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Cookies are a must-have during Christmas, which is a time to spend with family and friends. But how many batches of cookies do you need to bake in order to satisfy the appetites of all of your loved ones?

For Christmas, the general rule of thumb is that each individual should consume between four and six cookies to celebrate the holiday. This little number of cookies ought to be plenty, particularly if you are also providing other kinds of Christmas sweets. Therefore, depending on the size of your family—assume let’s there are four members—you should bake anything from 16 to 24 cookies in total.

In this post, I will further break down the arithmetic behind cookies, including the number of cookies you will need to bake if you are planning on serving a big group of people.

How to Calculate the Number Of Cookies to Make Per Person?

In general, there should be at least four to six cookies available to each individual throughout a single-day event. Therefore, if you plan on inviting ten people to your Christmas party, you will need to make at least forty to sixty cookies in order to accommodate everyone. You may always bake a few more than the required quantity, especially if you want to err on the side of caution.

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Another important aspect to take into account is the size of the cookies. If the cookies are bigger in size, then fewer cookies will be required for each individual, but if the cookies are smaller in size, then more cookies will be required.

Last but not least, the variety of cookie should also be taken into account. Because certain cookies, like sugar cookies, are particularly sweet and rich, it is possible that you should only offer three to four cookies to each individual. Other kinds of cookies, such as shortbread and gingerbread cookies, do not have the same level of sweetness and may thus be offered in greater numbers.

In general, the following formula may be used to determine the appropriate quantity of cookies to bake for each individual:

For A One-Day Event

At the very least, each participant need to eat between four and six cookies. You will need to make between 200 and 300 cookies in order to have enough for a large gathering of fifty people. Aim to prepare at least 900 cookies, and if you have an even larger gathering with 150 guests or more, you should bake even more.

Number of People Total Number of Cookies
30 120 – 180 Cookies
50 200 – 300 Cookies
100 400 – 600 Cookies
150 600 – 900 Cookies
You’ll need to think about things like the size of the cookie and whether or not there will be additional snacks.

If you are hosting a holiday party, it goes without saying that you will need a greater quantity of cookies. For gatherings with twenty people or more, you should plan on giving each guest around half a dozen cookies.

If you are hosting a cookie swap and anticipate having 20 people attend, you should plan to bring at least 120 cookies.

For Large Events Spanning Multiple Days

If you are hosting a larger Christmas cookie exchange party that will last for several days, you will need to multiply the number of people attending the event by the number of days the event will last, and then divide that total by the number of cookies you decided to bake for each individual guest.

Number of People x Number of Days x 4-6 Cookies
30 People x Days x 4-6 Cookies
50 People x Days x 4-6 Cookies
100 People x Days x 4-6 Cookies
150 People x Days x 4-6 Cookies
Example: 30 people x 3 days x 4-6 cookies per person per day = 360 – 540 cookies

Therefore, you will need to make anything from 360 to 540 cookies if you anticipate having 30 people attend your party and if it is going to run for three days.

Plan on each individual taking home at least a half dozen cookies if the event is a big one that spans many days, such as a cookie exchange or a party at the workplace.

When you are baking a large quantity of cookies all at once, you will want a cooling rack that has the capacity to accommodate a large quantity of cookies. Recently, I came across the Wilton Excelle 3-Tier Cooling Rack for Cookies, which has the capacity to store at least 50 little sugar cookies at once. This cooling rack is available on Amazon, if you’re interested!

Take note, however, that the quantity of cookies that will be sent to each individual may vary depending on a variety of circumstances. For example, if you are also going to be offering other types of Christmas snacks at your party, you may want to cut down on the amount of cookies that you give each guest.

Alternately, you may wish to make extra cookies per person if your visitors are known to have a huge appetite or if they are known to be great admirers of cookies.

If you believe that your visitors will want more than the typical amount of cookies, then by all means, feel free to prepare a few additional sets of cookies for them. Additionally, if the most of the guests will be youngsters, you should anticipate that they will want a greater quantity of cookies than the typical adult would.

How Do You Plan A Christmas Cookie Exchange Party?

If you want to have a Christmas cookie exchange party, the first thing you need to do is choose how many guests you want to invite, then send out invitations one month in advance. Sending a follow-up email or giving a phone call as a reminder one week before the celebration is recommended. Make sure you have all the non-perishable ingredients on hand and start baking at least a couple of days before the celebration.

This is how I often go about organizing cookie swaps:

A Month Prior

At this point, I begin compiling the guest lists for my events and mailing out the invites. I make it a point to invite folks who have a shown interest in baking and who I believe will be able to honor their commitment to bring a couple of dozen cookies.

At a bare minimum, the invitation need to include the following information:

  • The date, time, and place of the party are as follows:
  • How many guests do you anticipate inviting?
  • What kind of cookies are you hoping guests will bring to the party? (for example, only holiday-themed cookies or no more than three dozen chocolate chip cookies)
  • The question of whether or not individuals need carry containers in order to transport their cookies
  • Your contact information in case anyone have questions

Two Weeks Ahead

Now is the time to begin following up on the RSVPs in order to get a better estimate of the number of individuals who will really be attending the party.

It is also a good time to start shopping for items that do not need to be refrigerated or frozen, such as flour, sugar, and spices.

One Week Ahead

I usually start preparing the food for the celebration around this time. Additionally, now is the time to begin making preparations for the children and to design labels for the cookies.

I also prepare an exhaustive shopping list of all of the components that I need in advance so that my husband and I will have an easy time acquiring all of the required components when we are at the grocery shops!

1-2 Days Prior

Once you have gathered all of the necessary ingredients, it is time to begin baking. I prefer to bake my cookies at least a couple of days before the party so that they have time to cool and I am not hurried on the day of the party. Prepare the table for the buffet by making decorations and setting it up.

According to the woman who started the rumor, Martha Stewart:

Because a cookie exchange does not often consist of a sit-down dinner, you will not need any formal seating arrangements for the event. However, you will need a big table, or many smaller tables, with sufficient room to showcase the individual desserts for each guest.

The Day of the Party

Put the cookies on the table, and we can get started having fun. Instruct those who have arrived to put their name tags on as they come in. Get the food and drinks ready, put the finishing touches on the kid’s table, and then relax and enjoy the celebration.

It took you a month to plan, but now is the perfect moment to kick back, relax, and take pleasure in the wonderful masterpiece you’ve made. Get yourself a cookie, and have fun at the party!

Can I Make Cookies Ahead Of Time?

In most cases, you may bake cookies up to two or three days in advance of when you want to serve them. If you want to prepare them even further in advance, you may preserve the quality of the ingredients by freezing the cookie dough or the baked cookies. This will prevent the contents from going bad over time.

You may bake up to several days’ worth of cookies and store them in the freezer if you have enough space for food storage.

This is a fantastic technique to avoid having to make cookies from scratch every time you want one, so that you always have freshly made cookies on hand.

FAQs

Should you serve food at a Christmas cookie swap?

At a Christmas cookie exchange, offering food is not unusual and should not be seen as a cause for concern. As a matter of fact, it may be a good idea to provide some light snacks or beverages in order to keep people’s energy levels up while they are mingling and trying out the various kinds of cookies.

Should you serve drinks at a Christmas cookie swap?

At a Christmas cookie exchange, it is a good idea to include non-alcoholic beverages such as tea, coffee, milk, and water in addition to the standard alcoholic beverages. When you provide these kinds of beverages, the sweetness of most cookies will be balanced out, which will make your visitors want more of the sweet treat.

How many cookies should you bring to a Christmas party?

When attending a Christmas party, you should bring around two to three cookies for each guest. This ought to be plenty for individuals to try a few samples without feeling the urge to gorge themselves on cookies if they take advantage of this opportunity. On the other hand, this is contingent upon the total number of guests expected at the party as well as the duration of the event.

How many cookies are enough to gift at a Christmas party?

At a Christmas gathering, you should be able to get away with giving out no more than two dozen cookies on average. If you are concerned that you won’t have enough, make a few more cookies than you normally would and have them on hand just in case you end up needing them. On the other hand, this is contingent upon the total number of guests expected at the party as well as the duration of the event.

How many cookies do you need per person?

However, we will take a stab in the dark and advise that you should prepare three or four cookies of a respectable size for each individual. Even if you wind up with an excess of them, it is still preferable than not having enough. And individuals are always welcome to take some with them.

How many cookies should you give as a gift?

For an individual, the number four is an appropriate starting point. There are a lot of different cookie recipes, and even mine for Hershey Kiss Cookies makes 48 cookies. That’s a total of twelve possible presents right there!

How many people does a pound of cookies feed?

A serving size of one pound of cookies is sufficient for eight to ten individuals.

How many cookies do I need for a party of 60?

For any occasion, the typical rule of thumb is to have between three and six cookies accessible for each guest (a sufficient amount to be considered a “handful”).