Kraft Foods has some amazing ideas and recipes to make and give during this Christmas Holiday!
Do you love to give homemade goodies as gifts? Handmade gifts from the kitchen such as cookies, candies, snack mixes, spreads and seasonings are sure to please anyone on your list. They also make a great hostess gift as you visit friends and loved ones over the holidays.
Check out these recipes and shortcuts from Kraft Foods for all kinds of yummy gifts. At the end you will find smart tricks for wrapping, packing and shipping these treats.
The perfect hostess gift to take when you aren’t making the main holiday meal, this chutney can go with turkey, chicken or pork.
One bite is enough to convince you that these curried cashews are a great gift; maybe for you, too.
Who says gifts from the kitchen need to be sweet? A seasoning blend to use any day of the year is the perfect gift: be sure to include the recipe so the recipient can make it again.
Salted Chocolate-Covered Caramels
Three ingredients come together to create the most elegant gift imaginable.
Make ’em
You can adapt almost any goodie to give it a special holiday feel. You can add pinches of nutmeg and cloves to the cinnamon sugar for your snickerdoodles. Another idea is to sprinkle crushed candy canes over brownies.
Need more ideas for edible gifts? Try one of Kraft Foods top 10 recipes—complete with printable gift tags. Remember that not all gifts need to be sweet: The Curried Cashews and Italian Parmesan Seasoning are perfect examples of savory options.
Fake ’em
We’re not all bakers, especially not me! Thankfully Morgan is though haha! Even those of who do love to bake don’t have the time during the holidays. Special treats don’t have to start from scratch though. Add a handful of seasonal-color chocolate candies to Planters Trail Mix. Dip a few Oreo Cookies in Baker’s White Chocolate. Use prepackaged frosting tubes to draw scarves and mittens on Teddy Grahams Honey Graham Snacks. And if you want to give someone else a head start on baking, try layering the dry ingredients for a recipe in a mason jar. Tie a ribbon around the mouth of the jar and attach a card with instructions—you’ve just given someone the gift of free time.
Pack ’em
If you’re hitting the road with your treats, or if you plan to mail them, choose your recipes accordingly. Chewy cookies, bars and snack mixes travel well; frosted, filled or intricately cut cookies don’t. Sometimes a simple switch turns a delicate goodie into a sturdy traveler.
- If you bake chocolate kiss cookies, for instance, press the chocolate in upside down so the cookies will stack easily.
- For party favors, hit your neighborhood thrift store for pretty vintage teacups to hold cookies or snack mix.
- For a host gift, slip a resealable plastic of treats into a festive oven mitt.
- No matter how you package your treats, always let them cool thoroughly first.
Ship ’em
For mailing, place two cookies or bars back to back and wrap in plastic. Stack four to six of these bundles and wrap in aluminum foil. Pack your treats tightly in a box or tin with balled-up waxed paper or air-popped popcorn for cushioning. Place that container in a larger box padded with crumpled newspaper. Include a note card with both your address and the recipient’s in case the address on the outside of the box is damaged. Find more mailing tips to be sure your gifts arrive fresh and intact. And if you’re sending a care package to a service member overseas, check out this advice from the U.S. Postal Service.
Share ’em
Headed for a cookie exchange? Unless the host specifically asks you to, don’t divvy up your treats ahead of time. A last-minute addition or no-show might change the allotment. Do make copies of your recipe, including tips for storing and freezing, to hand out to other exchange-goers. Take extra containers with you; depending on the size of other people’s treats, that container for yours might not be big enough to haul everything home. If you’re the host, be sure to provide beverages for your guests to sip as they sample. Find more tips and recipes for cookie exchanges.
I posted this as a member of the Delicious Byte Blogger program. No compensation was received for this post. I may receive incentives later on.
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Yum!! That chocolate looks so good. Great tips and ideas!!
I’m awarding you the Stylish Blogger Award. You can pick it up at my blog when you’re ready. 🙂 http://jennsraq.blogspot.com/2010/12/stylish-blogger-award-wooohoo.html