Cookies & Cocktails with the Stars

By: Lindsay Damast

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Gear up for holiday baking with Cooking Channel. Your favorite celebrities, chefs & Food People have opened their kitchens to share their best cookie recipes. From Cookie Monster's sugar cookies to Kelsey's Peppermint Meltaways, we'll keep you baking all season. Visit our All-Star Cookie Swap, then head over to FoodNetwork.com for great takes on holiday baking from Food Network chefs.

Whether you're looking for a fun holiday party idea or are eager to update your annual cookie swap, tune into Cookies & Cocktails at 8 p.m. ET tonight to see how chefs, supermodels and celebrities put their spin on this sweet tradition.

Supermodel Chrissy Teigen, her boyfriend John Legend, and Kelsey Nixon, star of Kelsey's Essentials, wanted their cookie swap to be more than the typical exchange of bakers' dozens, and so they called upon mixologist Kevin Denton to add some drinks to the party menu. Beverage pairing enhances many meals -- so why not serve cookies with drinks meant to play upon their subtle flavors?

Throwing a great cookie swap begins with the invitation, and, as our in-house cookie expert points out, a few savory dishes to start. But why leave the savory in the apps? On Cookies & Cocktails, Kelsey and Chrissy band together to create their K&C Thumbprint Cookies, made with cheese, black pepper and a cranberry-citrus-thyme marmelade.

This element of surprise -- along with some clever cocktail pairings -- keeps guests on their toes. Supermodel Brooklyn Decker shares her Double Peanut Butter Cup Cookies with party guests, and to put a nostalgic spin on this indulgent cookie, Kevin Denton pairs them with a Jelly Champagne Cocktail. For kids or alcohol-abstaining guests, a spicy mulled apple cider perfectly complements the seasonal flavors in Kelsey's Old Fashioned Pumpkin Penuche cookies. Chrissy's Spiced Ginger Rum Balls pack a punch, so Kevin wakes guests up with a Dulce de Leche Coffee cocktail.

Tune in tonight for even more creative pairing ideas and see how Chrissy, John and Kelsey mixed things up with a little festive party competition.

See recipes and pairings from the show in our Cookies and Cocktails roundup. Check out Cooking Channel's All-Star Cookie Swap for dozens more cookie recipes from chefs and celebrities plus tips on hosting holiday parties, baking and decorating cookies and mixing up seasonal cocktails.

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