Monday, November 30, 2009

Fun holiday recipes

If you're hosting any parties, putting together a goody tray or packaging up some treat bags for the neighbours, I have a few easy/impressive ideas for you.

First up, Spicy Crab Dip in Wonton Shells:

Have you ever made these wonton shells? They're super-easy and make a great little cup for any kind of dip. To make them, you'll need some wonton wrappers (my grocery store has them in the produce department, about $2.59/package of 48), a mini muffin tin and some cooking spray.

Spray the muffin tin and push the wonton wrapper into the cups. Bake at 400* for 3-4 minutes (watch them, they start to get brown quickly). Remove them from the oven, let sit for a minute, then just pop them out of the muffin tin. Voila - fancy wonton shells.

For the crab dip, mix together:
1 8 oz. pkg cream cheese
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 tins of crabmeat, drained
1 cup mayo
3 green onions (white & green parts), finely chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2-1 tsp cayenne pepper (it has quite a kick with 1 tsp, so use a little less if you're not into spicy)

Put the mixture into a large ziploc bag and cut one corner. Squeeze the dip into the shells. Garnish with chopped green onion. Makes 48.


Next up, Chocolate Covered Toffee:

I used this recipe from Zoe Bakes, except I didn't have instant coffee granules, so I just brewed some really strong coffee and used that for the water. Don't be afraid of the candy thermometer - I bought one specifically to make this recipe ($3.99) and now I'm anxious to try other candy recipes. Seriously, nothing to fear.

Anyway, this recipe is delicious. It's a little time consuming with the stirring of the toffee and the dipping of each piece, but it's not at all difficult.

And finally, Chocolate-Dipped Pretzel Sticks:


There was some chocolate left over after making the above recipe, so I made these super-simple dipped pretzels. Just dip them in melted chocolate, then roll them in your sprinkle of choice. The one at the back of the picture has crushed peppermint candies. They're quite good with the bitterness of the chocolate, the salt of the pretzel and the sweetness of the sprinkles. And heck, they'll look great on a goody tray!

10 comments:

Fran said...

I am seriously considering chocolate pretzels this year in my goodie trays. They look really easy and they are super yum!!

Jess said...

OMG yum. These look delicious!

CAQuincy said...

Mmmmmm....chocolate covered pretzels.....

Nowheymama said...

Those appetizers are like crab rangoon from the Chinese restaurant! And I could totally make them dairy free with Better Than Cream Cheese! *bookmarked*

Astarte said...

These look YUM!!! I'm definitely trying the wonton cups!!!

bananafana said...

I'm so hungry! Those wonton cups look really good . . . now I'm looking for an excuse to make some

Amreen said...

that pretzel looks divine and so easy to make. My new House and Home mag declared salty sweet to be a big new food trend! you're a trendsetter :)

Not Your Aunt B said...

Yum, yum, yum! And easy to do. Thanks for the recipes. The choc pretzels is one of my faves.

Not Your Aunt B said...

Yum, yum, yum! And easy to do. Thanks for the recipes. The choc pretzels is one of my faves.

Glenda said...

I totally love, love, love the chalkboard door idea! I have a wall in our schoolroom that is donw with chalkboard paint, but have been longing for something on our main floor. That is perfect! Thanks for the great tip.