Kids Christmas Cookie Bake Off 2025

Event Overview

Contestants bake their Christmas cookies at home and then bring them to the Hoover Galleria to our panel of judges.

The bake off includes two age categories:

• Ages 7–10

• Ages 11–14

Judges will evaluate cookie entries based on taste and appearance. In each age group, the judges will select:

1. Best Tasting Cookie

2. Most Festive Cookie

3. Best All-Around Cookie

There will be six winners in total, three for each age category, and each will receive a Wooden Spoon Trophy.

Event Day Information

Arrival & Check-In

Contestants may arrive any time between 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM. There are no assigned time slots. Contestants will present and drop-off their cookies to the judges table located at the Hoover Chamber of Commerce terrace over-looking the Galleria food court. Instructions for where to park and enter will be sent via email. Upon arrival, participants will be greeted by an Itty Bitty Bakers staff member. Each baker will have their photo taken with their cookies for event documentation and future highlights. If you prefer that your child not be photographed, please inform our staff at check-in.

Presenting to the Judges

Each contestant will enter the terrace, place their cookies in front of the judges, and begin by stating their name and the name of the cookie they made. For instance, they could say, "Hi, I'm Molly, and I baked Chocolate Reindeer Cookies." We realize that not everyone may be comfortable speaking to the judges. A parent, sibling, or friend is welcome to speak on behalf of the contestant. Don't stress! Judging is based on cookies alone, not the oral presentation. The judges will then say, "Thanks! We are excited to taste them," and the contestant will then exit the terrace. The official taste-testing and judging session will begin at 3PM, after all contestants have presented their cookies. Winners will be announced via email and social media that evening, or as soon as possible.

Official Rules

• Cookies must be presented on a disposable plate, platter, or box labeled with the baker’s name and cookie name.

• Each baker must provide at least four cookies for judging.

• Cookies must include a step that requires them to be baked in an oven.

• Cookies must be made with minimal adult assistance.

Pre-registration is required

Cookie Types Allowed

Sugar cookies, shortbread cookies, cookie cups, cut-out cookies, bar cookies, sandwich cookies, crinkle cookies, spritz cookies, pfeffernüsse cookies, biscotti, wafer cookies, meltaways, alfajores, fortune cookies, animal crackers, dipped cookies, and stuffed cookies.

Cookie Types Not Allowed

French macarons, coconut macaroons, meringues, scones, crepes, pizelles, brownies, blondies, haystacks, stroopwafel, waffle cookies, truffles, churros, rugelach, cannoli, cookie dough, whoopie pies, éclairs, ladyfingers, no-bake cookies, pie-dough cookies, palmiers, Pop-Tarts, or decorated store-bought cookies.

Who are the Judges?

Judging is the hardest part of the bake off! Every year judges have the hardest time picking winners because there are so many good cookies. Judges graciously volunteer their time (and taste buds!) to make this event a success. We have 3 judges this year:

1. Abby Harris, age 13 and homeschooled in Hoover, has been part of Itty Bitty Bakers since she was six years old. Her creativity, attention to detail, and love of helping others in the kitchen have made her an important part of the Itty Bitty Bakers community. Abby has received awards in the annual Itty Bitty Bakers Christmas Cookie Bake-Off, including Most Festive Cookie in 2022 for her Holiday Hot Chocolate Cookies and Best All-Around Cookie in 2024 for her Snowy Christmas Alfajores. She continues to serve as a Youth Helper with Itty Bitty Bakers, where she loves encouraging younger students and helping them discover the joy of baking. This year, Abby is thrilled to return to the Christmas Cookie Bake-Off as a judge, excited to celebrate the creativity and talent of this year’s bakers.

2. Andrea Mathis, MA, RDN, LD (also known as Andy) is a registered dietitian nutritionist and owner of the nourishing food blogs, Beautiful Eats & Things, and Little Eats & Things. She is also the author of The Complete Book of Smoothies: 115 Healthy Recipes to Nourish, Heal, and Energize and the Founder of Beautifully Social, an exclusive social media & branding course.Her unconventional and practical approach to providing wholesome recipes and body-inclusive focused nutrition advice has been featured in the nation’s leading media outlets including Good Morning America, Women’s Health, Prevention, Huff Post, Shape and many more. She is a contributing editor for EatingWell, The Kitchn, Food and Nutrition Magazine and contributor to Mind Body Green, Well + Good, Parents, MSN, Healthline and others. Based in Alabama, when she’s not running after her two boys, Andy enjoys creating content to encourage self-love and promote body positivity.

3. Emily Roy is the Chef Culinary Director for Pelham High School for the Hospitality & Tourism program. She also is passionate about her monthly Supper Club with carefully curated food and wine pairings, creating interactive dinners where people want to cook, eat and learn together. And she organizes events, cooking classes and catering locally. Emily worked for 12 years at Publix Aprons Cooking School teaching classes to the public. She worked her way from Sous Chef to head of operations as Senior Managing Chef. She trained in Boston, Denver and Orlando and gives credit to all the talented chefs who taught her over the years. Emily says one of the things she's most proud of is becoming a member of Les Dames d’Escoffier International in 2023.

   
   

Why Participate?

The Kids Christmas Cookie Bake Off encourages confidence, creativity, and a sense of accomplishment in young bakers. It’s a wonderful opportunity to share holiday traditions, try new recipes, and celebrate the joy of baking. Kids can pull out old cookbooks, check-out cookbooks from the library, and get ideas from older family members about their favorite cookie recipes. We also encourage kids to work together with parents for ingredient shopping and the kitchen CLEANUP process!

Registration

Registration is required so judges can be prepared with proper scoring sheets for contestants. Space is limited to 30 contestants per age group category.

Past Bake Offs

To view contestants, judges, and winners from past bake offs, go to https://www.ittybittybakers.com/blog/categories/bake-off

We look forward to seeing the amazing cookie creations the kids will bring this year!