Budget (and easy) cookie recipes?

[sherry7]

The families in my subdivision are doing a cookie swap. Depending on how many families participate, I would make 1 dozen of cookies for each family. (There's only 22 houses here, so it wouldn't be an huge amount of cookies, since I'm sure not everyone will participate.) Everyone is getting together at a neighbors house in mid-December to do the exchange. So, it needs to be stuff that freezes well, since the exchange is a couple of weeks before Christmas.

I'm an excellent fudge maker, but it won't keep for that long, and I'm pretty sure you can't freeze it. (I've actually never tried freezing fudge, since it doesn't last long enough in my house, lol.) I'm not a very good cookie baker though (I usually buy our Christmas cookies from a bakery). I would like to participate though since I hardly know any of my neighbors and this would be a great way to meet some of them.

Any suggestions for budget friendly cookie recipes that freeze well, and are super easy? Thanks for your suggestions.

[daleswife]

What about cake mix cookies??? They are cheap and you can make em and they freeze well too. You can use any kind of cake mix you want. so You can do like Carrot Cake cookies or Lemon cookies. You can even frost them with the frosting you want too....

[sherry7]

Originally Posted by daleswife

What about cake mix cookies??? They are cheap and you can make em and they freeze well too. You can use any kind of cake mix you want. so You can do like Carrot Cake cookies or Lemon cookies. You can even frost them with the frosting you want too....

Thanks for the suggestion. I've never heard of cake mix cookies, but I'll google it.

[midwestdee]

Tollhouse cookies are the best! They make a butterscotch morsel that you use with oats to make Oatmeal Scotchies. Not many people make these - but they were my son's favorites. Nestle has coupons out for their morsels and lots of places have them on sale. You can save big bucks by buying flour, sugar, vanilla, oats and other things at an Aldi type supersaver store. You can also put together a really good trail mix and bag it in the Christmas baggies, that is a cute change of pace (again get your ingredients at Aldi!). If you really want to be the creative mom on the block, whip up some silly putty for each family to have a couple - here is the recipe (from Sci-Tech children's museum in Aurora): 4 oz white glue, 1 teaspoon Borax powder, 1 1/2 cups water and food coloring. Directions are: Pour glue in a jar. Add 1/2 cup water, 10 drops of food coloring and stir. Combine Borax and a cup of water in a bowl. Slowly add the glue to the bowl contents and mix well. You can put it in baby food jars & attach holiday ribbon (with the recipe is a nice touch). Or you can dig up some plastic Easter eggs and make it really look like Silly Putty! Who doesn't have dozens of plastic eggs sitting around somewhere?
.

[sherry7]

Originally Posted by midwestdee

Tollhouse cookies are the best! They make a butterscotch morsel that you use with oats to make Oatmeal Scotchies. Not many people make these - but they were my son's favorites. Nestle has coupons out for their morsels and lots of places have them on sale. You can save big bucks by buying flour, sugar, vanilla, oats and other things at an Aldi type supersaver store. You can also put together a really good trail mix and bag it in the Christmas baggies, that is a cute change of pace (again get your ingredients at Aldi!). If you really want to be the creative mom on the block, whip up some silly putty for each family to have a couple - here is the recipe (from Sci-Tech children's museum in Aurora): 4 oz white glue, 1 teaspoon Borax powder, 1 1/2 cups water and food coloring. Directions are: Pour glue in a jar. Add 1/2 cup water, 10 drops of food coloring and stir. Combine Borax and a cup of water in a bowl. Slowly add the glue to the bowl contents and mix well. You can put it in baby food jars & attach holiday ribbon (with the recipe is a nice touch). Or you can dig up some plastic Easter eggs and make it really look like Silly Putty! Who doesn't have dozens of plastic eggs sitting around somewhere?
.

Mmmm, I love that type of cookie! I haven't made those in years. Actually, I haven't made any type of cookie in years...it's just so much easier to call in my order to the local bakery, lol.

Not so sure about the homemade silly putty though...I have a feeling that after people start digging it out of their carpet, I'd have a neighborhood riot on my hands.

[ceecee]

We made these once for a cookie swap and they were a hit! Sugar cookie refrigerated dough make into a ball put in mini muffin tin, remove from oven when finished baking...wait a few seconds and press a mini Reese Cup in the center of each one. Super easy and cheap!

[sherry7]

Originally Posted by ceecee

We made these once for a cookie swap and they were a hit! Sugar cookie refrigerated dough make into a ball put in mini muffin tin, remove from oven when finished baking...wait a few seconds and press a mini Reese Cup in the center of each one. Super easy and cheap!

Yum! And it sounds simple enough for even me, lol.

[dizneechic]

I just went to a school book fair and they had a bake sale and I am stealing one of the ideas there to do for our neighborhood cookie exchange this year.

Someone took the big pretzel rods, melted chocolate and dipped the top 1/2 of each in it and then rolled them (or sprinkled on) various "toppings". There were some with nuts, colored sprinkles, crushed heath bar, white chocolate drizzled on, mini MM's, peanut butter chips, etc. They were wrapped in bundles of 2 diff styles, had a ribbon tied at the end of the bag, and the kids (and parents) were going nuts over them. Super easy, delicious, and traveled/presented well.

[HsvTeacher]

My cheap go-to cookie are peanut butter kisses. If you want easy, buy the refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough, roll them into balls, and roll them in white granulated sugar. Then bake according to the directions and top each cookie with a Hershey's Kiss.

You can always mix your own cookie dough, but I found it's cheaper to buy the other when it's on sale, and I can use a doubled coupon. (I paid 44 cents for it the other day.)

[HsvTeacher]

Originally Posted by dizneechic

I just went to a school book fair and they had a bake sale and I am stealing one of the ideas there to do for our neighborhood cookie exchange this year.

Someone took the big pretzel rods, melted chocolate and dipped the top 1/2 of each in it and then rolled them (or sprinkled on) various "toppings". There were some with nuts, colored sprinkles, crushed heath bar, white chocolate drizzled on, mini MM's, peanut butter chips, etc. They were wrapped in bundles of 2 diff styles, had a ribbon tied at the end of the bag, and the kids (and parents) were going nuts over them. Super easy, delicious, and traveled/presented well.

Yum! Sounds like the goodies at Goofy's Candy Shop!

[3boymthr]

Okay, you can't get cheaper and easier than short bread.

The ingredients are:

1 1/3 c flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 c butter or margarine.

Mix flour and sugar. Cut butter into the flour/sugar mix. Squeeze into a ball, flatten slightly and roll out on floured surface to half inch thick. Cut in desired shape and bake at 325 till lightly browned around the edges (about 7-9 minutes.

I mix confectioners sugar with the flour that I use for rolling to make them a little extra sweet. For a simple variation you can substitute brown sugar for the white and add some cinnamon and nutmeg. Or dip them halfway in melted chocolate (I like to use melted hershey's kisses )

[limace]

Just wanted to add that fudge freezes very well. We keep some every year.

[Imzadi]

Originally Posted by sherry7

Thanks for the suggestion. I've never heard of cake mix cookies, but I'll google it.

We've got a great Cookies from Cake Mixes thread here on the DIS Cooking Board. It is seriously one of the best threads on the DIS:

Cookies from cake mixes! Also: BISCOTTI and Cookie BARS

With so many different cake mixes and different kinds of imaginative add-ins, you never have to make the same cookie twice. I guarantee you, no one else will have your cookie in the Cookie Exchange, if you make one of these cookies.

[sk8jdgca]

Originally Posted by dizneechic

I just went to a school book fair and they had a bake sale and I am stealing one of the ideas there to do for our neighborhood cookie exchange this year.

Someone took the big pretzel rods, melted chocolate and dipped the top 1/2 of each in it and then rolled them (or sprinkled on) various "toppings". There were some with nuts, colored sprinkles, crushed heath bar, white chocolate drizzled on, mini MM's, peanut butter chips, etc. They were wrapped in bundles of 2 diff styles, had a ribbon tied at the end of the bag, and the kids (and parents) were going nuts over them. Super easy, delicious, and traveled/presented well.

You can do this with licorice sticks too- it is so good

[MsDisney23]

If you have an Aldi's near you, pick up all your baking needs there, you will save plenty!