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Hosting or attending a cookie exchange party is a time-honored holiday tradition. You bake a few dozen of your favorite cookies and get to take home several different types of treats in return. It's a great way to try new recipes that you may not have tasted before. Gathering friends and family together for one of these parties is also a great chance to catch up, build community, and get creative in the kitchen. Whether you are a veteran of the cookie swap or a first-timer, we have a collection of cookie exchange recipes for you to choose from.
Those who are going to their very first cookie exchange should know the unwritten rule of these swaps: First and foremost, the cookies should not only taste good, but they also need to have a polished presentation. Save the more rustic-looking cookies for Santa's plate and go for the gold with any of the recipes here.
Fruitcake Shortbread
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Fruitcake can be a divisive holiday treat, but this shortbread cookie variation is sure to please the skeptics. The buttery triangles of dough are flavored with whiskey and they bake up into a crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Each bite has a few pieces of chewy dried fruit.Â
Linzer Flower Cookies
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Linzer cookies are a holiday classic, but we like to enjoy them any time of year with all kinds of different jams and marmalades. These beautiful blooms are made with a flower-shaped cookie cutter, so the fruity jam peeks out through each petal.Â
Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
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Peanut butter blossoms (sometimes called peanut butter kisses) are always the most popular cookie at the party. A single chocolate kiss candy perches in the center of each chewy dough ball once they’re baked. Take our advice—make a double batch of these for your cookie exchange.
Gingerbread-Espresso Crinkle Cookies
Espresso powder and a mix of both fresh and dried ginger work together to expertly spice every bite of these deliciously caffeinated cookies.
Stained-Glass Sugar Cookies
You'll dazzle your cookie swap recipients with these deceptively easy sugar cookies. They can be created in several stained-glass-inspired colorways, and they taste as good as they look.
Noel Nut Balls
Whether you call them snowballs, Russian tea cakes, Mexican wedding cookies, or Noel nut balls, no cookie collection would be complete without this melt-in-your-mouth confection.
Pistachio and Dried-Apricot Rugelach
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Rugelach is made with a buttery cream cheese dough, so the flakiness is unmatched. We roll the dough up around a simmered apricot and vanilla mixture to form croissant-like shapes.
Chocolate-Peanut-Butter-Caramel Cereal Bars
Different and delicious, these bar cookies look like a million dollars but are easy to make—and no-bake to boot. The base is crispy rice cereal and marshmallow; then comes a layer of peanut-butter caramel and a chocolate-shell topping.
Bacon Potato-Chip Chocolate Cookie
With bacon and potato chips in the mix, these sweet-and-salty treats really need no further introduction. They will be the talk of this year's cookie swap, and guests will undoubtedly request them next year.
Meyer-Lemon Shortbread Wreath Cookies
These wreath cookies look spectacular arranged on a platter. The best part? This on-theme Christmas cookie is made from buttery shortbread dough and is painted with a bright lemony glaze.
Lamington Thumbprint Cookies
These modern thumbprint cookies have a chocolate-dipped bottom and a cheery jam center that's inspired by Australian Lamington cake. Needless to say, they'll please a lot of different palates.
Chewy Fruitcake Meringues
These drop cookies are chewy on the inside but have the recognizable crisp outer shell that you see with other meringue-based desserts like pavlova and macarons. The egg white mixture is studded with luxurious maraschino cherries, dried pineapple, candied citrus, and toasted hazelnuts.
Snowmen Shortbread Cookies
Move aside, gingerbread people! These snowman shortbread cookies will steal the show with their pretty powder-white coating and tender, buttery crumbs.
Chewy Molasses-Spice Cookies
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Sugar, spice, and everything nice. That’s the best way to describe these molasses cookies. They are spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg and rolled in sugar to give them a crackly outer crust.
Crushed Peppermint Chocolate Cookies
It couldn't be easier to decorate these sweets. All you need is crushed up peppermint candies. The cookies have a rich, deep chocolate flavor thanks to Dutch-process cocoa powder.
Lime Sandwich Cookies
These unique treats deliver a burst of sunshine through the lime custard that is sandwiched between two tender sugar cookies.
Peppermint Spritz Cookies
Spritz cookies are a fun, easy, and festive way to get into the holiday spirit. With a peppermint-flavored dough and a wreath-shaped cookie press, these treats will look especially cute in a tin with other holiday-themed cookies.
Coconut Chip Cookies
This recipe yields a thin, crisp, and buttery cookie that will become an instant favorite in your repertoire. The whopping 4 cups of rich, coconut flakes melds wonderfully with the buttery brown sugar cookie dough.
Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
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Brie Goldman
Is it the combination of fresh and ground ginger or the chunks of semisweet chocolate that make this cookie a favorite of our food editors? Maybe it's both—and the subtle flavor of molasses, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves in this egg-free, irresistible treat.
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