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One of my favorite parts of the holiday season has to be the cookies and sweet treats! The only problem is that sometimes having the same sorts of cookies year after year can get a bit old. This is why I love cookie exchange parties.
Throwing a holiday cookie exchange party is actually easier than you may think and it is a great way to get into the holiday spirit as well as find some delicious new recipes to try! Want to learn how I set this party up? Keep reading because I am going to show you exactly how I did it!
Ask everyone that you invite to bring two or three dozen cookies (as well as the recipes for the cookies) to share. This way you will get lots of variety in the cookies and there will be plenty of cookies to not only sample, but also to take home.
I designed a few cute printables for the party, which I had printed at our local print store. These printables included some straw toppers, blank recipe cards (to write down any recipes you want to try on your own!), and some thank you tags.
Since cookies and sweet treats are the cornerstone to any great cookie exchange, I’ll start there. Everyone is looking for an alternative to the classic sugar, chocolate chip, or peanut butter cookies. The thing is, not everyone has the time, the skill, or the motivation to come up with intricate cookie recipes.
I made some of these no-bake Christmas Mouse cookies which use OREO cookies, maraschino cherries, meltable chocolate, and sliced almonds. All you have to do to create these cookies is twist off the top of an OREO cookie, dip a marchino cherry (well drained and the kind with the stems) into meltable chocolate, attach to a chocolate drop candy, and then put on the cookie. These turned out so cute and my boys absolutely loved them!
Another easy no-bake cookie recipe are the Chocolate Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies which are also super-easy to make. Just dip a Chips Ahoy! cookie in a little bit of meltable chocolate and then sprinkle with peppermint flakes and you have a delicious treat!
What are cookies without milk, though? I set up a milk station complete with a drink dispenser and milk bottles with paper straws. This way, people can refill their glasses at their own leisure. I also set out a variety of milks flavors because not everyone just wants their milk plain.
I put a few turquoise and red paper straws in the milk bottles and topped the straws with some of the printables I had made. This just gives them a little more of a festive feel.
Almond Milk OREO Chocolate Pudding Mini Pie Recipe
In addition to the cookies that I made for the exchange, I also made some Almond Milk OREO Chocolate Pudding Mini Pies. I thought that these would be something that my guests could snack on as they stood around and socialized. Plus, if they were eating the pies at the party itself there would be more cookies left over for the guests to take home!
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Since the purpose of a cookie exchange party is to not only socialize, but also to discover new recipes, you will want your guests to take some cookies home to their families. This is why I set out some cute take-out containers as well as cookies boxes that my guests could pack up and take with them when they left.
Additionally, since I was getting so many compliments on the Christmas Mouse cookies as well as the chocolate-dipped chocolate chip cookies I set out some boxes of Chips Ahoy!, regular OREO cookies, Double Stuf OREO cookies, and some Nutter Butters for the guests to take home.
Lastly, I wanted my guests to have a small favor for making the party such as success. So in addition to their new recipes and to-go boxes of cookies, I also decorated a small Christmas tree with various holiday-themed cookie cutters. Attached to the cookie cutters I attached one of my thank-you printables. This way, when the party is over the guests can just take one of the cookie cutters from the tree. It’s an easy way to thank the guests and let them know that you appreciate it.
I am so happy with how this party turned out and I can’t wait until next year to do it again. I know that I was able to get quite a few new recipes and I look forward to adding to my cookie recipe collection each year!
You can pick up the adorable snack-size cookie packs of OREO cookies, Chips Ahoy!, Double Stuf OREO cookies, Nutter Butter, and RITZ Crackers in the large bins at your local Walmart. Even the snack-size boxes make great guest favors as well as nice gifts for teachers, clergy, and anyone else you might want to give a small token of appreciation too.
Looking for more great holiday party and snacking ideas? Check out Delicious Moments of Joy Social Hub for more inspiration!
I love entertaining for the holidays and I usually make some great food, but sweets are my sore spot. I’m a salty-snack fan so I don’t buy a lot of sweets, much less bake. This is a great idea, though. I’m going to challenge myself to make my own holiday cookie creation to see if I’ve got what it takes to attend/host an event like this.
I will be making those Oreo mini pies, though! My S.O. has been bugging me to make chocolate lava cakes. I don’t think I’m ready for that (even if there IS a video). He’d definitely like these and I love the use of Almond Milk. He doesn’t eat veggies so I need all of the nuts, fruits, calcium, etc. I can get him! Hiding it in a dessert…BRILLIANT.