Chocolate Covered Snow Peaks

When my friend Julie sent me this recipe I was really excited! I love working with meringue...I think it's so fun. These were a great addition to my cookie tray. They were light and airy in contrast to most of the other decadent treats I've made this year. They pair perfectly with a hot cup of tea and are just a great little addition to a cookie tray.
Ingredients
Source: Tyler Florence

4 large egg whites at room temperature
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons superfine granulated sugar (I used regular granulated...not superfine. This worked fine)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I used clear)
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips
Directions

Preheat oven to 225 degrees F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat egg whites on low-medium speed with the whisk attachment until the whites become foamy. Add the cream of tartar and turn speed up to medium, beating until just fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, so it incorporates into the whites slowly without collapsing them. Once all the sugar has been added, add the vanilla and increase the speed to high, whisking until the meringue is firm and glossy, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Place meringue mixture into a piping bag with a medium-sized nozzle attached (I used a large star tip...I'm quite sure it was #32) Pipe 24 bite-sized "kiss"-shaped meringues onto the trays and place in the oven. Bake for 1 hour undisturbed then turn off heat and leave in the oven overnight to really dry out.

Melt chocolate over a double-boiler or in the microwave on medium power for 30 seconds. Holding each meringue by the peak dip the bases in chocolate so the bottom half of the meringue is coated. Let any excess chocolate drop off before placing on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Allow to set at room temperature - do not put in the fridge. Once set, store in an airtight container.

Eggnog Truffles

Last year I saw this recipe on Good Things Catered and wanted to try it as soon as it was posted. But I had already made my cookie trays and decided to put it on hold until next year. Well next year is here and I was so excited to try these. I absolutely love eggnog and truffles so how could I pass these up?

These are absolutely fabulous truffles. I was worried that the eggnog flavor wouldn't be strong enough but it totally was. It's the first flavor you taste when biting into it. And trust me, I know. I've bitten into (more than) a few of these since I made them!

These are the perfect truffles for your Holiday cookie tray as they bring all the delicious and reminiscent flavors of Christmas into a sweet little candy that no one can resist.

Ingredients
Source: Good Things Catered

14 oz. white candy melts (I used vanilla flavored)
1/3 c. eggnog (must be the full fat kind)
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
splash good bourbon (I omitted)
6 oz. dark chocolate

Directions
-In large (shallow and wide) bowl over pan of boiling water over medium low heat, combine white chocolate, eggnog, cinnamon and nutmeg.
-Stir until completely melted and smooth.
-Remove from heat, add bourbon, stir well to incorporate and place bowl in the fridge overnight (or until completely firmed, this will depend on temperature of fridge and deepness of bowl you placed mixture in)
-Remove bowl from fridge and roll tsp of truffle filling into balls.
-Place formed balls onto wax paper lined baking sheet and place in freezer.
-Meanwhile, melt dark chocolate, stirring until smooth.
-Remove truffles from freezer, roll to make sure evenness then dip into chocolate and sprinkle with decoration if using.
-Place finished truffle back onto wax paper lined baking tray and repeat with remaining truffles.
-Let stand for 1 hour or until completely dry and serve or package in airtight container for up to a week.

Yields about 50 truffles

Peppermint Bark

So I know there has been an influx of peppermint bark recipes these past few weeks. It seems like every food blog I look at has a recipe for peppermint bark. But alas, I made this anyways and wanted to share the recipe I used with you all.

To be honest, I haven't even tasted this. I don't like peppermint desserts and candies at all. But I know people do and I LOVE the pretty color it brings to the cookie tray. Plus, this could not be an easier recipe. From start to finish I had this done in less then 10 minutes which is very nice around the Holidays!
Ingredients
Source: McCormick

1 package (12 ounces) white chocolate chips
1 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Peppermint Extract (optional)
8 to 10 drops McCormick® Red Food Color or 8 to 10 drops McCormick® Green Food Color
1/2 cup crushed peppermint candies or candy canes
Directions
1. Microwave chocolate chips in large microwavable bowl on HIGH for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until almost melted, stirring after 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in peppermint extract, if desired. (I melted the chocolate over a double boiler. I used 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract and it made the chocolate seize up a bit...although I knew it would do this before I even tried. I don't think it affected the quality of the chocolate, just keep this in mind.)

2. Spread on large foil-lined baking sheet to 1/4-inch thickness. Add food color, drop by drop, over mixture. Using a wooden skewer, swirl color through chocolate. Sprinkle with crushed candies, pressing lightly into chocolate with spatula.

3. Refrigerate about 10 minutes or until firm. Break into irregular pieces to serve. Store in covered container at cool room temperature or in refrigerator up to 5 days.

Chocolate Covered Cherries

When my friend Julie sent me the link to this recipe...I was admittedly hesitant. I have never liked chocolate covered cherries but then again I've never had a homemade one either. Needless to say, I was intrigued by the recipe and decided to try it because I know many people do like these little treats for the holidays.

I am SO glad I tried it! These are really fantastic. After you let them sit for a week or so the filling gets all mushy and delicious. That combined with the dark chocolate shell just makes for a fabulous little treat.

I actually made this recipe two ways. One with regular maraschino cherries out of the jar, and the other with maraschino cherries that I soaked in a cherry liqueur for the adults. I haven't tried the ones with alcohol yet since they are still soaking, but I know we will just love those too!

Ingredients
Adapted from: AllRecipes

60 maraschino cherries with stems (I used stemless)

3 tablespoons butter, softened

3 tablespoons corn syrup (I used about 4 tbsp...3 wasn't enough for me as the mixture was still very dry)

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 lb. chocolate confectioners coating (I used dark chocolate candy melts)

Directions

Drain cherries and set on paper towels to dry thoroughly.

In a medium bowl, combine butter and corn syrup until smooth. Stir in confectioners' sugar and knead to form a dough. Chill to stiffen if necessary. Wrap each cherry in about 1 teaspoon of dough. Chill until firm.

Melt confectioners' coating in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Dip each cherry in by its stem, and place on waxed paper lined sheets. Chill until completely set. Store in an airtight container in a cool place. Best after 1 or 2 weeks.

Gingerbread Cake with Creamy Gingerbread Frosting

When looking for the perfect cake recipe for a holiday brunch, I found this Gingerbread Cake and thought it would be great and it certainly was. This was a great recipe. It was mildly spicy and the frosting was creamy and delicious with just a hint of ginger and spice.

Some things I found when making this recipe though, was that I probably shouldn't have covered the cake in fondant. The frosting was too smooth and sort of squished out the bottom of the cake. Also, I served this cake two days after I made it and while my guests thought it was great, I thought it was a bit on the dry side...but that was my fault.

Overall I thought this was a great recipe and one that I will definitely make again!

Ingredients
Source: McCormick

2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons Ginger, Ground
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon Cinnamon, Ground
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup molasses
2 eggs
1 cup boiling water
Creamy Gingerbread Frosting (recipe follows)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 2 (9-inch) round cake pans. Mix flour, baking powder, ginger, baking soda and cinnamon in medium bowl; set aside.

2. Beat butter, brown sugar and molasses in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well mixed. Add eggs; beat well. Add flour mixture alternately with boiling water, beating on low speed after each addition until smooth. Pour into prepared pans.

3. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely on wire rack.

4. Fill and frost with Creamy Gingerbread Frosting. Refrigerate cake until ready to serve.

Tips

Creamy Gingerbread Frosting: Pour 1 cup milk into medium bowl. Add 1 package (4-serving size) vanilla instant pudding mix, 1/2 teaspoon McCormick® Ground Ginger and 1/8 teaspoon McCormick® Ground Cinnamon . Beat with wire whisk 2 minutes. Gently stir in 1 tub (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed.

A Snowflake Cake

This past weekend I hosted a holiday brunch for some close family and friends. And of course, I had to make a cake. This was a gingerbread cake with creamy gingerbread frosting. The whole thing was topped in homemade fondant and the snowflakes were piped on the cake freehand with royal icing. I chose to use the rope boarder for the bottom, which I also did in royal icing.

If you're wondering why there is a big space at the top of the cake, that's because there was *supposed* to be a cake topper up there. I made a snowflake out of royal using the color flow technique however it was just too delicate and fell apart as I was taking it off the wax paper. Ahhh well, live and learn.

Besides the cake topper incident I was very pleased with the cake and had SO much fun making the snowflakes. After all, I am one of those rare breed of people who LOVES the snow and loved making my cake look all snowy! And, as I served this cake, snow started falling from the sky in droves which made for quite the conversation starter!

Chocolate Crinkles

These cookies were a delicious addition to my Christmas Cookie tray this year. They have just the right amount of sweetness and a lovely look with the crinkled top. They were also easy to make which is always important to me this time of year when everything is so hectic.

This is a great little cookie that is perfect for the holidays or any time of year

Ingredients
Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

4 eggs
1-3/4 cups granulated sugar
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
1/2 cup cooking oil
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup demerara sugar or turbinado sugar (I used granulated)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine eggs, granulated sugar, melted chocolate, oil, baking powder, and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined, scraping side of bowl occasionally. Gradually beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour. Divide dough in half. Cover and chill for 2 to 24 hours or until dough is easy to handle.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease a large cookie sheet; set aside (I didn't grease a cookie sheet but instead lined it with parchment paper). Place demerara sugar in a small bowl. Shape one portion of dough into 1/2-inch balls. Shape the remaining portion of dough into 1-inch balls. Roll balls in demerara sugar to coat generously. Place balls 1 inch apart on prepared cookie sheet. (I did not make two difference sized cookies. I did them all the same size, about 1 inch, which worked great for me.)

3. Bake small cookies in the preheated oven about 8 minutes or until edges are set and tops are dry. Bake large cookies about 10 minutes or until edges are set and tops are dry. Do not overbake cookies. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool. (Cookies will deflate slightly upon cooling.) Makes about about 72 small and 36 large cookies.

4. To Store: Layer cookies between waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Christmas Sugar Cookies

Since taking the Wilton class this past year, I've become much more comfortable with royal icing. So this year, I decided to decorate my Christmas cookie cut-outs in royal. For the snowflake design, I was totally inspired by these Gingerbread Snowflakes on Good Things Catered which are stunning. Overall I am pleased with the results, but doing so many different shapes and using so many different colors made this project very time consuming. Next year I still plan on using royal, but I think I will cut down on the quantity of different shapes and will allow more time for decorating. For my sugar cookies, I used this recipe which really has turned into my favorite in terms of taste and texture. They also freeze really well.

Candy Cane Cookies

When I saw these cookies on Good Things Catered, I knew I had to make them for my cookie tray this year.

While they were a bit on the time consuming side, I thought that they were totally worth it. They were nice and light with the perfect amount of peppermint. Not to mention they are totally adorable and add beautiful color and whimsy to any cookie tray.

These are now officially on my yearly Christmas cookie recipe list!
Ingredients
Source: Good Things Catered

1 1/4 c. sugar
1 c. butter, room temperature
1 egg
1/2 c. milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp peppermint extract
3 ½ c. all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp red food color (plus more to the color you desire) (I used gel color)

Directions
- Cream together sugar and butter
- Add egg, then milk, vanilla, and peppermint extract.
- Stir in flour, baking powder and salt.
- Divide dough in half.
- Stir food color into one half.
- Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. (I chilled overnight)
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- For each candy cane, shape one rounded tsp dough from each half into 4-inch rope by rolling back and forth on clean surface. (don’t use flour or it won’t stick to the other half) (I had to work on a very lightly floured surface because the dough kept sticking to my counter. This worked fine.)
- Place one red and white rope side by side; press together lightly and twist.
- Place on prepared cookie sheet; curve top of cookie down to form handle of cane.
- Bake 9 to 12 minutes or until set and very light brown.
- Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack and cool completely.

Christmas in January

My best friend and I both have hectic lives and don't live very close to each other, so every year our Christmas gift exchange has been on a delay! We usually celebrate sometime in January and switch back and forth between her house and mine. This year it was at my house and I really wanted everyone to relax and enjoy the night. I chose to make simple but delicious items, so I could spend more time chatting over a glass of wine and less time cooking! In addition, I left my Christmas Tree/Decorations up one more weekend so it would still feel Christmas-ey!

The Menu

Appetizer:
Spinach Artichoke dip served with tortilla chips

Dinner:
Chicken Francese
Penne with Alfredo Sauce, Shallots and green onions
Honey Yeast Rolls

Dessert:
Chocolate Brownie Cheesecake

It was a great night where we got to catch up, reminisce about old times and enjoy some great food and company.

Christmas Dinner

This year, I had my parents and brother over to my house to celebrate Christmas. It was a small and intimate party where we all had a lot of fun and ate a lot of quality food!

This is what was on the menu:

Appetizer
Brie cheese wrapped in a puff pastry with Apricot preserves

Dinner
Venison wellington with Gravy (the recipe is for beef wellington, but I used venison since my whole family adores it!)
Creamy Potatoes Au Gratin
Whiskey Glazed Baby Carrots
Homemade Pierogi
Honey Yeast Rolls

Dessert
An assortment of Christmas Cookies
Bûche de Noël

I wish I had set aside some time to take pictures so I could blog about all of these goodies, but dinner went so fast I barely had time to eat! So if you want the recipe for these, just click the link which will take you back to the original recipe.

And since I didn't get a chance to say it before:

I wish you all wonderful holiday season and a very happy New Year!

Bûche de Noël

And I look ridiculous in this picture, no makeup and exhausted from cooking/baking all day....but my husband insisted on taking it because he was very proud of me and my Bûche de Noël!!!


For Christmas this year I decided to make a Bûche de Noël. I remember in 9th grade French Class my friend and I had to make one for class and it turned out horrible. It was pretty bad tasting and the ugliest thing ever. So now that I know a little more about cooking and baking, I was really excited to give it a go this year!

I'm very pleased and proud to say it came out awesome!!! Time consuming, yes. But it was WELL worth it. Not only was the presentation lovely but the cake tasted just delicious.

I consider myself way more of a cook than a baker...baking tends to intimidate me. So when this came out good I was just more than proud! Ok, ok...enough of tooting my own horn! Here's the recipe! I followed it *almost* exactly. The only thing I did different was the chocolate hazlenut mousse, which I'll note in the recipe.

Ingredients
Adapted from Mary Bergin, www.Foodnetwork.com

For the Cake layer:

• 6 eggs, separated
• l/4 cup plus l tablespoon granulated sugar
• l/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted

Directions

Butter a jelly roll pan, line with parchment paper, butter the paper and sprinkle with flour, tapping to remove excess flour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of the sugar. Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until soft peaks form. Turn the machine up to high, and beat in the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar, continue to beat until shiny but not stiff. Add the flour to the yolk/sugar mixture and whisk to combine. Add l/4 of the egg whites to the yolk mixture, whisking to lighten the mixture. Then return the yolk mixture to the egg whites, and fold gently. Scrape into the prepared pan and even the top by running a long offset spatula across the surface. Bake until cake is golden brown and springs back when lightly touched, l2 to l5 minutes. Cool on a rack. Set aside.

For the Hazelnut Mousse:

• l l/2 cups heavy cream
• 5 ounces hazelnuts, toasted
• 5 ounces milk chocolate, cut into small chunks
• l tablespoon hazelnut oil

Place cooled hazelnuts on a kitchen towel and rub together to remove skins. Place the skinned hazelnuts in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for l minute. Add the hazelnut oil through the feeder tube and process until a paste forms.

Melt chocolate in a medium bowl placed over simmering water, or melt in a microwave oven. Add the melted chocolate to the hazelnut paste and set aside.

Whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Fold in the hazelnut/chocolate mixture. Keep covered in the refrigerator until needed.

I read in one of the comments on food network to just use nutella instead of roasting the hazlenuts and everything. And since it's Christmas and I was in a bit of a time crunch, I just did that instead. I used about 3/4 of a jar of nutella, melted it in the microwave and then folded it into the whipped cream. It worked out totally great. It still maintained a great consistancy and tasted wonderful!

To assemble the cake roll:

Trim the edges of the sponge cake. Place the Hazelnut mousse on the cake layer. Spread the mixture evenly over the cake, leaving a l inch space along the long side. Using the parchment paper to aid you, carefully roll up the cake into a thick log, enclosing the mousse. Leave the wrapped, rolled-up cake on the sheet pan and refrigerate until filling is firm, at least 2 hours.

For the Chocolate Frosting:

• 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
• 8 ounces unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• l/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• l/2 cup water or strong coffee
• l/4 cup sour cream
• Melt the chocolate. In a small pot, heat the coffee and cocoa. Add the sour cream. In the bowl of a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add the chocolate mixture and combine completely. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside until of spreading consistency.

For the Meringue Mushrooms:

• 4 large egg whites
• l cup granulated sugar
• l/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• About 5 ounces semisweet chocolate
• Sifted unsweetened cocoa

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line l or 2 baking trays with parchment paper and set aside. Fit a large pastry bag with a #4 or #5 plain tip and set aside.

Beat the egg whites on medium speed until frothy. Turn speed to high, slowly pour in half the sugar, add vanilla and continue to beat for l minute. Slowly pour in the remaining sugar and beat until the whites are very thick and shiny, about 3 to 4 minutes longer. Immediately spoon half the mixture into the prepared pastry bag. (Meringue will begin to break down if not used soon after it is ready.) Hold the pastry bag upright over the prepared baking trays, squeeze out 26 to 30 mushroom caps, making different sizes, placed about l inch apart. The caps can be different sizes, since real mushroom caps are never identical.

Again, holding the bag upright over the other tray, lifting the bag as you squeeze out the meringue, form 26 to 30 stems, each l/2 inch to l inch high, placed about l inch apart.

Place the trays in the oven and bake until the meringues are firm to the touch and can be lifted easily from the trays, about l l/2 hours. The meringues should be dry, but should not take on any color. Remove the trays to a cool dry spot. When cool, with a small knife, trim any pointed tips on the caps and stems, if desired.

Melt the chocolate in a small bowl, and holding the caps upside down, spread a little chocolate on each one. Attach a stem and leave them upside down until the chocolate hardens. When ready, turn mushroom cap side up, and dust lightly with sifted cocoa.

Set aside until ready to use for decoration.

To decorate and serve:

Remove pan with cake from refrigerator and place wrapped cake on a firm surface. Carefully unwrap cake. Using a serrated knife, from one end cut a 2-inch piece of cake on the diagonal. Set the cut piece aside.

Cut out a piece of cardboard the length and width of the cake. Cover the cardboard with foil and place the cake on it. Spread a little frosting on the bottom of the small cut piece and set on top of the cake roll. Using a small spatula, spread the frosting over the entire cake as well as the small piece atop the cake. With a wooden skewer or the point of a small knife, make furrows to simulate bark along the sides and top of the cake.

Arrange Christmas greens, plastic holly, and Meringue Mushrooms around the Yule Log. Sift powdered sugar over the whole thing to simulate snow. Fresh cranberries can be scattered around for added color.

Christmas Cookie Trays

Every year I give cookie trays to my friends and family. Here are 3 that I made up last night. One for my parents, one for my in laws and one to bring to work. Everyone always loves them and while they are a lot of work to make, they are so worth it!

I wrap each tray in plastic wrap, and tie with a decorative bow made from some pretty ribbon. I then tie a handmade gift card to each tray, so I know who's is who's!

Homemade Marshmallows dipped in Chocolate

I wanted to put one more item on my Christmas cookie tray this year, and I thought homemade marshmallows would be the perfect addition. I had so much fun making these. My Kitchen Aid mixer got quite the workout, but I really enjoyed forming these and then dipping them in chocolate. I thought they came out great...there's nothing like a homemade marshmallow!

Ingredients
Adapted from Alton Brown

• 3 packages unflavored gelatin
• 1 cup ice cold water, divided
• 12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• Nonstick spray

Directions

Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by.

In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.

Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

For regular marshmallows:

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.

When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

For miniature marshmallows:

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Line 4 half sheet pans with parchment paper, spray the paper with nonstick cooking spray and dust with the confectioners' sugar mixture.

Scoop the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round piping tip. Pipe the mixture onto the prepared sheet pans lengthwise, leaving about 1-inch between each strip. Sprinkle the tops with enough of the remaining cornstarch and sugar mixture to lightly cover. Let the strips set for 4 hours or up to overnight.

Cut into 1/2 inch pieces using a pizza wheel or scissors dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining sugar mixture and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

To dip the marshmallows, all I did was melt chocolate chips over a double boiler with about 2-3 tbsp of shortening. Then, I piped a white chocolate decoration on the top!

Ginger Chocolate Chip Bars

I found this recipe in my Real Simple magazine, and knew I had to make it. I loved that I could freeze them first and then bake them when ready. Plus, my husband loves ginger-anything and chocolate, so I knew he'd love them. I baked them from frozen and they turned out just great. Like I thought, my husband raved over them. They had just enough spice to make them the perfect addition to any Christmas cookie tray.

Ingredients
Adapted from Real Simple

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Heat oven to 350° F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and line it with 2 crisscrossed pieces of parchment paper, leaving an overhang on all sides. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat to combine. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Cool completely in the pan, then cut into 32 bars (8 rows by 4 rows).

To Wrap: The tight seal on a take-out container will keep the bars moist and chewy. (Soak containers in warm, soapy water to remove glue from labels.) Wrap with a bow and personalize with a handwritten sticker.

To Freeze: Instead of baking the batter, freeze it in the pan for up to 2 months. To bake, follow the recipe instructions, baking from frozen, and use the upper end of the time range.

Yield: Makes 32 bars

Bailey's Irish Cream Truffles

Again, I used my "base" recipe for Chocolate Truffles but changed up the flavors a bit. This truffle was really good, but I was a little disappointed with the fact that the coffee and Bailey's weren't as strong as I would have liked. I think next time I will use instant coffee in order to achieve a higher coffee flavor. But, all in all, they were really good and I'm not giving up on this flavor just yet!

Ingredients
Adapted from Ina Garten

• 1/2 pound good bittersweet chocolate (recommended: Lindt)
• 1/2 pound good semisweet chocolate (recommended: Ghiradelli)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2-3 tablespoons Bailey's Irish Cream
  
• aprox. 3 tablespoons brewed coffee
  

Directions

Chop the chocolates finely with a sharp knife. Place them in a heat-proof mixing bowl.

Heat the cream in a small saucepan until it just boils. Turn off the heat and allow the cream to sit for 20 seconds. Pour the cream through a fine-meshed sieve into the bowl with chocolate. With a wire whisk, slowly stir the cream and chocolates together until the chocolate is completely melted. Whisk in the Coffee and Bailey's. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour.

With 2 teaspoons, spoon round balls of the chocolate mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper. Roll each ball of chocolate in your hands to roughly make it round. Dip in melted semi sweet chocolate over a double boiler and put on wax paper, and if desired pipe melted white chocolate tinted green over the top of the truffles. These will keep refrigerated for weeks, but serve them at room temperature.

English Toffee

My aunt absolutely loves English Toffee, so when I saw this recipe on the wrapper of my 60% Cacao Ghiradelli bars (I know, of all the places to find a recipe!), I thought I'd give it a try for her! I had all of the ingredients, and even though I don't own a candy thermometer, I thought I'd give it a go. This came out *so good*. Even my husband who says he doesn't like Toffee really enjoyed it. In fact, after the first batch came out so good I made a second without the pecans for people who don't like (or can't eat) nuts. This one is for the archives!

Ingredients
Adapted from Ghiradelli

• 8 ounces 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Bar
• 3/4 cups pecans, finely chopped
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/8 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. Toast the chopped pecans on a baking sheet in the oven for 6 to 8 minutes, or until fragrant. With heavy-duty aluminum foil, form a 10-inch square shell with 1-inch high sides. (I lined a 13x9" baking dish with 2 layers of foil) Place the foil shell on a baking sheet, and set aside. In a heavy saucepan, cook the butter, sugar, water, and salt over medium heat until the temperature reaches 305F (hard-crack stage), stirring occasionally (watch closely after it reaches 290F because the temperature will increase rapidly). When the mixture becomes dark golden brown, immediately remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the vanilla extract. Pour the mixture into the foil shell. It will spread but may not reach the edges of the square. Cool at room temperature for 45 minutes, or until hard. Melt the chocolate according to instructions on the side of package. Spread melted chocolate over the cooled toffee, and sprinkle with the pecans, pressing lightly to set pecans into chocolate. Let set at room temperature 1 hour, or until the chocolate is set. Break toffee into pieces. Store covered at room temperature for up to 1 month.

Peanut Butter Balls

Some of my fondest childhood memories are from Christmas time, one of them being making Peanut Butter Balls with my mom. It was, and still is, the treat I most look forward to during Christmas. Where she got the recipe or learned to make them, I have no clue. Mom doesn't really make PB balls any more...she says she just likes eating mine instead. So here is my "recipe" and even though they super easy to make, they are a treat that most everyone will enjoy!

Ingredients
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup butter
3-4 cups Confectioners (powdered) sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
aprox. 1 bag of semi sweet chocolate chips
1-2 tbsp shortening (I use Crisco)

Directions
Melt Butter over medium heat in a medium saucepan. Add peanut butter and vanilla until very smooth. When smooth, add confectioners sugar a little at a time until one large "ball" forms and the mixture is hard to stir. When thoroughly combined, set aside to cool.

When the mixture is warm but not hot, lay out a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Form balls out of the Peanut butter mixture, and place in rows on the lined cookie sheet. Let cool completely.

Over a double boiler, melt semi sweet chocolate chips with Crisco. Stir the mixture every so often, and when completely combined and smooth, dip Peanut Butter balls into the chocolate, then back on the cookie sheet using a spoon. Allow the chocolate to set up completely before serving.

Notes:
This great little tool is what I use to measure things like Peanut butter, honey, and other sticky things! I love this kitchen tool and use it quite a bit.
Make sure your Peanut butter and butter are completely smooth before adding Confectioners Sugar!
After adding Confectioners sugar, your peanut butter should look like this: