When I brought them home to my family they complained about more than 50% of the cookies because they were not good!</p>

3

<p>I think the recipe sounds good , but I agree with showmom858. I have tried some pretty tasty recipes for Christmas neighborhood parties and put a lot of time and effort , only to see people flock to the simplest and most boring stand by’s.
That being said , thanks for the recipe , because I am going to try it our</p>

4

<p>I’ve attended two cookie exchanges back in the early days of our marriage, and was very disappointed. Maybe it’s because my mother makes the best cookies, and that’s what I was accustomed to. I put a lot of effort into the cookies I shared, but it seemed like everyone else brought the most bizarre, dry, cardboard tasting cookies. It wasn’t worth it to me.</p>

<p>I would approach it as a social experience and not worry too much about the cookie.</p>

5

<p>If your host said fine, but it’s not quite a cookie and maybe others wouldn’t like, I think she’s politely trying to say she’d rather you brought a cookie! </p>

<p>A group of us hold an annual cookie exchange. We’ve stated that flour should be main ingredient, it’s a Christmas COOKIE exchange, etc. Someone brings brittle, a few bring bars, or candy, nothing festive. sigh.
It’s the last year I’m doing, because frankly, all the effort I put into making pretty, decorative Christmas cookies, well, I’d rather keep mine and not take home some of the marginal efforts of others. My family has had the same reaction as showmom’s…</p>

6

<p>A decent chocolate chip cookie will beat anything…</p>

7

<p>The host actually said it was fine. There is a flour rule and it does have plenty of flour as it is almost choc chip cookie dough.</p>

<p>It was MY concern that some people might not like it. I very much enjoyed them, but I will eat more cookie dough than baked cookies…I use egg beaters instead of eggs because they are healthier and I have convinced myself there is less risk to me of salmonella when I eat the dough!</p>

<p>There is a flour rule and also a homemade rule. I suppose the homemade rule could result in some horrible cookies by some folks couldn’t it??</p>

<p>Any thoughts on whether they would spoil or go bad due to the condensed milk?</p>

8

<p>If they don’t need to be kept cold, I think they are fine. If they require “special” treatment, then I suggest you not bring them. The directions are ambiguous…they don’t say “keep refrigerated” - just put in fridge for at least 1 hour. There are plenty of recipes that use condensed milk that don’t need to be kept cold.</p>

9

<p>I actually think people would love those. People like raw cookie dough as a guilty pleasure and they sound like they’d look like fancy truffles and have the benefit of being bite sized. Seriously, I bet cookie dough truffles would end up being really popular.</p>

10

<p>I vote that you make the peanut butter cookies with the kiss you mentioned if no one else is doing those. They are simple and everyone lose them. That is one Christmas cookie that I end up repeating at least a couple times during the year. </p>

<p>I find the cookie dough “truffle” type cookie too sweet- not a cookie dough fan!</p>

11

<p>I have been to several cookie exchanges. Some have been very informal - just bring stuff to exchange - whatever you want- come even if you don’t bring cookies etc. I have also been to ones which were very formal - you had to bring exact amounts of whatever you made - you were limited in how many of any one kind you could take etc. I would just ask the hostess what is good with her and follow that.</p>

12

<p>

</p>

<p>Ick. My least favorite kind of cookie. I actually gave up going to our church cookie exchange because everybody brought chocolate chip cookies. I do go to a cookie exchange at our local museum. Favorites are snickerdoodles (these are always the first to disappear), decorated sugar cookies, ginger snaps. Think creative!</p>

13

<p>I’ve never been to a cookie exchange party although I always hear about them. I’d love to go too, but maybe because I’m such a huge cookie fan.</p>

<p>Personally, I’d go with a real cookie, rather than a quasi-cookie. Why not? There are delicious cookies to consider.</p>

<p>Wish I knew how to make a snickerdoodle cookie. Anybody have a recipe for that? I’ve heard of those, just like I’ve heard of the cookie exchange party, but never tasted one of those. (Why are they called snickerdoodles anyway?) Horrors! I must live a sheltered life.</p>

14

<p>I love chocolate chip cookies, but a holiday cookie exchange is the one time I really don’t want one. </p>

<p>Here’s a classic recipe for Snickerdoodles:</p>

<p>1 cup shortening (part butter)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 cups sifted flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp soda
1/4 tsp salt
…
3 Tb sugar
3 Tb cinnamon</p>

<p>Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix wet ingredients thoroughly. In a separate bowl mix dry ingredients. Stir dry ingredients into wet ones. Shape into 1" balls. Roll in sugar/cinnamon mixture. Place 2" apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8-10 min. Cookies will puff up at first then flatten. Makes about 5 dozen.</p>

<p>According to Wikipedia:

</p>

15

<p>Wow, I go to a cookie exchange each year and the only rules we have are must be homemade (no mixes or slice n bake) and no chocolate chip, be creative. My family LOVES the variety we have every year. I make a raspberry thumbprint cookie. It’s a real pain in the kiester to make and I only make it at Christmas, but it is a real hit! One girlfriend makes the best bar cookies that taste like baklava, another makes rum balls, and other chocolate and peanut butter bonbons. I just got the evite this week and I’m looking forward to it already!!</p>

<p>Enjoy the party NJfballmom! :)</p>

16

<p>blueiguana – do you have the recipe for the baklava like bars? Sounds so good . . .</p>

17

<p>mstee - I know asked for it because they were so good. It will be buried somewhere in my email from last December. I’ll check and get back with you. I’d like to make some too.</p>

18

<p>mathmom’s recipe looks good, but they are really best if you use all butter – you could substitute a couple tablespoons of shortening if you want the cookies a little crisper, but this a cookie where the rich flavor of baked butter and vanilla really shine.</p>

19

<p>^LOL. Just copied the recipe! (Well not really the recipe said “butter or margerine”) and it insisted I used King Arthur Flour! I agree more butter is better! Interestingly the recipe doesn’t call for vanilla, but I’m sure it would be a good addition. If it’s German in origin they likely would have used vanilla sugar.</p>

20

<p>Here’s my go-to cookie. Makes a lot.</p>

<p>Laura Bush’s Texas Governor’s Mansion Cowboy Cookies
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
1-1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups sweetened flake coconut
2 cups chopped pecans (8 ounces)</p>

<p>Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in bowl.</p>

<p>In 8-quart bowl, beat butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 minute. Gradually beat in sugars; beat to combine, 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each. Beat in vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Add chocolate chips, oats, coconut and pecans.</p>

<p>For each cookie, drop 1/4 cup dough onto ungreased cookie sheets, placing 3 inches apart. Bake 17-20 minutes, until edges are lightly browned; rotate sheets halfway through. Remove cookies to rack to cool. This makes 3 dozen Texas-size cookies. For 6 dozen smaller cookies, use 2 tablespoons dough for each. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes.</p>

<p>I think OP’s original recipe sounds good. It’s in the spirit of the cookie exchange even if it’s not a “cookie.” The only problem I’ve seen with cookie exchanges is when some have not put forth the effort of others – slice and bakes, as opposed to a real, homemade cookie. I can’t imagine everyone bringing a chocolate chip cookie. How boring.</p>