Birmingham Bake and Cook’s annual cookie swap had an international flavor this year.
Pat Short, who was visiting her sister in Birmingham, Ala., all the way from Birmingham, England, not only attended the Nov. 10 event but took home the top prize.
“Pat stops in to visit the store when she’s in town, and this year she happened to be here when we had the cookie swap,” said Susan Green, owner of Birmingham Bake and Cook.
This was Green’s sixth year to host the swap and the first since she moved her store from its Valleydale Road location to Cahaba Heights Village.
The event “really does help create community and create friendships,” Green said. “The same people usually attend, so there’s continuity there.”
About 30 people attended this year’s swap, she said.
“We had 22 kinds of cookies to taste, enjoy and judge. And everyone went home with lots of cookies, needless to say,” Green said.
The New England native said she’d never been to a cookie swap before she came to Birmingham and opened her store. One of her customers, Rita Wood, suggested the idea, Green said.
“Everyone is asked to make four dozen cookies,” Green said. “We have a broad definition of cookies that includes candy, bars and brownies. Some people try out new recipes, and others make tried and true ones.”
Green asks participants to send their recipes to her ahead of time so that she can compile the recipes into a booklet to hand out at the swap.
“Sometimes people will call and say, ‘I’m not bringing that recipe – the cookies didn’t turn out,’” she said, laughing.
At the swap, Green asks each person to talk about his or her cookie.
“Some will say they just thought the recipe sounded good, and others will tell about the significance that particular cookie has had in their lives,” she said.
At the Birmingham Bake and Cook swap, everyone samples the cookies and then votes on a favorite. That cookie wins the People’s Choice award, the prize captured this year by Pat Short.
“The competition is fun,” Green said. “It’s kind of a lively rivalry.”
Then guests take cookies home, giving them a variety of treats to share with their families.
Green said the swap is usually held on the first or second Monday of November.—Donna Cornelius
Pat Short’s Traditional British Shortbread
Pat submitted her recipe in metric measurements. Susan Green’s Americanized conversions are included in parentheses.
Ingredients:
500 grams salted butter, softened (1 pound plus 1 ½ ounces)
200 grams golden caster sugar (8 ounces granulated sugar)
500 grams all-purpose flour (1 pound plus 1 ½ ounces)
250 grams cornstarch (9 ounces)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 170 degrees C. (340 degrees F.)
Using a large bowl and a wooden spoon, cream together the butter and sugar. Then sift in the flour and cornstarch gradually, mixing briefly between each addition until it binds together.
Flour hands and gently knead until smooth. Don’t overwork the dough.
To make dough easier to roll, wrap in cling film (plastic wrap) and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
On a floured board, roll out the dough to 5-6 millimeters (about ¼ inch) thick and cut into your chosen shape.
Place on baking sheets and cook for 15-20 minutes. Sprinkle with sugar and cool for 10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
