Bakers Square Off in Friendly Competition at Library Cookie Swap
The Burlington Public Library held its first cookie swap in recent memory, and participants brought home a tin full of varied cookies.
Fifteen amateur bakers lined up outside the library function rooms last night for what will surely become a new annual tradition. The Burlington Public Library Cookie Swap brought together neighbors of all ages and cooking experience to share a variety of baked goods.
The requirements of the Swap were simple:
- Bake 3 dozen cookies, enough for each participant to take 2 of each kind of cookie.
- Bring your own tin for swapping.
- Bring a list of ingredients.
- And, most importantly, No chocolate chip cookies!
Entries included ginger molasses, chocolate crinkle, peanut butter Hershey Kiss, and many more; potato chip and candy surprise were among the most innovative offerings. Participants cut up a sampling of their cookies for judging, and all were provided with a voting sheet with spaces for "Best Tasting" and "Most Eye Catching." Neighbors connected over tastes of cookies in an inviting atmosphere, complete with a yule log ambience on the function room televisions. Recipes were traded, compliments were made, and, in the end, winners were chosen.
For Most Eye-Catching, Andrei Averin and Galina Averina, along with their son, Mark Averin, won for their beautifully-decorated gingerbread cookies. Eleanor O'Neill won Best-Tasting for her almond raspberry thumbprints, and when the final votes were tallied she also won Best Overall, having received the most total votes. Winners received prizes from The Cookie Monstah. Everyone in attendance was a winner, though, as attendees went home with a tin full of a variety of cookies baked with love and attention by their neighbors.
This is the first cookie swap in several years, and no one in attendance had attended the previous iteration of this program. The library expects to continue this tradition annually, and the bakers at the Buzz are already brainstorming what next year will bring.
For more information about the fun events coming up at the library, check Page 20 of the Buzz Magazine: Winter Edition and the Library calendar.
