Sweet Ideas for the Holidays
Featured Recipes
Chocolate Orange Candy
Cream Cheese Mints
Pralines
Ultimate Sugar Cookies
Classic Thumbprint Cookies
Caramel Corn
Raspberry Linzer Rounds
Frosted Holiday Cut-Outs
Try some of these other delicious recipes for a cookie plate that will make Santa reluctant to go back up the chimney!
Candy
Homemade candies are a special part of the holidays. Anyone on your gift list can become a child again, and indulge those visions of sugarplums with sweet treats such as Chocolate Orange Candy, Cream Cheese Mints, and Pralines.
Another tasty holiday treat is homemade hard candy. Try this easy recipe (but be sure to supervise closely while the candy syrup is boiling).
Cut-Glass Hard Candy
3-3/4 cups granulated sugar
1-1/2 cups light corn syrup
1 cup water
1 teaspoon flavoring oil of your choice
1/2 teaspoon food coloring of your choice
Confectioners' sugar
Sprinkle a 12" by 24" piece of heavy aluminum foil with confectioners' sugar. Combine granulated sugar, corn syrup, and water in a large, heavy saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Boil without stirring until mixture reaches 310° F on a candy thermometer, or drops form hard, brittle threads in cold water. Remove from heat; add flavor and color. Pour onto prepared foil. Cool; break or cut into pieces and store in an airtight container.
Sweet and Savory Snacks
Caramel Corn will be gobbled up by the handful by the lucky person who receives it! Simply pop about 1 cup of popcorn in Crisco Oil and coat with caramel; pour into a baking pan coated with Crisco shortening or cooking spray, and bake in a 250° F oven for 1 hour, stirring the corn about every 15 minutes.
Cookies
Cookies and Christmas are a natural combination — the difficulty is in deciding what wonderful recipes to make. Here are some traditional favorites, plus a few new ideas to try for your cookie-baking, giving, and eating enjoyment.
Classic Thumbprint Cookies, Raspberry Linzer Rounds, Frosted Holiday Cut-Outs, and Ultimate Sugar Cookies are beautiful and festive cookies that are sure to draw oohs and aahs from family and friends.
Are Your Cookies Out of Shape?
Nothing is more frustrating when making beautiful cut-out cookies than having the cookies spread and lose their shapes in the oven. Spreading can be caused by a number of factors: too much shortening or liquid in the dough, too large eggs, too little flour, or a too hot cookie sheet. Avoid spreading by using standard measuring cups for accurate measure, using a liquid measuring cup, using large (not extra-large) eggs, and allowing cookie sheets to cool completely between bakings. For more tips on baking spectacular holiday cookies, look at our Cookie Baking Tips.
Presentation Is Everything!
Here are some suggestions for packaging edible gifts in appealing and unusual ways:
- Colored cellophane or plastic wrap with ribbons/bows in complementary colors is a festive, easy, and inexpensive way to make food gifts even more special.
- Instead of paper giftwrap, use pretty holiday-themed dish towels or napkins to wrap your edibles.
- Baskets always make for a lovely gift presentation. Offer "go-with" ingredients to your food gifts. For example, pair muffins, coffee cake, or sweet bread with gourmet coffees or teas, plastic gold spoons dipped in melted chocolate, jam or jelly, etc. Pair savory breads with chili or soup mix; there are many delicious packaged mixes to choose from at almost any grocery or specialty food store.
- Instead of baking quick bread or muffins yourself, package the Homemade Crisco Quick Bread mix in a pretty jar or container, and attach recipe suggestions.