Cookie Exchange

Looking for a fun, easy and affordable get together this holiday season, consider hosting a cookie exchange. Simply invite 6-8 guests and ask them to bring 3 or 4 dozen of their favorite homemade cookies. Provide drinks, snacks and bakery boxes so everyone can take home an assortment of goodies.

You can structure your cookie exchange in a variety of ways:

Heirloom Recipes
Ask your guests make and share a recipe that was handed down to them from a previous generation. This is a great way to learn about your friends’ backgrounds and family traditions. One of my childhood memories includes the walnut thumbprint cookies made by my Polish Grandma Otsie. The shortbread base melted in your mouth and the cookies were topped with pastel colored buttercream icing.

Cookie Decorating
In addition to exchanging cookies, you and your guests could decorate already baked cut-out sugar cookies. Have on hand icing, food coloring and edible decorations. A few years ago, I took a class from Richard Prince, the pastry chef at the Bonbonerie in O’Bryonville. Now, several times a year, I make his recipe for butter cut-out cookies with milk fondant icing and decorative buttercream icing. (See November post.)

Children’s Tea Party
Kids love tea parties and one with a holiday theme could be extra special. Most children also love to bake, so this is a way they could share their creations with their friends. Serving hot cocoa or apple cider would be a nice addition. Peanut butter and jelly finger sandwiches could be fun too.

Dessert Buffet
A cookie exchange could be incorporated into a dessert party. Serve champagne, hot toddies or Irish coffee and provide a selection of festive desserts. A store-bought Bûche de Noël (yule log cake) would be especially nice. I like to serve a variety of sweets that include: chocolate (cheesecake, brownies or flourless cake), spice (Bundt cake or cookies) and fruit (tart or pie). A small selection of cheese and fresh fruit is also lovely for dessert.

Chocolate Gingerbread House Petit Fours

I brought these to a New Home Holiday Open House last weekend. Leave it to Martha Stewart to come up with such a clever idea. I baked the chocolate gingerbread in a 13x9 cake pan. I cut the cake into 1-inch squares. A portion of the squares were cut into triangles for the roof. I made a whipped chocolate ganache as the glue to hold the base to the roof. Cinnamon red licorice made for tasty chimneys and a dusting of powdered sugar finished them off.

These were relatively easy to make and they looked so darn cute.

Thanksgiving cutout cookies

I made these one year for my son's Thanksgiving play. Truly a labor of love!

BonBonerie Cut-Out Cookie Recipe

I got this recipe years ago when I took a class at Williams Sonoma from Richard Prince, the pastry chef at the BonBonerie in O'Bryonville. I make these cookies for just about every holiday you can think of. There is a photo gallery of decorated cookies on the BonBonerie website that I refer to all the time. You will need a Kitchen Aid mixer and a kitchen scale for these recipes.

Butter Cookies for Cutouts
from Richard Prince, Pastry Chef at the BonBonerie

Cream 3 minutes:
1 lb unsalted butter
1 lb sugar

Beat in:
2 large eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla

Sift and add one cup at a time:
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1lb 8oz. all purpose flour

Do not overmix dough.

Note: This recipe requires a stand mixer (5 qt Kitchen Aid).

This dough can be rolled out immediately, cut and baked. Or you may find it easier to chill the dough before rolling. Roll to thickness of 1/8 in. to 3/16 in.

Bake at 350F for 12-15 minutes. Bottom of cookie should be lightly browned.


Milk Fondant Icing

Bring to boil:
½ cup whole milk
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp light Karo corn syrup

(It is convenient to microwave this mixture right in a glass measuring cup.)

Add to:
1lb 4oz powdered sugar (sifted)

Mix smooth with hand whisk. Do not overbeat, you don’t want a lot of air bubbles in icing.

Flavor with:
4-5 drops of lemon oil (optional)

Note: Dip baked cookies in icing to coat the top. Dipped cookies will dry to touch in 1-2 hours. Allow 6-8 hours or overnight to set completely.


Decorating Buttercream
(for piping details)

Cream until smooth:
6oz butter (room temperature)
1lb powdered sugar
¼ tsp kosher salt
1 tsp pure vanilla

Add:
1 tbsp evaporated milk (you may need more)

Beat briefly until light and smooth.

After piping on dipped cookies, this icing should set 6-8 hours or overnight. This icing does not dry hard but will “crust” so cookies can be handled.

Do not refrigerate cookies decorated with this icing but do serve them within 4-5 days.

Be My BFF

Want to be my best friend forever, just stop by with some pistachio macaroons from Frieda's bakery in Madeira. That is what my BFF Delphine did last week. She actually brought an assortment of macaroons: pistachio (my fav), raspberry, hazelnut, lemon and chocolate.

I love these little multi-colored cookies. I was in Paris the first time I had them. My husband and I were wandering the city one day when we happened upon Laduree. This is a magical place. They have a display case full of all different flavors of macaroons. They are just so absolutely beautiful. I love how they are crisp on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside.

I have only made macaroons once. I must put this on my to do list for the winter. Actually, I think they would make a great holiday cookie.