Making new food blogger friends is always great fun… and once a year it is made even ‘funner’ with the swapping of dozens and dozens of cookies. The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap was started in 2011 by Love and Olive Oil and The Little Kitchen and 2012 marks the second year of this annual event.
The premise is simple: you sign up, pay $4.00 to support the Cookies for Kids Cancer charity (with donations matched by OXO up to $100,000), get sent names and addresses of three other food bloggers in your country, cook them each a dozen cookies, get a dozen from three different food bloggers in return, and finally eat 36 cookies all to yourself without sharing with your boyfriend… wait, maybe that last one was just me!
Today is the day that all the participating food bloggers post their cookie recipes for all to see. So, even if you didn’t get the chance to participate directly, you get the benefit of tried and tested recipes to cook yourself at home.
I’m a lover of cookies, so it was definitely a no brainer that I had to participate. Last year I found out about the cookie swap just after the sign-up deadline, so this year I was delighted to see the notification of registration and signed up straight away.
Deciding what cookies to make for the swap wasn’t difficult, but I’m not going to lie… I did have a slight disaster. After making and freezing four dozen Fresh Raspberry, White Chocolate and Macadamia cookies, I baked one dozen as a test and quickly realised that while these cookies tasted AMAZING (recipe to come), they needed to be consumed the day they are baked as the fresh raspberries start to soften the cookies if they aren’t eaten quickly.
So, leaving the pre-made ready-to-bake raspberry cookies in the freezer, I quickly needed to come up with another cookie recipe for the swap. Learning from the fresh fruit vs postman debacle, I decided on Chocolate, Honeycomb and Roasted Almond cookies and got to work making another 3 dozen cookies.
I excitedly headed to the post office on December 5 to send one dozen cookies each to the following wonderful Australian food bloggers (check out their great blogs and find out what cookies they made for the swap):
- Faaiza of Modest Munchies
- Erin of Cut the Cookie
- Muppy of Muppys
In return for my gift giving, I received in the post three dozen spectacular cookies as follows from fellow Australian food bloggers:
- Cranberry White Chocolate and Oat cookies from Daisy of Never Too Sweet
- Date and Walnut Biscuits from Kate of The Cook’s Companion Challenge
- Three types of traditional Chinese New Year cookies – Cashew; Almond; and Peanut – from Vien of We Dare Food
Check out their blogs for recipes to the tasty treats I got to eat – I’m definitely going to try and replicate them all.
Chocolate, Honeycomb and Roast Almond Cookies
Makes 3 dozen
200g butter, softened
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
3 cups plain flour
1 1/2 cup self raising flour
300g good quality chocolate covered honeycomb
225g roasted almonds
Preheat oven to 180° Celsius. Line three large baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
Beat butter and sugar until very well combined. Then add eggs and beat again until combined. Sift in flour and stir with a wooden spoon till well incorporated.
Roughly chop the honeycomb and almond and add to the mixing bowl. Stir gently till almonds and honeycomb are evenly distributed through the cookie dough.
Roll tablespoon sized balls with the cookie mixture. Place 12 balls on each baking tray (leaving enough room for them to spread out slightly) and flatten slightly with your hand.
Place trays in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until lightly golden, turning the trays and swapping their position in the oven halfway through.
What a great idea! Have just signed up for next year. Your cookies sound fantastic, love the flavour combo. The ones you received sound great too. Enjoy your cookie eating!
Fantastic idea! Please remind me to sign up next time this happens. These look brilliant.
Loved the big roasted almonds in these, yum. Thank you!
I would have loved to get those cookies in the mail for the swap! Wish we were in the same country 🙂
can i have some more 😛 and those ones from the picnic – oh my – you do have a baking talent.
thanks so much they were very much enjoyed, gobbled up quickly! i did share with my kids and hubby though 🙂
I love the sound of the flavour combination of honeycomb and almond. I definitely want to par take in the cookie swap next year. If only I had heard about it………. what a great cause! 🙂 xxx
Honeycomb and almond? Yes, please. 😉 Sounds delish. And sounds like a good cookie swap!
WOO HOO 🙂 Was super glad that you were my Cookie Swap and of course I was going to keep it a secret hahaha wasn't going to ruin it for you! Ohhh you also got cookies from We Dare Food as well YAY! She's an amazing baker 🙂
Damnnn why couldn't we just swap with each other because I would have loved to try some of these Honeycomb and Roasted Almond cookies! They're like two of my favorite ingredients will need to try this recipe soon but might halve the recipe hehe can't have 3 dozens at home WAY too dangerous!
That is such a fantastic idea!!! Love the sound of your cookies even though they seem a little too indulgent for me. Mr would love them for sure!
WOWOW! Your pictures are gorgeous! And your cookies have everything a cookie should!!! 😀
I'm so glad that the cookies arrived safely! 🙂
Chocolate covered honeycomb – not familiar with that but it sure looks good! These cookies look irresistible and what a fun project! I've seen several cookies from this swap now and what a lucky bunch of bloggers!
How cute are those checkered spoons! You are so creative with your photography!
They look absolutely delish! I am a big violet crumble fan and will be having a go at making these with that. The cookie swap was so much fun, glad I participated.
These cookies sound so cool! Love love chocolate honeycomb and am totally intrigued about what happens when it is baked into a cookie.
These sound scrumptious!!
Honeycomb cookies?! That's genius!
Please help! I really, really want to make some of these but I need some translation into American 🙂 Is chocolate covered honeycomb a candy bar? Can you describe it? I have a store that sells interntional foods but I am not sure what I am looking for. Thanks!
In Australia you can buy these as a candy bar OR make it yourself (infact on its own it could be a good treat to send in your Monday parcel). There are two candy bars in Autralia that are similar and would work for these cookies they are: 1.Violet Crumble Bar or 2.Crunchie Bar. If you want to try and make it yourself… there are a few recipes online you could try. Here is one I foun: http://allrecipes.com.au/recipe/15949/chocolate-c…
Hope this helps!
Thanks so much! I am going to give the chocolate honeycomb recipe a try. Probably a double batch so that I can make your cookies too. We'll start an American craze or Australian treats 🙂
I totally love this idea! Not that I'm in anyway creative enough to participate (and who wants to make GF cookies!)
Those pictures look great, thanks for the recipe 🙂
I am loving the thickness of these batch. They look a mouthful, but that is a welcome one for a great cookie muncher such as I.
I swear the only thing keeping me from trying the recipe is my terrible baking skill. Otherwise, I'd probably be wolfing down a whole tray right now.