Why do people make and give out so many Christmas cookies?

This must be a US thing, don’t do that over here.

There can be many reasons. Tradition. Want to show off their baking. Feeling obligated to do it. Inexpensive gift to give people.

My first time I significantly gained weight and never got back down below that number was vendors bringing my staff and I candy during the Christmas season. All of us after the first box of chocolates would have preferred veggies, fruit, and even sandwiches and pizza.

I like making cookies, none of mine have food dye, and most are cholesterol free. My meringue cookies only have fat from cc bits and walnuts. They do have plenty of sugar though.

You can freeze your cookies (not the meringue cookies actually). You can regift them. Bring them to work. I would not eat 4 dozen cookies. I would probably keep a dozen for my husband and me and give the rest away.

If someone gave you 4 dozen I would guess she is quite overweight or her husband is. Just a guess. Or, she is regifting to you.

@JLeslie Were you peeking in my window? I also have a friend at the other end of the spectrum. She is on the thin side and does not eat them herself. However, she does enjoy making cookies so she makes the treats and then gives them away. (I honestly don’t think this is the case, but it seems like she is deliberately sabotaging other peoples’ diets. It’s a tiny bit like a drug dealer pushing product. White chocolate melted on Chex mix.)

I hate wasting food so I will try freezing them. I won’t give the cookies to the critters as it would be unhealthy.
Maybe the best thing for all concerned is to simply convert them to BTUs or kCal in my woodstove.

Because they like to.

I usually end up throwing a lot of them away. I eat a lot of cookies and other treats on Christmas Eve and Christmas day without a second thought to a damn calorie, but after that not so much. This year, I’m leaving them out so my husband can eat them throughout the week (he’s bulkong, so the more calories the better), but whatever is left by the end of next weekend will be tossed. Re-gifting or freezing are also valid options.

I’m not sure of the “why.” To be nice, because most people don’t think much about calories during the holidays and baked goods are delicious, because it’s cheaper and easier than purchasing gifts…I doubt the reason is the same for everyone.

@Pachy I graciously say “Thank you.” but, honestly, I’d rather not bring them into my house. I’d prefer just one or two. It’s enough.
My urge to not waste food forces me to eat them at every meal so they don’t go bad. Of course I cut back on other foods to make up the difference. I don’t want to eat that many cookies with sugar frosting and candy cane sprinkles.

@livelaughlove21 I don’t have a husband bulking. Heck, I don’t even have a garbage disposal! I am the food disposal unit and only have so much capacity.

I know that other extreme. The thin person who sabotages others definitely is a real thing.

What about giving them to your mailman? Or, if you go to a New Years party bring them along.

Or, have some friends over yourself. You already have dessert. I remember one time we had a small party a few weeks after a big party to get rid of the beer and wine left over. At the second party my neighbor brought a case of beer with him! We basically wound up in the same place we started. Lol.

Edit: Maybe give them to a local church or synagogue?

If you work in an office, cookies tend to go pretty fast there.

I often bake home made cookies and make fudge, other candies and give to people, to hopefully enjoy. You can freeze most anything, you don’t have to eat it all at once, so save some for later, if you wish. I do it because I am a fairly good baker and the ones who receive my baked goods love it. I kind of like to show off :) my talents once in a while.

^^ Me too. I don’t usually give one person four dozen but I do love to bake for the holidays. I often freeze mine and take them out when entertaining as well as bring a box into work, etc. It is part of the festiveness of the holidays for me.

^^ Exactly!!

I don’t really bake but I have received cookies in the past. One year my sister, when she was in college and didn’t have a lot of money, baked cookies to give as Christmas presents. Everyone got a tin with a variety. The reason why one or two cookies is not the norm to give as a gift is that it would probably look very sad and pathetic to open an tin and see one or two cookies in it. Or to hand someone a baggie or napkin with one or two cookies would be not a very adequate gift. I think when people make a variety, they try to give a sampling of each, so if you have others in your household or if you want to give them out at a party, there’s a chance that each person may get one or more, if they like that type.

If I were you, I would bring them to work, give them to a neighbor or put them out for the animals. I’m sure that the animals need some fat to get them through the long winter ahead. I’ll bet the mailman would appreciate them, too.

I have recently taken to baking as thank yous and gifts because I have the time and need to do something to give back. On the other I tend to consider a person’s diet and try to make them a healthy good tasting sweet.

Have you considered handing them to the homeless or taking them to the foodbank or soup kitchen… How about leaving them with the church.

You should not cut back on your nutrient rich foods to eat empty calories. Nutrition is vital to your well being.

http://www.wholevegan.com/refined_flour.html

Silly that you wouldn’t give the same trash to your wild animals.. as you are eating yourself…. i don’t disagree but… well value your self as well as the animals. when you consider what they do to wheat to make flour and sugar.. it really doesn’t resemble food.

I’ll bet the mailman gets tons of cookies already.

@Unbroken You caught my hidden humor there. (Not giving to the animals because it isn’t healthy.) I end up cutting back on my normal food so I can dispose of these sweets. That is not good but I hate waste.

I used to work in an office that held an end of year party. Everyone brought something to share. My signature treat was Chocolate Truffles. I’d make 6 different kinds. One year when I making them I realized that each ball was 100 calories! And I was making about 10 dozen! I was unknowingly injecting 12,000 fat calories into my friends and coworkers.
How’s that for a buzz kill. I didn’t tell anyone this. I did write the calorie content on the boxes in case anyone cared.

@jca. I see what you mean about it appearing sad and pathetic to find one or two cookies in a tin. (But that would be perfect for me! – I’d get it!)

I will separate the lot into 4 bags and freeze them. If I forget and they don’t get eaten, so be it. I can take them out for my July 4th party.

It may surprise you to know that many people give out these calorie loaded cookies to get them out of their own homes. It might be tradition to make them but lots of people just keep a few for themselves and give the rest away. I’m always watching my weight and I do just that. I make huge batches and give them to my grown children and grandchildren. I keep a few for myself since I don’t trust myself to have dozens of cookies laying around. I only make these two kinds of cookies once a year at Christmas.

I think the purpose of giving them is that it’s a good gift if you don’t know what the person wants or you want to give the same gift to a bunch of people (for example, co-workers) instead of going out and shopping for each, individually. Shopping for each, individually would probably require more money and more thought as to what each person would prefer, and then maybe wanting to spend or appear to spend the same amount on each person. Homemade cookies are a step above store bought, and something usually seen as a thoughtful gesture.

I know where I live, when I don’t want something, the crows usually are thrilled to have it. :)

For generations people have given/eaten confectionary/candy as a treat.
Children are “rewarded” by it, adults are tempted by it & special occasions are overwhelmed by it.

Because gifting tree bark, tofu and underwear is boring?~

I still believe everything in moderation and if you overindulge during the holidays, get back on track in January.

Because I was alone for the first time this Christmas, I had bought myself a variety of “treats” from the Vermont Country Store – some of which were sweets. I didn’t open the box until Christmas morning which was fun. I finished up the butter crunch today and will be starting on the fudge.

My wife does it because she is kind hearted, and knows she makes really, really great cookies.

@janbb Are you going to put half the fudge in the freezer? Are you backing off your other calorie intake?

@filmfann Walter White made great meth, too. Jus’ sayin’ :-)

My daughter and I baked 3 dozen sugar cookies yesterday. The sugar cookie recipe was my grandmother’s recipe. Making cookies was a tradition I shared with my mother when I was growing up. My mother made cookies for the family every year until she was unable to after her ruptured brain aneurysm.

I had a great time rolling out the dough with my daughter yesterday and using cookie cutters from my childhood. I would have made the cookies before Christmas but I didn’t have the time.

I also believe everything in moderation. I only make these cookies twice a year because it’s fun and it’s a delicious treat. It’s not like we’re eating cookies daily.

@jonsblond That is a nice tradition and memory. Who has the job of eating them? ;-)

@LuckyGuy My children. Would you believe none of my children are fat? Can you believe it after eating all of those cookies just once a year? ;)

My husband and I will also eat a few of the cookies. I’ll also take a few to give to my father the next time I see him. He was touched when he learned I was making all of the goodies my mother made every year.

@LuckyGuy The good thing about my life now is that I don’t have to account to nobody for nothing. Just me and my scale and my blood work.

@jonsblond and @LuckyGuy: My grandmother was Czech and she used to make a prune pastry. When she died, we didn’t know what happened to her recipe. Then I found it somewhere in my mom’s recipe boxes. A few years ago I made the recipe and when I ate it with my mother, it was like being transported back into my grandmother’s kitchen.

Four dozen is obviously excessive – perhaps a dozen would make a nice gift. But regardless, the receiver is not expected to put the tin at a table setting and eat them all alone in one meal. They are expected to put them out during the holiday season, when guests are assumed to be in and out of the house. It is a gift to be shared.

@janbb “Just me and my scale and my blood work.” And the holes in your belt.
Those measures are absolutely unbiased and objective – and people still argue with them.:-)

@dappled_leaves Agreed. No one should eat all those cookies in one sitting or two or ten. They should be given away. I question whether 8000 calories of sugar and fat is ever a good thing to put into the circulatory systems of my friends and coworkers.

@LuckyGuy Ah, so this is more of a philosophical question about trust and intelligence? ;)

If we banish all the sugar and fat in the world, what is there to live for? Sugars and fats have sustained people for years.

Are you the Grinch who stole Christmas cookies?

Zip it, spoilsport. ~

Sugars and fats are essential to life and happiness.

Sugar is just a carb. Carbs are not evil. Nor are fats, by a long shot.

In honor of this thread, I’m eating cotton candy and poking my @LuckyGuy voodoo doll.

I love cotton candy.

Pass me some – and any leftover cookies.

@livelaughlove21 “Sugars and fats are essential to life and happiness”

Indeed! Fats keep our brains working, among other things.

I’d prefer to have other nutrients in the cookies beside just the fat and the sugar. I cut back on my “normal” calorie intake when I eat treats – unless I am going to be doing some heavy work. Cotton candy is all sugar. You can figure 4 calories per gram of the fluff. A mouthful is only about 10 grams – unless you stuff it. Mfphph !

@longgone That explains the stiffness in the region of my groin. :-)

@LuckyGuy I always cut back on my normal calorie intake to leave room for treats. So far it’s working well for me.

I think of the lady who gave you the cookies as most likely with benevolent intent, not malicious intent. Even though it’s extra calories for the recipient, and I never claim to be anywhere near a diet expert, I think a few extra cookies at the holiday season is not, in itself, a major downfall for most people. If one received four dozen, and ate one a day for 12 days and the spouse did the same, and then served the rest to party guests or gave them away, I don’t think major weight gain would result from the additional 1200 calories per person, maximum. If one ate like that every day for a year, then I know you know the math and know what the result would be.

@jca Well said.

They are a thoughtful but fairly inexpensive gift. Someone thought of you and wanted to give you something nice without spending a lot of money. A token gift.

If you don’t want them, regift them. Take them to the local old folks home or something. From a health and safety perspective they might not want to take them but I’m sure you can find someone who would appreciate a box of cookies. Give them to some homeless people. Give them to someone who loves cookies.

You aren’t obligated to eat them. Throw them away. The giver will never know but they got joy from giving you a gift.

I missed the editing window to add this, but perhaps you could individually wrap the cookies and freeze them. Take one out when you do feel like one. Avoids you overeating and you can think of the person who gave them to you each time you indulge.

@Earthbound_Misfit: I gave the teachers at school big tins of cookies from Costco this year. Nice chocolate covered cookies, impressive tin that would cost at least $20 elsewhere, for less than $15 each. What else can I give that is a nice gift, inexpensive, and if they don’t want it, they can bring it to a party or share it with other teachers or put it out for guests in their own home. I see what happens to the creams and soaps from Bath and Body Works and other places – they end up in the teachers’ bathroom. The mugs and other crap that kids give them end up at the teachers’ trading party, or probably at the Salvation Army. Cookies – to me, it’s a good gift across the board.

I have regifted almost every candle and lotion I have ever received. Lol. About 75% of the wine given to me too. So many gifts are unnecessary and pointless.

As far as teachers, I think everyone pitch in $5 and get the teacher a $150 Target gift card or envelope of cash.

I admit to giving cookies, but not to people I know are watching their weight and actively trying to change their diet.

@JLeslie: This year, the school has enacted a rule that you can’t give more than a certain amount to the teacher, so the group gift is out. To me, if the amount per parent is less than the total allowed, it should be ok but logic does not always dictate in these instances. To me, though, the group gift made things so much easier.

@LuckyGuy, I respect your wish to avoid eating cookies so I promise never to make them for you. ;-) And to anyone else who might bring them to your house, all you gotta say is thank you for the gesture but please leave them in the car so I won’t be tempted.

@Pachy Thank you. If I ate all the cookies given to me I’d blow up like an elepha…. Uh, wait… I mean… I mean… I mean – I’d have to engage in a lot of wild sex to burn off the excess calories. One cookie has approximately the same caloric value as one moderately active tussle tween the sheets.

Mmmm… Do I smell rum balls?