There’s still time to organize a Christmas cookie exchange. Each participant bakes a different cookie and the group gets together to “exchange” their cookies, so that each participant goes home with a variety for the holidays.

There’s a delicious recipe for peppermint butter cookies below. But first, some history of the Christmas cookie exchange.

FoodTimeline.org researched old newspapers and found that cookie exchanges (a.k.a. cookie swaps, cookie trades, and cooky exchanges) first surfaced during World War I; the earliest reference is 1917.

The first ones were not necessarily connected with Christmas, and may have been fundraising bake sales rather than cookie-for-cookie exchanges (an example, notes librarian Lynne Olver, of how some words and phrases mean different things in different times).
 
 
CHRISTMAS COOKIE SWAPS APPEAR

By the 1950s, cookie swaps became associated with Christmas parties. By 1960, newspaper reports confirm that cookie swaps were trending. Here’s an item on a “swap party” from the Los Angeles Times of November 27, 1960:

“Our Food Editor spots a rising trend. From coast to coast, cooks are trading cookies and recipes to make gift boxes for Christmas….It provides a glamorous array of cookies for gifting, plus a hatful of leisure hours to enjoy in the last mad holiday rush. This year club groups, neighbors, or again, just a few friends, are trading cookies and recipes and gift-pack ideas. Mrs. Robert Blanch of Minneapolis has held a cookie trade party for her bridge club three years in a row. ‘The November meeting,’ she writes, ‘is given to the planning. Swap day is held late in December. Each member bakes one kind of cookie, one dozen for each of the eight members participating….’ ”

According to Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book of 1963 (now Betty Crocker The Big Boook Of Cookies):

“A popular once-a-year party is the Christmas cooky swap party. Friends and neighbors gather, each bringing one dozen of her holiday specialties for each woman at the party. Cookies are set out to sample and admire and coffee is served. Afterward, each one takes home a wonderful variety of festive cookies.”

[1] Your cookies don’t have to be this fancy; but those Santas deserve “best of show” (photos #1, #2 and #4 © Wisconsin Dairy).

[2] These cookies are pretty easy to make.

A buffet lunch or dinner is served before the official exchange begins. Each member arrives with three dozen cookies to share and an empty container to take home all of the swapped cookies. The crowd is called to order by ringing a bell. Then each person passes her cookies around for all to sample.

By the end of the exchange, each participant has assembled a container full of assorted cookies and heard plenty of humorous stories: “…who left out what, or how the name of the cookies was changed because they were supposed to be fingers and they looked like blobs,” said one hostess, who always bakes an extra batch in case someone had a disaster and had no cookies to bring.

Although some people make the same cookies each year—traditional favorites such as gingerbread men or candy cane-shaped cookies—others try a different recipe each year.

While some participants go all out and try recipes that would challenge a professional pastry chef, the atmosphere is more friendly than competitive. And not everybody makes a fancy recipe; brownies are fine. No matter what, there’s a wonderful assortment to take home.

[4] If you have a candy cane cookie cutter, you can make them like these.

We’re one of those folks who look forward to the holiday season for the Candy Cane Cookies[/caption] canes. We bake our favorite double chocolate cookie recipe (a chocolate cookie with chocolate chips) and add crushed peppermint canes. Sometimes, for added texture, we toss in some mint-flavored chips.

The following Christmas cookie recipe was shared by the blog Taste and Tell with GoBoldWith Butter.com, you can substitute crushed round peppermint candies.
 
 
RECIPE: PEPPERMINT BUTTER COOKIES

Ingredients For 4-5 Dozen Cookies

For The Cookies

 
For The Frosting

 
Preparation

1. WHISK together in a medium bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

2. BEAT butter and sugar in a large bowl until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, scraping between each addition. Add peppermint extract and sour cream, and mix well. Gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined.

3. Divide dough in half and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

4. PREHEAT oven to 425°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.

5. LIGHTLY FLOUR a work surface. Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. The dough will be a little sticky, so use flour as needed to avoid sticking. Use a 2 to 2-1/2 inch round cookie cutter to cut out circles and transfer to the prepared baking sheets. Bake cookies until just set and still pale, about 7 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack or a piece of waxed paper to cool completely before frosting.

6. MAKE frosting. In a large bowl, beat butter until soft and fluffy. Add peppermint extract. Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time and beat until combined completely. Add salt and cream and beat until light and fluffy.

7. FROST each cookie and then dip into crushed candy canes.
 
 
Find more of our favorite cookie recipes. Pull down the Cookies link on the menus at the upper right of the page.
 

Haagen-Dazs’ Rum Raisin is a long-standing seasonal joy, delicious by itself or on a warm piece of pie. But we also go gaga for:

GRAETER’S ICE CREAM

TALENTI GELATO

This NIBBLE Top Of The Week has two must-try seasonal flavors:

DISHES TO MAKE WITH HOLIDAY ICE CREAM FLAVORS

 
What are you waiting for? Hit the store!

A fun, retro Christmas cocktail. Photo
courtesy SideBAR | NYC.

Deck the halls with this Christmas cocktail from SideBar restaurant in New York City.

For more color, purchase tricolor candy canes: red, white and green.

RECIPE: MINT CHOCOLATE CANDY CANE
COCKTAIL

Ingredients For One Cocktail

Preparation

1. COMBINE vodka and liqueurs and shake with ice until chilled.

2. DIP rim of Martini glass into a dish of whipped cream, then into dish of crushed candy canes.

2. STRAIN drink into glass; serve immediately.

 
Find more of our favorite holiday cocktail recipes.

Peppermint bark is our favorite holiday confection, and our number one favorite bark is the Peppermint Cookie Bark (photo #1) from Enstrom’s, which also makes the best almond toffee we’ve ever had (and it’s also available sugar-free!).

A one-pound box is $22.95 and worth every penny—and the line is certified kosher by Scroll K | Vaad Hakashrus of Denver.

We enjoy a piece with a cup of coffee, and love giving it as gifts. Here’s a recipe if you want the fun of making your own bark. Remember: the better the chocolate, the better the bark.

If you want to make cookie bark like Enstrom’s, you’ll also need a box of Famous Chocolate Wafers, the cookies used to make ice box cake.

> December 1st is National Peppermint Bark Day.

> The year’s 60+ candy holidays.

> The year’s 69 chocolate holidays.

> The history of chocolate bark.

> There are more chocolate bark recipes below.
 
 
RECIPE: PEPPERMINT BARK

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. COVER a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.

2. PULSE candy canes in a food processor for 5-10 seconds each, until crushed into small pieces. You can also place them in a large Ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

[2] Beyond the holiday season, we like to switch the candy canes for Starlight Chocolate Peppermint Candies in our own recipe for peppermint bark (photo © Snackivore Store | Amazon).

4. MELT the white chocolate. Stir in 3/4 of the candy cane bits, reserving 1/4 for garnish. Spread a white chocolate layer evenly over the dark chocolate and evenly sprinkle the remaining candy cane pieces over the top. Press down very slightly to ensure they stick (you can use a piece of waxed paper to press down).

5. RETURN the tray to the fridge for 30 minutes or longer to firm up the bark. Break apart by hand into small, uneven pieces.
 
 
MORE PEPPERMINT BARK & CHOCOLATE BARK RECIPES

 
Plus:

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

Holiday orrecchiete with turkey sausage.
Photo courtesy Marriott.

Chef Cat Cora developed this special holiday pasta dish for Residence Inn By Marriott. It incorporates seasonal ingredients—pumpkin sage and cinnamon and turkey sausage.

Why was it developed for Marriott Residence Inn? All rooms feature fully-stocked kitchens, as well as complimentary grocery delivery service so that guests can have any necessary ingredients delivered right to their rooms. Those who are tired of eating restaurant meals on the road can cook their own.

RECIPE: VERY MERRY HOLIDAY PASTA

Ingredients For 4-6 Servings

1. BOIL water for pasta in a pasta pot, fitted with a strainer. Add the fresh orecchiette pasta to boiling water, cook until al dente, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

2. HEAT olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add turkey or chicken sausage and saute for 3-4 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

3. ADD garlic to the pan and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring continuously. Add white wine and reduce heat by half. Add in chicken stock, canned pumpkin, heavy cream and cinnamon. Stir until well mixed. Add the turkey or chicken sausage to the sauce and simmer for 10 minutes.

4. ADD the cooked orecchiette pasta and toss. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a warm platter or bowls; top with Parmesan cheese and fresh sage and serve.

WHY ORECCHIETTE?

Orecchiette are a short cut of pasta in a cupped shape, good for catching sauce. They work well with chunky meat and vegetable sauces.

Orecchiette (pronounced oh-reh-KYEH-tay) is Italian for “small ears”: orecchio (ear) and etto (small). Orecchiette is plural; the singular is orecchietta.

The cut is one of the three pasta specialties of the Puglia region of southern Italy, along with cavatelli and cavaturi. The traditional orecchiette dish in Puglia is orecchiette alle cime di rapa, with broccoli rabe (rapini).

In some areas, a tomato-based sauce (al sugo) is served, with or without miniature meatballs (al ragù) and/or a sprinkling of ricotta forte, a seasoned sheep’s milk ricotta that’s not easy to find in the U.S. Use ricota salata instead—or default to Asiago, Grana Padano, Parmesan or Pecorino (see the great Italian grating cheeses).

 
Check out the different types of pasta in our tasty Pasta Glossary.