As Requested, SIMPLE Holiday Recipes

Last week I spent Monday night making holiday desserts for our annual Christmas staff lunch at school. I had several requests to share my recipes, so here they are. I love to bake and enjoy making all kinds of candies and cookies for the holidays, but on a school night I am all about easy (but still yummy!) recipes.


First up: Hershey Kiss and M&M Pretzels
These are sooo easy and can be made in advance. I prefer to use the round pretzels because they contain the chocolate better and I am all kinds of crazy about things being neat/in order. I use parchment paper on my cookie sheets and put the pretzels with kisses in the middle in the oven for about 5 minutes at 170 degrees. The white chocolate ones will melt the fastest and the solid chocolate ones will take a little longer. After pulling them out of the oven and letting them set for a minute, I lightly press M&Ms in the center until the chocolate touches the edges. I also found that I could do a kiss by itself for slightly less time and still add the M&M to get cute little candies without the pretzels. I made them in peppermint, white chocolate hugs, and plain chocolate.

Next: I Love Chocolate Bars
I love brownies. I love chocolate chip cookies. What more is there to love? Chocolate frosting. YES! You could probably make this recipe from scratch, but Betty Crocker already does such a nice job, why bother on a school night? Prepare the brownie mix (I use the chunky box mix) and cookie mix (in the pouch) as directed. Spread the brownies in a pan like you usually do, but then drop spoonfuls of cookie mix on top. Lightly press the cookie mix down into the brownies. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. After they’re cooled, top with chocolate frosting (I prefer the dark fudge kind). Sometimes I’ll get fancy and use a thinner ganache on top, but not this time. I took the picture before frosting them so you could see the mix.


Finally: Chocolate Trifle
This one is deceivingly simple. Make a pan of chocolate cake (hello, again, Betty Crocker!) and let it cool completely. You’ll also need to prepare 8 ounces of chocolate pudding (Jello). Grab 16 ounces of cool whip, chocolate and caramel syrup, and your favorite candy bar (I use Reese Cups). Layer lots of crumbled chocolate cake, 4 ounces of pudding, 8 ounces of cool whip, both syrups, and candy in a large bowl (or fancy dish). Repeat. Done. Delicious.


What is your favorite holiday recipe? Share it here in the comments, I love collecting new favorites!