As Christmas comes right around the corner, we are all preparing for some sort of gathering/party/family event for the holidays. Deciding what to bring to the event is sometimes a stressful task. Most people choose to bring either food or desserts. So I decided to gather up some ideas for Christmas Desserts/Treats for the holidays.

• Santa Hat Cupcakes: You don’t need to be a professional baker to create this dessert. All you need is:
• 12 Cupcakes- any flavor
• red frosting
• mini marshmallows- cut in half
• Wilton decorating tip #32
• Disposable frosting bag

Here’s how you make the Santa hat cupcakes:

1. Pre-cut your marshmallows in half.
2. Attach your tip and fill your decorating bag with red frosting
3. Make a circle base of frosting on your cupcake (see photo below)

4. Next, add the mini halved marshmallows around the ring.

5. Then fill in the circle with frosting and go around and around making the Santa hat.
6. Top the Santa hat with a mini halved marshmallow as the ball on the top.
7. Set the cupcakes in the fridge to set up a few minutes before serving.
8. And here is how your Santa Hat Cupcakes should turn out:

• Soft Baked Gingersnap Cookies: If you’re looking for an easier route to go on for Holiday Desserts, this treat is an excellent choice. First, you will need:
• ½ cup (1 stick or 8 Tbsp.) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ cup molasses
• 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ cup+ granulated sugar for rolling

Here are the steps you will need to take to make these cookies:

1. Cream butter and brown sugar together until fluffy. Mix in egg, vanilla, and molasses until completely combined.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Add to wet ingredients until combined. CHILL dough for 2 hours or overnight.
3. Once chilled, roll dough into 1 ½ inch balls (about 1 ½ Tbsp. each), roll in sugar and place on silicone lined baking sheet.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake cookies for 8 to 9 minutes. Keep extra dough cold until it is baked. For a crispier gingersnap, bake a few minutes longer. Allow cookies to rest on the baking sheet for a couple minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 5 days.

• Snowball Christmas Cookies: These cookies don’t really look like cookies; they look like snowballs. That is why their name is the Snowball Christmas Cookies, but they look more like a Christmas cake-pops. Here is the ingredients you will need to make these snowballs:
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened slightly
  • 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 cups organic all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups finely chopped walnuts
  • 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar

Preparation:

1. Using an electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attached, or a handheld electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the vanilla and salt. And then gradually add flour to the mix. Stir in the nuts; mix until fully incorporated. Divide the dough in half and refrigerate in plastic wrap for approximately 45 minutes.
2. Arrange oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat it to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Measure dough using a small, 1-inch spring-loaded scoop making sure each scoopful is level. Roll dough between palms of hands to achieve a small rounded ball.
3. Place dough balls 1 ½ inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake in preheated oven until the cookies are just beginning to brown, about 12 to 14 minutes. Do not over-bake. The underside of the cookies should be only lightly browned. And, the cookies should not crack-a sure sign of over-baked teacake cookies.
4. Cool the cookies on baking sheets on wire racks for about 2 minutes. Remove cookies form the baking sheets using a metal cookie spatula. While cookies are still warm, gently roll them in the confectioners’ sugar. Place the sugar-coated cookies on wire racks to cool completely. Roll cookies once again in the confectioners’ sugar.

Those are just a few ideas for your holiday events, there are many more ideas on Pinterest as well. I hope you guys have an awesome Christmas and that y’all have fun baking during this season.