What to Bring to Every Summer Cookout, Pool Day, and Get-Together

Summer is one long string of invitations. The cookout where someone's cousin rented a bounce house. The pool day that turns into dinner. The graduation open house, the new neighbor's porch night, the friend who finally got the keys to her place and wants everyone to come see it.

And every single one of them ends with the same standing question: what do I bring?

Little Miss Moffitt ships artisan cookies and bars nationwide from Philadelphia, and a box of hers is one of the most-gifted things for summer occasions.

Not wine. Everyone brings wine. Not flowers, because nobody has a vase ready when they answer the door with a baby on one hip. Not another candle for the person who already has forty of them.

Bring cookies. They travel well, they get passed around, and nobody has ever been disappointed to see a box of them come out.

Here is my actual summer trick. Order a batch, keep them in the freezer, and pull from your stash when something pops up. Summer plans have a way of appearing the night before, and a freezer with good cookies in it is the difference between showing up empty-handed and showing up like you planned the whole thing. They thaw beautifully on the drive over.

So here is what to bring, sorted by where you are headed.

For the cookout: You are walking into a backyard with burgers on the grill and a folding table sagging under potato salad. What that table does not have is a dessert anyone is excited about. A box of Little Miss Moffitt cookies comes out and somebody says "wait, where are these from," and you get to say the name and feel like a genius. Brownie Points are the move here. They hold up in the heat and they go fast. The Luau Tropical Cookies are a close second: coconut, pineapple, and white chocolate chips in a soft-baked cookie that basically tastes like July.

For the pool day that turns into dinner: The lazy ones are the best. You go for the afternoon, nobody wants to leave, and suddenly it is six o'clock and people are ordering pizza. Bring a cookie gift box with a few different flavors and you are the person who quietly saved dessert. Something for the kid who only likes chocolate and the adult who swears they are not having any and then has three.

For the host who actually loves hosting: Some people host because they genuinely love it, and they almost never get thanked for it the way they should. That is the person to spend a little extra on. Send a box of artisan cookies ahead of the party or hand it over at the door as a real thank-you for the work nobody sees: the grocery runs, the cleaning, the chairs hauled up from the basement.

For the friend who just moved: New place, empty fridge, boxes everywhere, and zero energy to feed herself. A Hug Disguised as a Cookie™ was made for this moment. One cookie, its own package, a personalized note, sent like a card that happens to be edible. It shows up and says someone is thinking about her, which is exactly what you want to say and exactly what she does not have the bandwidth to ask for.

For the everyday thank-you you keep meaning to send: The neighbor who let your dog out twice last week. The coworker who covered your shift. The teacher squeezing in summer hours. You do not need an occasion. One cookie with a personalized note does more than a text that says "we should grab coffee sometime" and never happens.

Ordering for summer: We ship nationwide from Philadelphia, so you can send something to the cookout three states away you are missing this year. Summer moves fast, so the freezer trick really is your friend: order a batch now, tuck it away, and you are covered for the next three things that land on your calendar before you have even thought about them. Sending to a client or a team instead? Here is what corporate gifting looks like with Little Miss Moffitt.

Shop the full summer lineup: littlemissmoffittbaker.com

Karen Moffitt is a Philadelphia-area baker and the founder of Little Miss Moffitt, which ships cookies and bars nationwide as everyday treats, gift boxes, and corporate gifts. She started the business in 2016, is a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program, and is best known for her Hugs Disguised as Cookies™, with select wholesale locations across the area. More about Karen and Little Miss Moffitt.