Welcome to the weekend, friends! The cooler weather has certainly arrived here in Ohio and the chilly mornings have me dreaming of snowy days and cups of hot tea or peppermint hot chocolate piled high with whipped cream.

ON THE BLOG this week: Tart cranberries and spicy peppers mingle in this sweet and spicy Cranberry Pepper Jelly. Everyone goes crazy for this spicy jam at the very first bite!

Palmiers, Elephant Ears, French Hearts, Palm Leaves: whatever you like to call them, these cookies are in the running for my all-time favorite treat. Palmier Cookies are light, airy, buttery sugar-sprinkled cookies that only require two ingredients.

You’re going to LOVE this Creamy Cranberry Jalapeno Dip – it’s even better than Costco’s version that is so popular. This dip is lightly sweetened and balanced with just a hint of heat from the peppers. Served with crackers and pretzels or spread on toast, this is an unforgettable holiday treat.

Fluffy sweet potatoes with crisp edges are tossed with crumbled bacon and drizzled with balsamic glaze to make these roasted sweet potato bites.

Crispy roasted chicken thighs with red potatoes baked right along with the chicken make a delicious weeknight meal. The skin-on chicken thighs roast slowly and baste the potatoes as they cook. This process creates so much delicious flavor and could not be simpler.

Rich and delicious is the best way to describe creamed Brussels Sprouts with garlic and parmesan. Sprinkle them with bacon and you won’t want to share. If you are wondering where creamed Brussels Sprouts have been your entire life. Wonder no more, and go make these!

Five-minute fudge recipes are my saving grace this time of year. This creamy dark chocolate peppermint fudge is topped with crushed candy canes for a wonderful Christmas treat.

Peppermint mocha ice cream is a great way to enjoy your favorite Christmas flavors in a cold and creamy bowl of ice cream. Ice cream isn’t just for summer! My ice cream maker gets a year-round workout as I churn our favorite flavors of each season together.

What I’m CRAVING: This gorgeous raspberry pastry caught my eye this week and I immediately put puff pastry on my shopping list. It’s gorgeous and

Homemade Christmas Candy Roundup

Christmas time is here and my sweet tooth can’t be satiated. It’s a real problem over here. Here are all our Christmas candy recipes in one place in case you are in the same situation as I am!

All of these recipes are easy to make and perfect for little gifts for neighbors or friends. You can make a couple of these candy recipes and some cookies from our Christmas cookies roundup to put on a plate. We love sharing Christmas joy with our friends by making homemade goodies! 

So here are all our fudge, caramels, truffles and chocolates, and pretzel candies. All so perfect for a plate of holiday goodies!

Fudge

Classic Chocolate Fudge

An easy, no fail fudge recipe that only takes a few minutes to make. This fudge will satisfy even a chocoholic’s cravings! You could top it with crushed candy cane or Christmas sprinkles.

White Chocolate Cranberry Pecan Fudge

This fudge recipe is so festive with the dried cranberries and chopped pecans, and it’s so easy to make!

Rocky Road Fudge

All you need is 10 minutes, 4 ingredients and a microwave to make this easy rocky road fudge. I love all those chunks of deliciousness!

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Peppermint mocha ice cream is a great way to enjoy your favorite Christmas flavors in a cold and creamy bowl of ice cream.

Peppermint Mocha Ice Cream

Creamy peppermint with hints of mocha and chocolate is like having all of your favorite holiday treats frozen together. Ice Cream isn’t just for summer! My ice cream maker gets a year-round workout as I blend our favorite flavors of that season together.

I’ve heard people say that when trying to mix cocoa powder into milk or cream it can be lumpy or hard to get smooth. Let me help you with that.

When using cocoa powder and sugar together in a recipe, a trick I learned a long time ago is to whisk the cocoa powder together with the sugar.

Peppermint Ice Cream Recipes

Once the cocoa powder and sugar have been smoothly combined add the cream and milk, and warm through. Keep whisking so the sugar and cocoa powder can dissolve.

Add the vanilla and peppermint extracts when you remove the cocoa milk mixture from the heat. Let the mixture cool to room temperature before pouring it into the ice cream maker.

As you know, I love a great mint ice cream and Peppermint Candy Cane Ice Cream is a Christmas-time proof of that. And for more mint happiness, Fresh Mint Ice Cream is like no other mint ice cream you’ve tried in the past.

The most popular question I get is whether it’s possible to make ice cream without a machine. The answer is YES. You can make ice cream without a machine. Find the full directions here!

With over Read more

This creamy cranberry jalapeno dip is lightly sweetened and balanced with just a hint of heat from the peppers. Served with crackers and pretzels or spread on toast, this is an unforgettable holiday treat.

Creamy Cranberry Dip

As soon as I tasted the Cranberry Jalapeno Dip I shared with you last week, I knew I was going to be making it on repeat. I quickly discovered that by stirring it all together, versus serving it in the more striking layers, it was easier to snack on without the potential for crumbling crackers in the cream cheese.

I love the flavor combination but I just may love the festive holiday colors even more. You’ll just do a couple of things differently in this recipe, in order to achieve a perfectly spreadable creamy cranberry jalapeno dip.

I am a big fan of fresh or frozen cranberries. As I’ve said for years, stock up on cranberries while you can, my friends. I buy as many bags as I can get my hands on during the holidays and stash them in the freezer. You don’t need to do anything special with them. Just toss the bags in the freezer and use them while still frozen for any number of recipes.

You can make this with either fresh or frozen cranberries. I did find this to be a teeny tiny bit more crunchy when made with cranberries that hadn’t been frozen, but it honestly wasn’t noticeable to anyone but me. I’ll happily be making this with frozen cranberries throughout the year for every possible occasion.

Cranberry Jalapeno Dip Costco

Have you tried the Costco Cranberry Dip that everyone is talking about? Well, I did and it’s delicious. Guess what though? We like this one even better.

The Costco dip is made with both cream cheese and sour cream. It’s good, don’t get me wrong, but we found that we preferred using all cream cheese and just thinning it a bit with the reserved cranberry juice to achieve the desired consistency.

If you want a near-exact match for Costco’s recipe for cranberry dip, add ¼ cup of sour cream while beating the cream cheese smooth. Just be cautious if you add any extra cranberry liquids, as that will thin it out quickly. Add just a teaspoon or so at a time to keep the right creamy consistency.

Palmier Cookies are light, airy, buttery sugar-sprinkled cookies that only require two ingredients. 

Palmiers, Elephant Ears, French Hearts, Palm Leaves: whatever you like to call them, these cookies are in the running for my all-time favorite treat.

Palmiers

I can’t stop grinning tonight as I sit here and write about these flaky, sweet, French cookies. It turns out that I like Palmiers so much, I made a batch for my birthday in lieu of a cake a few years ago.

If that doesn’t say a lot about how much I enjoy these airy cookies, I don’t know what will. Not only are these the simplest cookies I have ever made, but from the very first bite, this became one of my very favorite treats.

What is a Palmier?

I’m introducing you today to the easiest cookie you may ever make. Not only are these cookies incredibly simple to make, but from the very first bite, this became one of my very favorite cookies.

It is almost absurdly simple to make these flaky, sweet, buttery, delicate cookies!

You only need two ingredients to make Palmiers: frozen puff pastry and plain white granulated sugar. Nothing fancy is required, no special tools at all.

Palmier Pastry

Take your puff pastry out of the freezer about half an hour before you want to start making the cookies.

You want it to be soft enough to unfold easily, but not so warm and soft that it sticks together. 30-40 minutes is just about right.

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