There are many reasons for sending cookies. Maybe to console a friend away from home for holidays, or to make a son or daughter who left for university feel at home. Whatever your reason for doing it, shipping cookies is super easy, just choose the right type of cookies and learn a proper packaging procedure. If you want to ship cookies but don't want them to be destroyed en route, follow these simple steps.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Prepare to ship
Step 1. Choose the right cookies
Avoid shipping soft, buttered, or moist cookies if you want them to stay fresh during shipping. The moisture level of this type of cookie makes them more prone to spoilage. Choose more dry and crunchy cookies, such as shortbread, sugar cookies, cantucci, amaretti or ginger cookies. Here you can find other types of cookies that can be shipped:
- Cookies that have a rustic texture, such as cookies with chocolate chips or raisins, scabs and cat's tongue.
- There are some cookies that although they are slightly moist or buttery, they improve if they remain out of the package.
Step 2. Plan to ship as soon as possible
If you bake the cookies on Saturday afternoon, they can only be shipped the following Monday, which means wasting two days of cookie freshness. Instead, try baking the cookies on the morning of the day you ship them, or at least the night before.
- If you want the cookies to be shipped quickly, you can consider using a courier, such as TNT or Bartolini, or use fast mail delivery, such as Paccocelere 1.
- If you ship the cookies during the holidays, be sure to ship them early so they arrive before the holiday, or they will remain stuck in stock for a day or two during the holiday period.
Step 3. Pack the cookies immediately after taking them out of the oven
After taking the cookies out of the oven, wait for them to cool, in this way they will lose moisture and harden a little. If you pack them fresh out of the oven, they will condense in the bag and deteriorate very quickly. But as soon as they cool, start wrapping them quickly to better preserve their freshness.
Method 2 of 2: Wrap the Cookies
Step 1. Wrap each cookie
Take some time to wrap each biscuit individually, or in pairs, putting the flat parts of the biscuits in contact. To wrap the cookies so that no air and moisture remain in the package, you can use plastic wrap, frost bags, or aluminum foil. If you want, you can wrap them twice to increase their conservation.
Step 2. Sort the cookies by type
You should pack the soft cookies with the soft ones and the crunchy ones with the crunchy ones, otherwise the crunchy cookies will become soft, and the soft ones will become crunchy. You don't have to put them in different containers, just put them in airtight plastic bags or frost bags. If you want to add an artistic touch as well, you can use cellophane gift bags.
If you ship only one type of cookies, you can put a sheet of wax paper between one layer of cookies and the other
Step 3. Choose the container
Use a plastic container, if possible with vacuum or a tin container. The lid must be firmly attached to the container to prevent it from jumping off during transport. If you are using a tin container, you will need to wrap the closure with tape.
Step 4. Line the containers
Now that you have chosen the container you will be shipping the cookies with, you need to stuff it with a material that protects the cookies, such as wax paper or crumpled parchment paper. You can also use crumpled newsprint or even regular sheets of printer paper. Alternatively, you can line it with bubble wrap or Styrofoam plastic. An ingenious method is to fill ice cream or resealable bags with popcorn and use them as filling. A further gift to our sender, who will receive a fragrant package full of delicacies.
- Wrap the cookies well, so they don't have room to move or break, so they'll stay fresher as well.
- On the other hand, make sure not to strain or crush the packaged biscuits, otherwise they could be damaged during transport and lose their original texture.
Step 5. Insert the cookies into the container
After you have packaged the cookies individually and separated them by type, you need to put them in the padded container. As soon as you're done placing them in the container, use more stuffing material to fill the top. Add enough to keep them in place but make sure the lid doesn't put too much pressure on the cookies. Now you can seal the container with duct tape or you can tie it with string.
Step 6. Place the container in a shipping package
If the container takes up little space in the package, add some stuffing material, trying to create a layer of at least 5 centimeters around the container. Now try to shake the package a little, if the container has room to move, add more stuffing material. Write the recipient's address inside the package, in case the one outside is lost.
- When you're done, seal the package with packing tape.
- Write "PERISHABLE" and "FRAGILE" on all sides of the package.
Step 7. Address the package
Write your and the recipient's name and address on the package.
Step 8. Ship the package
After packing the cookies and addressing the package, the last thing left to do is send it. Bring it to the post office, you can choose the formula you prefer for the shipment of your package (alternatively you can use a courier), after which all you have to do is wait for the thank you call from your recipient for the wonderful cookies.
Advice
- Notify recipients that their cookies are on their way (unless it's a surprise)
- Tell the post office that you are shipping food.
Warnings
- Homemade cookies may arrive stale.
- Expect (many) cookie breaks.
