This easy baked Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip is the perfect holiday appetizer this season. Only a few simple ingredients (cheese, cream cheese, leftover cranberry sauce, cranberries and spices) to this savory hot dip. Ever wondered what to make with leftover cranberry sauce? This is the answer!

This cheese dip is one of my favorite holiday dip recipes! I love that it looks as festive as it tastes and the kids love that it’s the perfect combination of sweet and salty!

The holiday season is here and that means a lot of parties, get-togethers and food. From the family Thanksgiving dinner to the “favorite things party” with girlfriends, our calendar is packed. When I need to bring a dish to share, quick and easy recipes are the way to go… like this Baked Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip.

We Love Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip!

Our family has a list of recipes that are a tradition every year. It’s not the holidays without our best cheeseball, soft and chewy gingerbread men cookies, peanut butter balls, and the best Christmas cookies ever! So why do we love this savory cranberry dip?

• Easy to make: There are only a few simple ingredients so no running to a million different stores to get what you need.
• Sweet and Cheesy: The tangy flavor of the cranberries are balanced with the savory cheeses and then you get that hint of sweet from the cranberry sauce.
• Everyone Asks For the Recipe: I love that this is the dip we often get asked for the recipe, guests just love it!
• Uses Up Leftovers: I don’t know about you, but I’m often googling “what to make with leftover cranberry sauce” This festive recipe solves that problem!
• Make Ahead: This dip is easy to make ahead of time, so you can spend more time with your guests. See more below.

Ingredients for our Holiday Dip Recipe

• Extra-Sharp White Cheddar Cheese, grated
• Mozzarella Cheese, grated
• Cream cheese, 

Save this Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Muddy Buddy Recipe (also called Puppy Chow) for a quick and easy snack that no one can stop eating! No baking needed, and just a few ingredients from your pantry!!

I can’t think of a more popular holiday party snack than Muddy Buddies, made with Chex cereal coated in a chocolate, peanut butter and powdered sugar. But have you had our dark chocolate muddy buddies? The secret isn’t in chocolate chips, it’s actually in the peanut butter!

Ok, the 2 questions I always have to ask:
Did you grow up calling this addicting snack “muddy buddies”, or “puppy chow?” 

And 

Did you mix in a bowl or a large ziploc bag?

My siblings and I grew up saying puppy chow, but I mostly call it muddy buddies now. My mom would make a big batch, throw powdered sugar in a ziploc, add the chocolatey cereal and we would take turns shaking the snack to coat it in the powdery deliciousness. We couldn’t wait to dig in!

Ingredients for Dark Chocolate Muddy Buddy Recipe

• Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter & Co Spread: This is your main flavor powerhouse, combining intense dark chocolate with creamy peanut butter. It coats the cereal, binding the mix together and delivering a rich, slightly bitter-sweet taste that balances the sugar. 
• Butter: Adds richness and helps thin the chocolate mixture so it flows smoothly over the cereal. It also gives a softer bite and helps the coating stick. 
• Semisweet Chocolate Chips (or Peanut Butter Chips): Boosts the chocolate (or peanut butter) flavor and helps create a firmer coating once cooled. Semisweet chocolate adds sweetness without being too sugary, while peanut butter chips give a more nutty, creamy twist.
• Rice Chex Cereal: The crunchy, airy base. Its hollow squares trap the coating, creating little pockets of chocolate-peanut-butter goodness while staying crisp under the sugar. Corn Chex can also be used.
• Powdered Sugar: Creates that signature powdery, sweet coating. It also keeps the pieces from sticking together and adds a pleasant sweetness to contrast the darker chocolate. 
• Cinnamon Sugar: Adds warmth and a subtle spiced aroma that deepens the chocolate flavor.

How to Make Dark Chocolate Muddy Buddies

1. Melt: Add the dark chocolate spread, butter and chocolate chips to a microwave-safe medium mixing bowl and melt in 30 second intervals stirring frequently until creamy. You can also melt it over medium heat in a saucepan on the stove.
2. Coat: Add the cereal to a large bowl&nb

A 4-ingredient homemade popcorn seasoning recipe that will take the flavor of late-night snacking to the next level!

My family loves popcorn! A few years ago our friends told us that on days they don’t want to cook dinner they make protein shakes and popcorn, and we hopped right on that train! We usually stick to buttered popcorn or rosemary popcorn when it’s for dinner, but when it’s movie night our other favorites include marshmallow popcorn (Cade’s favorite), kettle corn (Carrian’s favorite) and caramel corn (the kids’ favorite!)

Caramel Popcorn Seasoning is a sweet popcorn seasoning that is easy to make and adds a delicious flavor to your homemade popcorn.  

Learning how to make flavored popcorn seasoning is super simple and it makes the perfect gift for neighbors around the holidays! Make popcorn at home today and try out my mom’s perfect caramel popcorn seasoning!

Ingredients for Homemade Caramel Popcorn Seasoning

Salt: Balances all the sugars, enhances flavor, and keeps the seasoning from being one-note sweet. It also makes the popcorn taste more snackable.

Powdered Sugar: Provides a very fine, quick-dissolving sweetness that clings easily to the popcorn. Its texture helps coat evenly without making the popcorn soggy.

Turbinado Sugar: Adds a light molasses flavor with larger crystals that give a bit of crunch. It brings a more complex sweetness than regular white sugar.

Light Brown Sugar: Contributes a deeper, caramel-like sweetness thanks to its higher molasses content. It gives warmth and a richer flavor that pairs really well with buttery popcorn.

How to Make Homemade Popcorn Seasoning

1. Blend: Add the 4 ingredients to a blender or spice grinder and blend until mixed well.

No-bake churro snack mix with Honeycomb cereal is a mouthwatering treat that’s both sweet and crunchy! Crisp honeycomb cereal coated in caramel and cinnamon-sugar tastes exactly like you’re eating a churro. The best part? No baking required!

I saw this on Facebook a long time ago and copy and pasted the recipe. It’s been hanging out in the notes on my computer without a source or a title but I decided to try it anyway! And ooooooohhhhh buddy! This sweet cereal snack is irresistible! I cannot keep my hands out of it!

We have yet to go wrong when it comes to cereal snack recipes. Whether it’s a sweet snack mix like our coconut sweet Chex mix or a savory snack mix like our smoked Chex mix, cereal just makes a delicious snack!

Combine cereal with churro flavors, and you can forget about it! We are obsessed with churro flavors here at Oh Sweet Basil. Why is it so dang good?! If you haven’t tried our churro chex mix or our churro rice krispies treat, do yourself a favor and try them! This Honeycomb cereal churro snack mix now takes its place on our long list of churro recipes on the blog!

Ingredients for No Bake Churro Snack Mix

All you need is a box of Honeycomb cereal, cinnamon sugar and a few ingredients to make a simple caramel. Here is everything you’ll need…

• Honeycomb Cereal: subtle sweetness with loads of surface area for the cinnamon sugar to cling to
• Light Brown Sugar: adds sweetness and caramel-y flavor
• Unsalted Butter: combines with the brown sugar to make the caramel coating for the cereal
• Light Corn Syrup: helps make the caramel smooth and glossy
• Vanilla: adds flavor
• Baking Soda: helps the caramel be soft and smooth
• Cinnamon Sugar: adds that signature churro flavor and texture

The measurements and details for each ingredient can be found in the recipe at the end of the post.

How to Make Churro Honeycomb Snack Mix

Snack recipes should be simple, and this churro snack mix couldn’t be easier! We will make a simple caramel and then toss everything together. Here are the steps…

1. Prep: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and pour the cereal into a large bowl.
2. Make the Caramel: Add the brown sugar, butter and corn syrup to a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly until the mixture comes to a boil, then let it bowl for a full minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and baking soda.
   • NOTE: The caramel will bubble up just like in our buttermilk syrup recipe, so make sure your pan is big enough.
3. Combine: Pour the caramel over the cereal and toss to combine.
4. Make the Cinnamon Sugar: Sift the

These Viral Candied Cranberries are a holiday hit! Sugared cranberries or Candied Cranberries are easily one of the most beautiful treats, made with only 3 ingredients! They are a sweet-tart snack that you’ll be popping into your mouth all throughout the party!

Last winter we went on a night hike to a Christmas star that’s lit up on a mountainside in Davis County, Utah. It was so much fun and the perfect way to bring a little magic to a mundane week. Afterwards we enjoyed a little birthday cake with a friend that was delicately decorated by their teenage daughter with candied cranberries!

Instantly I realized that I’d never shared our own recipe for the Viral Candied Cranberries!

Ingredients for Candied Cranberries

• Fresh Cranberries: These are the star of the recipe. Their natural tartness balances the sweet coating, and their firm skin helps them hold their shape during the candying process.
• Sprite: The soda acts as a sweet, citrusy soaking liquid that lightly infuses the cranberries with flavor and helps the sugar adhere. Its sugars also contribute to the sticky coating that allows the powdered sugar to cling.
  • NOTE: Any lemon lime soda works great — 7 Up, Starry, Fresca, even Mtn Dew would work. Just don’t use diet soda!
• Powdered Sugar: This provides the delicate, frosty coating. Its fine texture clings easily to the cranberries, creating that pretty snowy finish while adding a sweet counterpoint to the tart berries.

How to Make Sugared Cranberries

1. Prep: Preheat oven to 200℉ and the cranberries and remove any shriveled ones.
2. Soak in Sprite: Place in a bowl and cover with sprite. Allow to sit for 20 minutes and drain in a colander then pour back in a large bowl.
3. Coat in Sugar: Add the powdered sugar. Shake vigorously to evenly coat all berries evenly without clumps.
   • NOTE: If they look slimy, add more powdered sugar. They should look dry.
4. Bake: Using a slotted spoon, scoop the cranberries onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 200℉ for 3-5 minutes.

What to Do With Candied Cranberries (Besides Just Snacking!)

I love to put a bowl of these out during the holidays for the family or friends to snack on but they can be used for many things. They make a great topping for oatmeal or yogurt, and they add a delicious tart bite to a salad.

I’ve seen them used as a decorative garnish for holiday cakes or cupcakes as well just the one we had for my friend’s birthday. The