So you are invited to a party and you’re asked to bring a dessert. What to bring? I’ve spent nearly a year attending various functions and studying dessert bars. Here are my findings.
Anything in the shape of a bar goes first. Whether it’s a brownie, a lemon square, or something gooey with nuts, shape makes a big difference. I don’t know if it is a curiosity factor or not, but people try anything that is square or rectangular. Bring a bar, and your dessert will be one of the first ones gone.
Cute is better than quality. I’ve spent hours making absolutely delicious cookies—my oatmeal raisin cookies and Snickerdoodles are top-notch—and they never last when I serve them at home. The problem is that cookies enter a popularity contest the moment they hit a buffet. Looks matter, and unless they look cute, despite how they taste, they are going to be wallflowers.
Cute needs a little defining here. Please, learn from my mistakes and never try to dye a cookie a strange color. I did that recently when I was invited to a purple-themed party. My purple cookies were indeed purple and they stayed untouched. Lesson learned. Instead, use sprinkles or M&Ms if you need some color—kids love anything with sprinkles and they go quickly. Even adults can’t pass up something with a little color popping through.
To make really easy sprinkle cookies, simply use the tollhouse cookie recipe and omit the nuts and chocolate chips. Roll it into a ball, then roll the ball in sprinkles. At this point, you can either bake them off or, if you want to add some fun, put them in a mini muffin tin, bake at 350 for about 12 minutes, then drop a Hershey’s kiss on top.
The cookies are cute and, even better, come with candy!
