A tasty exchange: Cookie swap moves from Harrison home to fire hall

When Lori Miller decided to organize a Christmas cookie exchange last year, she did it out of her Harrison home with about a dozen women.

She had to move it to a bigger venue this year — a fire hall — due to popular demand.

“The first year was last year and I only had 12 women,” Miller, 50, said of the cookie exchange. “It went from 12 women to 79 women.”

The second annual Christmas cookie exchange is a way for bakers to share cookies with others, including those who may not have the luxury or ability to bake their own treats during the holiday season.

This year’s event was held Sunday at Hilltop Hose Company No. 3 in Harrison.

“The firemen are going to go out and help us donate the cookies,” Miller said. “They’re helping out with the event, to give back to the community in some way.”

The women worked in teams to make more than 13,000 cookies and roughly 1,600 dog treats, some of which are being donated to Alle-Kiski Valley organizations.

Recipients include the Allegheny Valley Association of Churches, Highlands Area Meals on Wheels, the Alle-Kiski Area HOPE Center, Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley, and the Applewood Personal Care Home, as well as firefighters and families.

“Sometimes you can’t afford to do something big money-wise to donate, but everybody can bake cookies,” Miller said. “We all love baking, and we want to share our cookies with people that might not be able to bake their own cookies this year.”

Miller said Facebook and word of mouth brought the large number of participants this year.

She is a member of “The Wedding Cookie Table Community,” a Facebook group where people can share recipes, photos and information about cookie tables. She said she reached out to other members about joining the exchange, and quite a few jumped at the chance.

“We’re having people from all over Pittsburgh coming in for this, and then we have local people from Natrona Heights,” Miller said. “I had a group of ladies from Leechburg that said, ‘Hey can we join?’ ”

The women were able to taste the cookies and vote on their favorites. Awards were given for best tasting cookie, best chocolatey cookie, most Christmassy cookie, best Italian cookie, most decorative cookie, hardest to make cookie, best homemade dog treat, best classic cookie and best overall cookie.

Marg Leone found out about the cookie exchange from The Wedding Cookie Table Community. She thinks it’s a great way for everyone to share their abilities.

“It’s kind of the season, fun thing to do. It makes everybody happy to eat,” said Leone, 68, of Latrobe. She made Italian pizzelles.

Vicki Frantz was part of last year’s original group of cookie exchange participants.

“This is amazing,” said Frantz, 55, of Harrison. “It’s a good way to get the community together. A lot of ladies enjoying company.”

Also at the event was Laura Magone, who started the The Wedding Cookie Table Community and was part of a group that set the Guinness World Record for World’s Largest Wedding Cookie Table with more than 88,000 cookies. The record was set Aug. 11 in Monongahela, Washington County.

Magone described Miller’s event as “phenomenal.”

“This represents Southwestern Pennsylvania,” said Magone, 59, of Monongahela. “When you see the spirit here, the heart of the bakers, it’s just priceless. I immediately feel at home.”

Miller said she wants to go for a record of her own next December: the World’s Largest Christmas Cookie Exchange. Magone has promised to help her with that.

“It is more work than anybody knows,” Magone said.