Many people make Christmas cookies.
Janice Marquardt made 8,700.
And those are just the ones she is selling to raise funds for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.
“I made cookies for years when I worked in a restaurant,” said Marquardt, who worked at L&L Ranch, Al & Rosie’s and the Chalet Diner. “People asked for them.”
Her cookies were so popular she began selling them about 12 years ago. A year later, her daughter, Melissa, was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. (She is fine now but continues her regular checkups.)
Marquardt decided to use her baking skills to make money for Relay for Life.
“I was going to quit, but I got involved in Relay for Life,” she said. “It’s easier to do than going door to door to raise money.”
The first year she raised $500. The amount has increased over the years, and she hopes to raise $1,000 or more this year.
Marquardt started with 10 to 15 different kinds of cookies and is now up to 30, including the ever-popular cutouts, caramel cashews, date balls, date-filled, Door County mixed berry, spritz, Norwegian creams, chocolate drops, peppermint/chocolate sandwiches, pecan balls and peanut butter sandwich covered in chocolate.
She uses family recipes and other sources when she finds a good recipe.
“I’m always looking for something easy to make,” Marquardt said.
Last year she made gluten-free cookies; new this year are sugar-free cookies.
Marquardt gives any leftover cookies to her area food pantries, nursing homes and her neighbors.
It takes Marquardt about two weeks to make the cookies. Her kids help her frost the cutouts. She has a convection oven, which is faster than a regular oven and helps her make the cookies quickly and efficiently.
Many of her customers return year after year.
“They always seem to find you at Christmas time,” Marquardt said.
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