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For coworkers and neighbours I'm going to make some of the CD envelope cookies (just a big cookie in one of those CD envelopes with a clear window) and the disposable Dixie coffee mug with lid and hot chocolate inside. For everyone else I'm just not sure yet. Last year I did the covered chocolate bars and they were a big hit.
Hi - I would love to make these this year and I was wondering if when you say ring pretzels are they the same as the twisted ones (kind of look like a bow or butterfly?). Thanks!
No, they are round pretzels. Usually out more during the holiday season.
Oreo Truffles are extremely easy to make and sinfully delicious to eat! As far as how fast you can get them into your mouth depends upon how fast you can make them! lol
Oreo Truffles:
1 (1lb) package Oreo cookies (grind to a fine powder)
1 (8oz) package Cream Cheese
Approximately 1 lb coating chocolate (milk chocolate)
Approximately 1/2 lb coating chocolate (white chocolate)
Combine Oreo cookie crumbs and cream cheese. Shape into about 1 inch balls and place on waxed paper lined cookie sheets. Refrigerate about 1 hour. Melt milk chocolate coating and dip each ball covering completely. Return to cookie sheets. Melt white chocolate coating and drizzle a squiggly line on top of each truffle. (I cut the corner out of a ziploc sandwich bag - just a tiny snip and fill with the white chocolate and drizzle). Store in refrigerator. Now the most important step - ENJOY!
This stuff all sounds great!!!! It is making me hungry....I also make the pretzel, kiss, m&m things...they are a huge hit with the teachers, neighbors...and my kids love to help with them!
I am intrigued by the pretzel rings...I don't think I've ever seen them! What brand carries these?
I have a home business that I make herb dips, soups, and a huge line of candies so usually our friends and teachers get these. I may have to branch out so they don't get bored! But who gets bored with food? :mrgreen:
I found the link for the pretzel ring candies. In my area, Jay's pretzels makes ring pretzels, but the local Jewel (an Albertson company, I believe) also carries a store brand of them. If you can't find ring pretzels, use waffle pretzels (they look like little grids.)
This is from Quick Cooking, now called Simple and Delicious.
This year I will be making Orange-Cranberry Scone Mix and Lemon and White Chocolate Icebox Cookie Mix, both in quart jars,
Spiced nuts, Key Lime Bites, Minty Hot Cocoa Mix, Martha Washington Candy and Fudge.
I will also be making Strawberries and Cream milk Bath Mix and about 50 Christmas cards.
This is as far as I've gotten in my planning. I have started on the cards already.
__________________ Dee
"Some succeed because they are destined to, but most succeed because they are determined to."
I always make these cookie/cracker things. I don't know what they're called. You make a peanut butter filled Ritz cracker sandwiches and dip them in chocolate. They're so good. Salty and sweet.
I would love the recipe for spumonic slices. I love Spumoni ice cream. It's so hard to find.
I might have to try those kiss filled pretzel rings for Halloween treats for my coworkers. I can get some orange and black M&Ms.
__________________ Heather Hawkins - Stampin' Up! Demo and new mom. I have the two best jobs ever! stampinheather.blogspot.com
I make all sorts of cookies like shortbread, decorated sugar cookies, pecan pie bars, Mexican wedding cookies, giant decorated cookies in pizza pans and molded cookies using Brown Bag Cookie molds. Then there are the candies like caramels, microwave fudge and nut brittles as well as toffee. Sometimes I make molded chocolates with fillings or a variety of truffles. Oven baked caramel corn and jello popcorn (microwave) are favorites too. I'm going to pick just a few of the favorites this year instead of making so many things.
I am planning on decorating candles in tins that I picked up on clearance after last Christmas. I need to decide what else to make.
I will definitely be making caramel corn again this year. As my nephew said, it's da bomb!
Thank you for listing the recipes and ideas. I would love the recipes for Orange Chocolate Meltaways and Orange Cranberry Scone Mix.
I can't wait to see the other ideas!
Here's the recipe. Enjoy!
Orange-Cranberry Scone Mix
Scones:
2 cups all purpose flour 3/4 stick butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup dried cranberries and softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 egg
2 teaspoons baking powder 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon orange extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Icing:
1/2 cup powdered sugar 3 teaspoons orange juice
1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
2.Mix together all dry ingredients for scones. Cut in butter with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Wisk together buttermilk, egg, orange peel and orange extract. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture. Stir until stiff dough is formed. Knead in bowl. Drop by 1/4 cupfuls onto prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Remove to wire racks: cool 10 minutes.
4. For icing, stir together powdered sugar and orange juice to make glaze. Drizzle over scones. Serve warm.
Makes 12 scones
We love these on Christmas morning with maple link sausage and hot coffee.
__________________ Dee
"Some succeed because they are destined to, but most succeed because they are determined to."
I had seperated the wet ingredients into another column but I see it all ran together. If it's confusing or you can't figure it out pm me and i will help.:-D
__________________ Dee
"Some succeed because they are destined to, but most succeed because they are determined to."
I am saving a file of all the recipes and ideas. I will post it on this thread and update it every once in a while.
I am SOOOOOOO glad I asked I have such great ideas swirling in my head now yay! I am only making things and baking this Christmas so I really want everything to be special. Thank you all for such awesome ideas!
EDIT: If you want to find the latest copy and you are using an IE browser, do a search for my name (upper right, edit, find) and the file will pop up on the page without too much searching (you may have to check a couple pages thats all
1 package (11-1/2 oz) milk chocolate chips
1 cup (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup whipping cream
1 tsp grated orange peel
2-1/2 tsps orange extract
1-1/2 cups finely chopped toasted pecans (I use pecan meal - it's ground to
powder)
Coating:
1 cup (6 oz) milk chocolate chips
2 tbsps shortening
or
1/2 - 1 lb. Coating chocolate (I use this)
Place chocolate chips in a mixing bowl; set aside. In a saucepan, bring cream and orange peel to a gentle boil; immediately pour over chips. Let stand for 1 minute; whisk until smooth. Add the extract. Cover and chill for 35 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken. Beat for 10-15 seconds or just until mixture lightens in color (do not overbeat). Spoon rounded teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Cover and chill for 5 minutes. Gently shape into balls; roll half in pecans. In a microwave or double boiler, melt chocolate and shortening or coating chocolate (If using coating chocolate you do not need the shortening); stir until smooth. Dip remaining balls in chocolate. Place on waxed paper to harden. Store in refrigerator. Yield: about 6 dozen. ENJOY!
The only thing I know for sure I'm making is Cowboy cookies. They are out of this world good. I could just kick myself for not buying the Cowboy stamp set SU had last summer. I did buy the cowboy set CTMH has so I will use that some how to decorate the box or tin whenever I decide what I'm going to use. I am always stumped on what to give DH's side of the family(they will tell you they don't "need" anything) so I may try to come up with a basket of homemade goodies instead of buying them something they don't really need.
Great thread by the way!
__________________ April
All children are gifted...some just open their package sooner than others. Check out my gallery
I'd love to see recipes for the jam. We have so many people at church we like to give gifts to and this would be great!
Hello, my friend! I actually just use the recipe that comes in the box of low sugar pectin... you can usually find it at Wal-Mart or the grocery store right next to the mason jars and canning supplies. The pectin comes with detailed instructions for everything and also a chart for all the ingredients for a huge variety of different fruit jams. Weirdly enough, we like the low sugar better than the regular. The process is super easy. We don't have any fancy canning equipment; we just cook the jam, then funnel it into 1/2 pint jars, and boil them in large pans on the stove, just like the directions say. We bought the strawberries at the farmers market this year (2 flats), then did all 45 jars in one afternoon... probably just a few hours. Not a bad time investment for getting all those gifts done!
You can always buy a few jars, then make one batch and see how you like it first.
__________________ Paper Crafts Go-to-Gal member #1507gallery witticisms... a witty blog
Would love the recipe for the mason jar cake and cowboy cookies!
Here are the recipes and ideas so far in a text file. I will try to keep it updated. If the ladies who PMd me can grab it here it will make it a bit easier for me if you don't mind
If anyone minds being in this document please let me know and I will remove your name and recipe.
I also wanted to add my recipe for Naughty Bum cookies. They are rated PG so don't look at the pic if you mind seeing bums! I made these for a Christmas ladies night party.
INGREDIENTS
1 cup white sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, butter, cream cheese, salt, almond and vanilla extracts, and egg yolk. Beat until smooth. Stir in flour until well blended. Chill the dough for 8 hours, or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough 1/3 at a time to 1/8 inch thickness, refrigerating remaining dough until ready to use. Cut into desired shapes (here I used a heart cookie cutter and then cut the pointy end off before cooking) with lightly floured cookie cutters. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Leave cookies plain for frosting, or brush with slightly beaten egg white and sprinkle with candy sprinkles or colored sugar.
Bake for 7 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until light and golden brown. Cool cookies completely before frosting.
Royal Icing
(Joyofbaking.com)
2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 cups (330 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted
In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the egg whites with the lemon juice. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined and smooth. The icing needs to be used immediately or transferred to an airtight container as royal icing hardens when exposed to air. Cover with plastic wrap when not in use.
The proper consistency is when the ribbon of icing that falls back into the bowl remains on the surface for about 5 seconds before disappearing. I used gel paste food coloring.
Thanks for putting everything in a file that will be so helpful! Here is the recipe for the cowboy cookies.
Cowboy Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease baking sheets. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Gradually stir in the sifted ingredients. Stir in rolled oats and chocolate chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing.
**I bake mine for exactly 8 minutes and take them out before the start to brown much. I find they stay soft longer this way. This makes a lot of cookies so when I'm just baking these for my family I make some then refrigerate the dough and bake more a few days later. Enjoy!
__________________ April
All children are gifted...some just open their package sooner than others. Check out my gallery
Suzy_H, when I opened the link to your cookies, I thought they could also be decorated as bras and used for breast cancer support functions!
Thanks for sharing your recipe and picture of the finished product.
Ladies, I am drooling over the recipes posted and am loving the ideas here. Thank you!
Hi Kath
I have done bras too and they do look great. If you cut a different way you can even do straps although they cracked off a lot - strapless worked better lol.
I'd like to see the recipe for strawberries and creme milk bath that cookiemonster posted.... Please...............................
This is so easy and I've given it to my SIL's for Christmas for the last two years in boxes of other homemade stuff. Every year they ask if I will make it for them again. They are not crafty so they have no idea how easy it is.
Strawberries & Cream Milk Bath Mix
1 cup powdered milk
3/4 cup sea salt
1/4 teaspoon strawberry essential oil
Place milk and salt in a large bowl: mix well. Scoop out about 1/2 cup and place in a small bowl. Sprinkle oil over top of mix: stir well. Add oil mix back to large bowl and mix well. Store in an airtight jar. Attach a gift tag with instructions.
Instructions: Scoop out 1/4 cup and dissolve under running bath water.
I put this in a pretty jar tied with a beautiful ribbon and tucked into a basket filled with bubble bath, lip balm, homemade soaps and a net bath puff.
__________________ Dee
"Some succeed because they are destined to, but most succeed because they are determined to."
WOW! I am loving this thread! I am SO going to make those M&M pretzel things! And maybe the oreo truffles, I love oreos. I am making name frames for the married cousins this year and maybe great grandmas. I am having a baby in 4 weeks so I will probably be giving pictures as presents to grandparents and great-grandparents.
Last year, I made dozens of chocolate dipped pretzel rods - dip the top in chocolate and then roll them in either sprinkes, chopped nuts, heath bars, you name it -- I put them in cellophane bags and made pretty bag toppers for them (wish I had taken a picture of them!). They were a huge hit and SO easy!
I did the same last year, and you are right, they were a hit with my recipients also. In fact one relative said that was all he wanted next year was a big ole box of them!!!
I did the same last year, and you are right, they were a hit with my recipients also. In fact one relative said that was all he wanted next year was a big ole box of them!!!
I like this idea for coworkers! Sounds like it would be a big hit.
Regarding the pretzel rings. I saw this idea on the web last year to use the pretzel rings and coat them with melted green candy coating then decorate with tiny candies. Also make a bow with melted red candy coating and a mold. You could probably use the string licorice and tie a bow and attach with a dab of melted candy coating. My only problem was I can't find the pretzel rings. No one in my area has them and I struck on finding an online source to order from. Any ideas?
I did manage to find tree shaped pretzels in my area and they were fun to coat and sprinkle.
