Photography by @dan_resnick
Photography & Videography by @standard_joy

On a bright and sunny December Saturday after an unexpected snow, we gathered with some NYC #feedfeed community at FeedfeedBrooklyn to eat, drink and bake cookies. Our first annual Cookie Swap was made possible by our friends at Bob’s Red Mill and we couldn’t have asked for a more fun and festive day. The goal was simple, bring some of our favorite food bloggers and bakers together IRL to swap handmade cookies baked with love. Each attendee was asked to bring 2 dozen cookies to contribute to the epic cookie buffet, and everyone left with a golden tin full of Insta worthy treats. We were blown away by the amazing creations the community came up with, and it was so nice to be able to enjoy them in person, rather than through the screens of our phones!

The Cookie Table!

Working with Bob’s Red Mill on this cookie swap was truly a joy; they even sent all of our guests home with a bag of their organic all purpose flour, which is a dream to bake with, as well as their super fine almond flour, which is perfect for gluten free baking and making homemade macarons.

Gluten Free Gingerbread Sandwich Cookies with Cranberry Chia Jam by @livingminnaly.

A sampling of cookies from the #feedfeed community.

Milk Masala Cookies with Rose Glaze by @cookshala.

Frosted Wreath Cookies with Candied Herbs & Lemon Glaze by @jewelsofNY

Aside from the dozens and dozens of cookies we got to enjoy, we were also treated to live demos from a few of our favorite bakers. Sarah Kieffer (@Sarah_kieffer) of The Vanilla Bean Baking Blog flew in from Minnesota with her famous crinkle Chocolate Chip Cookies (both baked and in dough form!), and showed us how to get those coveted cookie “wrinkles”. (Hint: all it takes is banging the cookie sheet on the oven rack a few times while baking).

We also enjoyed a live demo from Erin Clarkson (@cloudykitchen) and Jill Fergus (@feedtheswimmers) where they made a beautiful vanilla scented marshmallow and dark chocolate ganache to fill the tastiest sugar cookies in NYC!

Dynamic duo Erin Clarkson and Jill Fergus working their magic in the kitchen. Photo by Dan Resnick.

The end result! Vanilla Sandwich Cookie with Vanilla bean Marshmallow and Dark Chocolate Ganache by @cloudykitchen and @feedtheswimmers.

Things got super creative at Patti Paige’s table, the genius behind @bakedideas, where guests (& kiddos too) were able to decorate their own penguin sugar cookies, and learn tips and tricks to replicating some of Patti’s cookie decoration magic at home. Our top takeaway from Patti? Let the icing fall out of the tip from above (hold the tip about ¼ inch above the cookie) while piping, rather than holding it directly over the surface of the cookie. It may seem counterintuitive, but this actually gives you more control over the icing. Patti also created some custom cookies just for the event, one modeled after the Bob’s Red Mill Bobble Head and our very own #feedfeed logo.

Get Patti's Sugar Cookie recipe here.

Last but not least, Judy Kim (@judy.kim) led everyone in a wreath making demo using greenery sourced from the NYC Flower district. The scent from the fresh juniper berry, white pine and plumosa filled the entire room with cozy holiday cheer.

Photos courtesy of @judy.kim and @veggiekins

Besides munching on (way too many) cookies, we enjoyed some bites from one of our favorite local spots, Bakeri, to go along with mulled cider we made in house (with a side of bourbon for those feeling extra festive).

Looking for more Holiday Cookie Recipes? Check out the feed we created featuring recipes for some of the cookies we enjoyed at our swap here!

And on the topic of cookies, we can't go without mentioning our amazing collaboration with Bake From Scratch Magazine on our Holiday Cookies print magazine which you can order here!

A special thank you to all those who made the day possible:

Sur La Table for providing items for our gift bags

Greenpoint Trading Co. for providing items for our gift bags.

Avery Publishing for providing copies of The Vanilla Bean Baking Book by Sarah Kieffer for our gift bags

Juliska for providing the dinnerware at FeedfeedBrooklyn

Bonterra for providing the wine at FeedfeedBrooklyn

Knork for providing the flatware at FeedfeedBrooklyn

Room & Board for providing the furniture at FeedfeedBrooklyn

KitchenAid for providing us the kitchen at FeedfeedBrooklyn

Caesarstone for providing the countertop at FeedfeedBrooklyn