December Chicago Food Swap Recap

Mmm, all the foods. I love the Chicago Food Swap - the best way to describe it is a bartering bake sale featuring all the chefy treats you've wanted to try but didn't want to make yourself. There are savory snacks, decadent desserts, homebrewed beverages and everything in between.

This month, we were at Enerspace Chicago, a coworking facility for entrepreneurs with a lovely view of the city. I was lucky enough to be sponsoring by Cabot Creamery this go around and I made candy cane crunch fudge with their sour cream and butter. I also brought my kombucha starters and pumpkin marmalade. I got my table all set up with samples and a little display, along with QR codes to the recipes on my blog.

There were so many swappers offering an amazing array of treats.

I enjoyed looking at everyone's concoctions, talking up my fellow foodies and, of course, eating!

The host, Joelen of What's Cookin Chicago?, also offered an array of appetizers and treats, so there was a delicious buffet of treats that ranged included Parmesan-stuffed dates, root beer, chocolate vodka and gluten-free poptarts. When it was finally time to swap, my fudge was a huge hit! I waddled out with quite the haul.

A closer look at the individual bites and treats:

Gingerbread and gingersnap granola; apple butternut squash soup; vanilla mint vodka, chocolate vodka, root beer, light roast coffee; German chocolate vegan cookies, cardamom sugar cookies, coconut macaroons; sea salt caramel marshmallows and chocolate ganache marshmallows; pork spring rolls; gluten-free poptarts and whole wheat waffles; plum bars; peanut brittle, chocolate peppermint bark and glazed pecans

Everything was clearly delicious. I can't wait to try the coffee and the chocolate vodka was awesome. A stand out in this household was the sea salt caramel marshmallows from The Marshmallow Fairy. Note the past tense ... these guys are gone.

Also, the apple butternut squash soup from Honest and Truly was fantastic. I had it for lunch today and it hit the spot.

Tim and I both loved the gluten-free poptarts and can't wait to crack into the coffee. It was another successful, fun swap. I love these events because food people are the best people, hands down. It's great to talk to everyone about their creations and make new friends. Everyone is super passionate about food and are more than happy to tell you their secrets and tricks. I got the inside scoop on how to make peanut brittle that won't screw up your dental work and learned about the best way to bottle and cap kombucha.

If you're curious about the Chicago Food Swap, sign up for the newsletter! The next swap is in February so there's plenty of time to plan and plot. Hope to see you there!