Challenge Butter wants to eradicate childhood cancer by way of the cookie.
The nearly 114-year-old dairy company has partnered with Cookies for Kids’ Cancer to spearhead “Challenge for a Cure,” an initiative that urges families and communities to bake cookies this holiday to support pediatric cancer research.
The U.S. government currently allocates just 4% of its cancer research budget to pediatric cancer research, or about $3 per child, according to the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation. This makes the work of individual donors all that more crucial. If you love cookies and can support the cause, there are several ways to get involved through December:
- Sign up to host a baking event or sale to raise money. Challenge Butter will send you a bake sale kit and offer guidance to ensure your event’s success.
- Post your original holiday cookie photos on Instagram, using the tags @challengebutter, @Cookies4kids, and #ChallengeForACure until December 31 to raise awareness.
- Donate directly online.
San Francisco-based baker and three-time author Hetal Vasavada of Milk and Cardamom hosted her own virtual baking event in support of Challenge for a Cure.
“My favorite cookie to bake for the holidays are snickerdoodles,” says Vasavada, whose latest cookbook, Desi Bakes!, shares her remixed Lemon and Coriander Snickerdoodle cookie recipe. ”You can change up the spice from cinnamon to cardamom, chai masala, or anything to make your cookies unique.”
If you didn’t make Vasavada’s event but want to host your own, she has some tips to ensure a seamless experience.
“Ensure you have enough space for everyone to have stations,” says Vasavada. ”Baking and decorating in a crowded space can be overwhelming.” Vasavada also likes to keep plain sugar cookies on hand that can be decorated at designated icing and sprinkles stations.
To add a bit more culinary variety to your awareness efforts, you can even opt for a cookie exchange.
“Once your guests have RSVP’d to your event, have them fill out a sign-up sheet sharing what cookies they’ll be making and email you the recipes,” says Vasavada. “Make sure everyone brings enough cookies so that you have two cookies per person. After the cookie exchange, send out a thank you email along with a PDF compiling all the recipes from your guests!”
Harlem-based baker Jada Wilson, the owner of Tasty Treasurez, created two decadent holiday cookies for Challenge for a Cure. Her first creation, Sammy the Sea Turtle, is a playfully intricate turtle-flavored sandwich cookie drenched in a rich milk chocolate shell.
“I’m a chocolate lover so while looking for flavors using chocolate I came across the classic turtle recipe and decided to make a turtle-shaped holiday turtle,” says Wilson. “Who can’t fall in love with a gift-giving turtle wearing a Christmas hat?” We couldn’t agree more.
Her second, the Winterful Cookie, is a monolith 6 oz cookie that blends fresh cranberries, chopped white chocolate, oats, and cinnamon.
“This was my reinterpretation of a holiday cookie I created years ago for a party,” says Wilson. “I wanted to make them bigger and better this time around.”
Purchase Challenge Butter’s limited edition holiday butter pack (in grocery stores now), which includes the brand’s signature Stained Glass Holiday Cookie recipe for more baking inspiration.
Correction: A previous version of this article indicated that Challenge Butter would donate $1 for each cookie image posted to social media, which was incorrect. Challenge Butter has donated $10,000 towards this campaign in 2024.
