Holiday Food Gift Ideas

I love giving food as gifts. There just is no better way to say, "I Love You" in my book!

Candy Coal (Love this one!)

Holiday Cookie Decorating Kits

Snowball Fight Cookies

Candied Nuts (Really, really easy!)

Hot Cocoa Mix (another simple one!)

S'Mores Toffee

... and so many other sweet treats! 

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Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix {Recipe}

My boys and I made these homemade hot cocoa gifts for their teachers this year. Just because I thought they needed it, I also threw in a mini bottle of schnapps to flavor their cocoa. They work with second graders all day. They deserve it!

What You Need:
1 cup Hershey's Cocoa Powder
1 cup Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. corn starch
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

* Note: You could use all of the original Hershey's unsweetened cocoa, and you may cut back about 1/2 cup of the sugar.

Easy Candied Nuts and Spiced Pecans {Recipe}

Looking for an easy, and really good food gift for Christmas? Well, look what I have for you!
These Chai Spiced Candied Pecans are so good, and so easy! They're my gift for all of the teachers and neighbors in our lives this holiday season.

What You Need:
2-3 cups pecan halves (or walnuts)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2-1 tsp. cinnamon*
1 tsp. salt
1 egg white
1 Tbsp. water
*Note: Use any spice combination you like. Below are some of my ideas.

Variations:
Chai Spiced Nuts
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. cardamom
add 1 tsp. vanilla to the water and eggs.

Spicy Sweet Nuts
add a pinch - 1/8 tsp. each:
- cayenne pepper
- chili powder
- ground cumin
- smoked paprika
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Cranberry-Gingerbread Cheesecake Bars {Recipe}

"Tastes like Christmas!" That's what my husband said when he took a bite of these yummy bars.

What You Need:
For the Crusts:
1 cup DARK brown sugar (or 3/4 cup brown sugar + 1/4 cup molasses)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon 
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into cubes (chilled)

For the Filling:
2- 8 oz. block cream cheese (at room temperature)
2 cups sugar (divided)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1- 12 oz. bag of  fresh cranberries
2 Tbsp. corn starch
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Cookie Decorating Kits - Perfect Holiday Gift!

Here's a fun holiday gift idea for you...

A cookie decorating kit for your friends and family.
Combine the icing, the sprinkles and the cookies all in one place... it's perfect! And perfectly fun.

What You Need: (for 3-5 kits)
(I will describe each in detail below with recipe links)
Cut-out cookies
Buttercream Icing
3-4 bottles of sprinkles
Disposable icing bags*
Mini treat bags *
*Available at craft stores

Click Here to Read More>>

Gingerbread Houses for Kids

There are plenty of amazing websites out there devoted to those perfect, architectural-wonder gingerbread houses. This is not one of them.


My boys and I went to visit Fox 9 to show the weatherman, Cody, how gingerbread houses are done. Click the video above to see the segment, or you can click here to go to the Fox 9 website.

Gingerbread houses in our house generally involve a whole lot of sugar, layers upon layers of candy, marshmallows and sugar cereal, and who knows what else. And with kids, I think that's really what it's all about. Below are some of my ideas for making the kid-friendly gingerbread house a more fun experience.

It's all about the icing

Whether you're making your gingerbread house with a kit or graham crackers or Homemade Gingerbread, whether or not it stands up to the test of a child decorating it is all about the icing.
Most of the kits come with some pre-packaged icing, which is fine for adding your decorations and making snow around the outside of the house, but I've found that real Royal Icing makes a huge difference for getting the house to stay together.

Click Here to Read More>>

Homemade Gingerbread House {Recipe}

We love decorating gingerbread houses at our house. But admittedly, I'd never made them from scratch before this season. I was sure my awesomely soft Gingerbread Recipe wouldn't hold up the decorations, and I don't usually eat the houses, anyway.

Graham crackers and store-bought kits worked well enough for us. Now I know. Totally worth it, making our own. Though I did have to add a lot more flour to get the dough stiff enough to hold up.

What You Need:
For the house pieces:
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup molasses
5 - 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

For the Icing:
1 lb. powdered sugar (about 3 1/2 - 4 cups) 
1-2 tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp. meringue powder
1/3 cup water

(See my Egg White Royal Icing Recipe if you don't have meringue powder.)

For the Decorations:
Cereal: Fruit Loops, Trix, Golden Grahams, Frosted Mini Wheats
Candy: Gum Drops, Mini Candy Canes, Mints, Gumballs, Cotton Candy
Teddy Grahams or Gingerbread Men Cookies
Click Here to Read More>>

Spring in Minnesota Cookies

It's the first day of spring. And here in Minnesota, the high is not even 20-degrees. Instead of tulips and daffodils, we look like a giant snow globe... still.
I'm not too happy about this.

Let me explain, (with cookies) what it's like to experience winter in Minne-snow-ta.

November/December

This is how we feel in November and December. Winter's here. Snow is pretty. The kids love sledding, snowmen. It's all good. We can do this!

January

January comes, usually the coldest time of year, it's dark all of the time. We're growing a bit weary of the cabin fever and the three hours it takes to get dressed to go outside. But it's not too bad. Surely it will be over soon.

February/March/April

And then you have now. March 20. The first day of spring. More than a foot of snow still on the ground. Folks, I'm done! And honestly, when it stretches in to April, the words I use then shouldn't be on a family-friendly website.

To be fair, I grew up in Texas and Missouri. This winter nonsense kills me by about the second flake of snow. I've been here now for six winters. We'll see if I make it to number seven!

Click the Links Below to See:
Vanilla Sugar Cookie Recipe
Royal Icing Recipe
Real Spring Decorating Ideas

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Your Favorite Posts from 2012

The top posts of 2012 have a little bit for everyone... Cake Pops, Recipes, Cakes and Cupcakes.
Don't see your favorite here? Leave me a comment and tell me what it was!!

#11- Banana Split Cake Pops

I know, 11?! But they're just so good, I couldn't cut it off at #10.

#10- Leftover Royal Icing as Buttercream

 It's easier than you think.


Click Here to Read More>>