Small Batches, Big Cheer: Our 2025 Cookie Swap

Our final cookbook club of the year transformed into a cheerful cookie-filled celebration that set the tone for the Christmas season!

The best way to welcome December is with a generous spread of cookies—in our case, almost 2,000 of them. For our final cookbook club gathering of the year, we kicked off the holiday season with a festive cookie swap. Our cookbook of the month was Edd Kimber’s Small Batch Cookies. What I didn’t realize at the time was that “small batch” truly meant small. Each recipe yields only six cookies, yet I asked everyone to make at least 36. Not only did I make our community do math, I worried the recipes might not scale. Somehow everything came together beautifully.

Our Cookies & Cheer event took place at Pallet Headquarters. We love this venue not only for their excellent coffee but also for the bright, airy space that’s perfect for photos. Their team even created a special holiday menu featuring Mint Hot Chocolate and Whisky Caramel Cortado (a non-alcoholic treat). Paired with live music from Jaenna and Chris, it set the tone for a warm and cozy morning.

Guests were asked to bring 36 cookies. Twelve were used for sampling, while the rest were reserved for the cookie exchange. We began the event by tasting everyone’s creations so that guests could choose their favourites to take home. Our tables were generously sponsored by Stepho’s Souvlaki Greek Taverna, owned by the same team behind Pete’s Party Rentals. Their support made the layout of the cookie swap possible.

Since this was a sweets-forward event, we knew we needed something savoury to keep palates balanced (a lesson we learned from our Cake Garden event)! Alicia from Gather Vancouver sponsored a stunning grazing board filled with beet hummus, artisan cheeses, charcuterie, fresh fruits, vegetables, and more. It added both beauty and flavour, making the room even more festive.

After sampling, we held a raffle draw for five lucky winners. A big thank you to Frondly Plants (they seriously have such beautiful plants, I almost wanted to keep the display for ourselves), East Van Jam, and Secret Garden Tea Company for sponsoring these delightful prizes. It added a joyful surprise to the morning.

Then came the main event: the cookie swap. Everyone packed their boxes as full as they liked, thanks to the beautiful kraft boxes sponsored by HD BioPak. To make it even more special, Enamour Design provided personalized name tags and a stamp for each box, creating the perfect finishing touch.

As always, our DIY photobooth made an appearance so guests could take home both printed and digital keepsakes. Cynthia crafted a dramatic red backdrop that quickly became a crowd favourite. We also gifted everyone a Vancouver Cookbook Club tote bag to wrap up the festivities, along with delicious Nut Butter Bite snacks sponsored by Not Bad Snacks.

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year. Our Cookies & Cheer event was a heartwarming way to welcome December with sweets, coffee, and community.

Interested in joining our Vancouver Cookbook Club? Make sure to sign up for our Interest Form or discover more events through The Social House.

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