What to Know13th Long Beach Bake-off & Christmas Cookie ContestDec. 14; 4-4:30 p.m. cookie drop-off; free concert begins at 5 p.m.; the tasting reception and award ceremony is at 6:30 p.m.Presented by Justin Rudd and the Community Action TeamBay Shore Church Fellowship HallWinners will receive $50 to donate to a favorite regional organizationAll attendees are encouraged to arrive with a canned good, peanut butter, or new socks to donate to local charities
From the Haute Dog Howl’oween Parade to the adorable Turkey Trot near Rosie’s Dog Beach, Long Beach booster Justin Rudd and his Community Action Team spunkily stage a host of uplifting events throughout the calendar.
But the tastiest, chewiest, and peppermint-iest of all the LBC-based parties may be the one that pops up just ahead of Christmas: The Annual Long Beach Bake-off.
Now entering its 13th year, the cookie showdown is all about community, yummy nibbles, a free brass-tastic concert, and the chance to possibly win money for a favorite local charity.
It’s all happening Dec. 14 in Belmont Shore, and if you want to enter, you’ll want to do so soon. Sweet: Getting on the list is free, but you will need to bring “at least” 24 homemade cookies.
Those delectables will be judged on a few criteria, including taste, quality, first impression, and appearance.
As any baker knows, plenty of skill, and a bit of magic, go into successfully synthesizing all of those things, as well as the more mysterious qualities that make a cookie so memorable.
If you’re not involved with a sports team, civic society, or school, or another group that might be staging a cookie competition right about now, and you’ve been longing to show off your baking prowess, this could be your flavorful field of play.
There are a few more rules and important things to know — you can come from anywhere around Southern California if you’d like to participate — so read everything on this page before preheating your oven and lining up the snowflake-shaped cookie cutters.