Cookie Swaps

It can be difficult to find time to get ready for the holidays and socialize at the same time. A fun way to help you cut-down on the amount of baking that you need to do and socialize at the same time is to have a cookie swap.

Here is how to have a cookie swap - Invite about 8-10 friends over to your house for this fun and yummy get together. Each guest is to bring about 2 dozen of the same cookie - making sure that each guest brings a different variety. Have each guest also bring (10) copies of the recipe to share with the other guests.

As the host, you want to make sure that you have a table big enough to hold the plates of cookies that your guests will be bringing. Since it is a party and the guests will be planning on taking the cookies home, you'll want to serve some refreshments. The guests will want to sample the cookies, so you probably shouldn't plan on anything too sweet. A light meal should do the trick. You may want to also get the guests involved and plan a potluck lunch.

Another idea for the host is to give each guest a recipe book/box to hold all the new recipes and future recipes from these cookie swaps!

One of my favorite cookie recipe follows...

Butterscotch Blondies

2 1/2 C All purpose flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 C (2 sticks) softened Butter
1 3/4 C Brown Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 Eggs
1 1/2 C Butterscotch chips
*Optional - Can half the amount of Butterscotch chips to 3/4 C and add 3/4 C Chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2) Combine all your dry ingredients in a medium size bowl
3) In a larger bowl beat together the sugar, butter and vanilla. Then add the eggs.
4) To the butter/sugar mixture add the dry ingredients to well combined.
5) Stir in the butterscotch chips
6) Spread into an ungreased 9"x13" baking dish
7) Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick inserted into the blondies comes out clean. Let cool in pan before cutting into squares.

Enjoy!