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Title: Cookie Swap: Creative Treats to Share Throughout the Year
Price: $24.95
Availability: Major book retailers everywhere

The Book
Cookie Swap has a commendable mission: to expand cookie exchange parties beyond the holiday season. To that end, the book contains themed cookies for a variety of occasions, like Valentine’s Day, Easter, wedding showers, and more. Each of the 50+ recipes includes a difficulty rating of 1-3 (1 being easy enough for the novice cook, and 3 being for skilled bakers or those looking for a challenge) and a time requirement (15 minutes to 2 or more hours).

Some of the most interesting looking cookies have a low difficulty rating, like the Easter-themed Kataifi Birds’ Nests, which are made with shredded phyllo dough “nests” stuffed with a creamy cheesecake filling, and the homemade Marshmallow Peeps and Bunnies. Other inspired creations include Chocolate-Chai Burgers on Sesame Seed Buns (made with cocoa macaroons and chai-infused ganache), and Friendly Ghost cookies (made with meringue). Though the book does contain a few designs that are tailor-made for kids (particularly those in the Easter and Halloween section), overall, designs have a formal aesthetic, which makes it a great resource book for baking throughout the year, and for gift-giving among adults.

Every recipe in this book is more than worthy of being included in a cookie swap, or given as a gift. The book provides inspiring photos with suggestions for packaging and displaying the cookies, as well as ideas for invitations that you can make to host cookie swaps throughout the year.


Images from Cookie Swap: paper mache garden pots filled with an assortment of cookies, Sugar Between the Sheets (flaky crescent cookies), and Tiers of Joy (shortbread with royal icing)

Food Porn Rating:  Artistically-styled photos throughout the book make it fun to look through for inspiration or just to fantasize about cookies.

Final Analysis

You’ll probably like it if…

• You’ve been invited to a cookie swap and need some inspiration
• You love fancy and creative cookies and want to expand your skill-set

You may not like it if…

• You only make cookies for yourself
• You only make cookies that are really simple and quick to prepare

GIVEAWAY: I have a copy of Cookie Swap to give away. To be the lucky recipient, email me at blogATfoodnetworkDOTca (note: email address has changed) the correct answer to the following question: What is one of the occasions that this book has themed cookies for? Please see contest rules. This contest is now closed. Congrats Vanessa H.

Book & Giveaway appears on Tuesdays.

Related:

• Cookie recipes on Foodnetwork.ca