Ingredients
3 Tbsp Milk
6 Tbsp Salted Butter
11 oz Bag Kraft Caramel Bits (or 40 unwrapped caramels)
4–5 Cups Shredded Sweetened Coconut
4 oz Chocolate Almond Bark
Sea Salt
Holiday Recipes
For the last 22 years, BHMI has done a holiday treat contest and the winning recipe is shared with our customers and partners.
Directions
- Add the milk, butter, and caramel to a large pot set over medium heat. Allow everything to melt, stirring often so that the mixture does not boil.
- When the caramel is melted and smooth, add the coconut, starting with 4 cups. Mix together until the coconut is well coated with caramel. Add additional coconut as needed so that the coconut is well covered and not too “wet”.
- Scoop out a spoonful of about 1 tablespoon of the mixture onto wax paper. You can also use a small cookie scoop.
- Allow to cool completely.
- In a small bowl, melt the chocolate according to the package directions.
- Dip the bottoms of each macaroon into the chocolate, then set back onto the wax paper to dry. Drizzle with some additional chocolate and sprinkle with sea salt.
- Allow cookies to firm completely, then serve. Store at room temperature in an airtight container.
Ingredients
½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick) at room temp
½ cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp fine sea salt
1 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup spinach very finely chopped, use a sharp knife or food processor
1 cup white chocolate chips
½ cup pomegranate arils
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream together the room temp butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg, and vanilla. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and then add to the wet ingredients. Beat or stir until combined. Fold in the oats and mix until incorporated. Then fold in the finely chopped spinach and white chocolate chips. Mix well.
- Use a cookie scoop or a tablespoon to scoop out a spoonful of batter and roll into a ball. Place the balls two inches apart on the baking sheets. Press 6-10 pomegranate seeds into the top of each cookie.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes and transfer to wire racks for cooling. Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 cup roasted & salted pistachio nuts
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
Optional: 1-2 drops green food coloring
Directions
- Pulse pistachios in a food processor until small crumbs form. (¾ cup of very finely chopped nuts is needed) Beat the butter for 1 minute until smooth and creamy.
- Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract, then beat until combined. Add the flour, ¾ cup pistachio crumbs, and food coloring and beat until combined. The dough may not come together at first but keep mixing. The cookie dough will be thick. Cover the cookie dough tightly and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or longer.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside. Roll the cookie dough into balls, about 1 Tablespoon of dough each, and place 2 inches apart on the baking sheets.
- Bake the cookies until golden brown on the bottom edges and just barely browned on top, about 14-15 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack. Make sure cookies are cool to the touch before dipping in icing or almond bark. Dip or drizzle cookies in icing or almond bark and top with sprinkles if desired.
Brown Butter Icing (optional)
Ingredients
¼ cup unsalted butter (4 Tbsp.)
1 cup confectioners’ sugar 2 Tbsp.
Milk or heavy cream ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract - Slice the butter into pieces and melt in a light-colored pan or skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once melted, the butter will begin to foam. Keep stirring occasionally.
- After 5-6 minutes, the butter will begin browning and you will notice lightly browned specks begin to form and a nutty aroma. Once browned, remove from heat immediately and allow to cool for 5 minutes. (The butter will eventually solidify, so don’t let it sit too long.)
- After 5 minutes, whisk in the rest of the icing ingredients until smooth. Add more confectioners’ sugar for a thicker texture, if desired. Likewise, add more milk to thin out if needed.
- The icing will set after 1-2 hours. Cover leftover iced cookies tightly and store at room temperature for 1 day or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Cookies without icing can sit covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Ingredients
2 ½ cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½tsp.salt
¼ tsp. cinnamon
15 Tbl. Unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup+ 2 Tbl. Dark brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 ½ tsp. pure vanilla
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups white chocolate chips
1 cup dried cranberries, chopped
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.
In a medium-sized bowl whisk together the dry ingredients; set aside.
In a large bowl combine the butter, sugars, and vanilla; whisk until light and fluffy; about 2 minutes
Add the eggs and beat quickly -for only about 30 seconds – until they’re just combined. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes, then beat the eggs for another 30 seconds. Gently fold in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon, stirring only until the flour begins to disappear.
Fold in the white chocolate chips and cranberries.
Roll into balls and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 11-14 minutes, or until golden at the edges but still soft in the middle. Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
For Pecans:
4 cups pecan pieces
4 Tbsp. butter, melted
For Caramel:
12 Tbsp. butter
2 cups sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
For Candies:
1 pkg (24 oz) chocolate almond bark
Kosher salt (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 275°. Toss pecans in 2 tablespoons melted butter until coated. Spread pecans evenly on a cookie sheet and roast in oven for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.
Have ingredients ready before beginning caramel, as it will need constant attention. A heat-resistant spatula is highly recommended. The caramel forms better if the whipping cream is warmer than fridge temperature. I keep the measured cream on the stove near the pot as I’m cooking to get it to an appropriate temperature.
Whisk the cornstarch into the whipping cream.
In a medium pot, melt sugar over medium-low heat. As the crystals are melting, scrape the bottom (especially the edges) of the pot to keep the sugar from burning or gluing to the pan. You should not stop stirring/scraping once the sugar has started liquefying. Towards the end of melting, assist the melting of the remaining crystals by scraping them with the spatula.
Stir in the butter. The mixture will start to froth as the butter melts. Once the butter has melted, slowly stir in cream mixture.
Allow the mixture to boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Mix caramel with roasted pecans. Pour into a 9×13 pan (greased or lined with wax paper) and freeze overnight. Slice into squares of the desired size (around 1 square inch).
Melt chocolate bark. Dip squares into chocolate bark and place on wax paper. If desired, add a small amount of salt to each candy. Allow to dry.
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ cups brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup milk chocolate chips
¾ cup butterscotch chips
¾ cup Heath Toffee Bits
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with a Silpat baking mat or parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sea salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars together until light and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla extract. Beat for an additional 2 minutes.
Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Add 1/2 cup at a time. Mix until flour is just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and Heath Toffee Bits.
Drop about 2 tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheet, placing the cookies 2 inches apart. Bake for 11 minutes or until the edges are slightly golden brown. Remove from oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.
Ingredients
24 oz. Chocolate or Vanilla Almond Bark
26 oz. Pretzel Rods
Assorted Holiday Sprinkles
Directions
Melt almond bark as instructed
Stir almond bark until smooth
Cover ¾ of the pretzel rod with almond
bark coating
Add sprinkles
Let cool and dry
Enjoy!
Ingredients
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
1 ¼ cups sugar, divided
¾ cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 pkg (10 oz. or 1 ½ cups) Nestle Toll House Winter Dark Chocolate & Mint Morsels
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside
In a large bowl, combine 1 cup of sugar and the vegetable oil; mix well
Beat in eggs and vanilla extract
Gradually add the flour mixture
Stir in the Nestle Toll House Winter Dark Chocolate & Mint Morsels
Chill dough. Shape into balls, roll in remaining ¼ cup of sugar and bake on ungreased cookie sheet for approximately 10 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.
Ingredients
1 package white (vanilla) almond bark
1 9 oz. package plain or butter flavor puff corn (like Old Dutch, Chester’s, or store brand)
Holiday sprinkles as desired
Directions
Melt almond bark according to package directions. Pour almond bark over the puff corn in a large bowl or container with lid. Stir or shake to evenly coat the almond bark onto the puff corn. Lay out to dry on wax paper and immediately sprinkle with your favorite holiday sprinkles. Place in a sealed container when completely cool and dry.
Ingredients
6 candy canes, finely chopped (about 1/3 cup), divided
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
36 Oreo cookies, finely crushed
1 20-ounce package vanilla or chocolate flavored almond
bark, broken into pieces, melted
Directions
Reserve 1 Tablespoon chopped candy. Mix the remaining candy with cream cheese and cookie crumbs until blended.
Shape into 48 (1-inch) balls. Freeze 10 minutes. Dip balls in melted almond bark; place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet. Sprinkle with reserved candy. Let stand until almond bark coating is firm.
Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm. The cookie balls will keep longer if stored in the refrigerator or freezer in a sealed container. If not refrigerated, consume within one week.
Ingredients
2 cups sugar
2 egg whites (1/3 cup from a box)
2 cups brown sugar
4 tsp. vanilla
4 tbsp. cinnamon
6 cups raw almonds
1/4 tsp. salt
¼ cup water
Directions
Mix together in a large bowl sugars, cinnamon, and salt.
In another bowl with a whisk, mix together the egg white and vanilla until it is frothy. Add the almonds and coat thoroughly. This will help the mixture stick to the almonds during the cooking process.
Prepare a 6 quart slow cooker by spraying it with cooking spray. Add the cinnamon sugar mixture and the almonds to the slow cooker and turn it to low. Stir until the cinnamon sugar mixture is coated well on the almonds. Be prepared for your house to smell amazing!
Cook for about 3-4 hours. Mine took about 3 hours. Stir every 20 minutes. In the very last hour add water and stir well. This will ensure a crunchy coating and help the mixture to harden.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and spread the almonds onto the sheets to cool. The almonds should be pretty sticky so be sure to separate them the best that you can. Recipe makes approximately 12 cups.
Ingredients
½ cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 tablespoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup powdered sugar
Directions
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Pour powdered sugar into a bowl. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes at 350 degrees or until cookies are cracked on top. Makes approximately 2 ½ dozen cookies.
Ingredients
24 double-stuffed Oreo cookies
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons shortening
24 red maraschino cherries with stems, well drained
24 milk chocolate kisses
48 sliced almonds
1 small tube green decorative icing gel
1 small tube red decorative icing gel
Directions
Carefully twist cookies apart; set aside the halves with cream filling. Save plain halves for another use.
In a microwave, melt chocolate chips and shortening; stir until smooth. Holding each cherry by the stem, dip in melted chocolate and then press onto the bottom of a chocolate kiss. Place on the cream filling of cookie, with cherry stem extending beyond cookie edge.
For ears, place slivered almonds between the cherry and kiss. Refrigerate until set. With green gel, pipe holly leaves on the cream. With red gel, pipe holly berries between leaves and pipe eyes on each chocolate kiss. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Ingredients
¾ cup butter
1½ cups packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1¼ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
36 chocolate mint wafer candies (like Andes Crème de Menthe Thins)
Directions
In a large pan over low heat, cook butter, sugar, and water until butter is melted. Add chocolate chips and stir until partially melted. Remove from heat and continue to stir until chocolate is completely melted. Pour into a large bowl and let stand 10 minutes to cool off slightly.
At high speed, beat in eggs, one at a time, into chocolate mixture. Reduce speed to low and add dry ingredients, beating until blended. Chill dough about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Roll dough into balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake 8-10 minutes. While cookies are baking, unwrap mints and divide each in half. When cookies are brought out of the oven, put ½ mint on top of each cookie. Let the mint sit for up to 5 minutes until melted, then spread the mint on top of the cookie.
Recipe makes approximately 5 dozen cookies depending on size.
Ingredients
1 18.25 ounce boxed cake mix plus ingredients called for on box
1 16-ounce can prepared frosting
1 20-ounce package of vanilla or chocolate-flavored almond bark
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Directions
Bake the cake according to package instructions. While warm, crumble the cake into a bowl with a hand mixer to a fine texture. Mix in frosting to make a paste, using 3/4 to a full can of frosting, according to taste. Chill the mixture for at least 2 hours.
Using a cookie scoop or your hands, form the mixture into 1 ½ -inch balls. Place the balls on wax paper; freeze at least 6 hours.
Working in small batches, remove the balls from the freezer and dip the balls into warm, melted Almond Bark Coating, using toothpicks or forks to manipulate the balls. Remove the balls. Place the balls on wax paper to harden. Makes about 60 cake balls.
Almond Bark Coating: In a double boiler, melt one (20-ounce) package vanilla or chocolate-flavored almond bark, stirring constantly. Or, in a tall, narrow container, microwave almond bark for 45 seconds on High (100 percent power). Continue to heat in 15-second intervals, stirring between intervals, until melted; be careful not to scorch. When almond bark is melted, stir in 1-teaspoon vegetable oil.
Ingredients
½ pound softened butter
1-cup sugar
1-teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup buttermilk
1 egg yolk
2 cups flour
Toppings
1 unbeaten egg white
½ cup crushed walnuts
Directions
Mix softened butter and egg yolk together until blended. Stir in the sugar and cinnamon. Finally, cut in the flour with a fork until just blended and still chunky. Press flat into a 10×15 jellyroll pan. Brush with unbeaten egg white. Sprinkle walnuts over the top. Bake for 22 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cool, then cut into squares.
Ingredients
½ cup shortening
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
¼ cup buttermilk
1-¾ cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup halved candied cherries
(red and/or green)
1 cup chopped dates
¾ cup chopped pecans
36 pecan halves
Directions
In a small mixing bowl, cream shortening and brown sugar. Add egg and buttermilk; mix well. Combine the flour, salt and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in the cherries, dates and chopped pecans.
Drop by heaping tablespoons, 2 inches apart onto lightly greased baking sheets. Top each with a pecan half. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks. Makes 3 dozen.
Ingredients
2 packages white (vanilla) almond bark
1-12 oz. package white (vanilla or white chocolate) baking chips
24 Large peppermint candy canes (green & red colored looks the most festive). Crush candy canes. Reserve small amount of crushed candy for trimming.
Directions
Melt almond bark according to package directions. Add baking chips and melt until smooth. Add crushed candy canes. Stir.
Pour onto wax paper lined cookie sheet/jelly roll pan (or multiple cookie sheets, depending on how thick you want the bark).
Immediately sprinkle with remaining candy cane pieces.
Let cool. When completely cool and firm, break into pieces. Makes 5 pounds.
Ingredients
1 cup butter
1½ cups brown sugar
6 oz. chocolate chips
¼ to ½ cup finely-chopped nuts (optional)
Directions
Boil butter and brown sugar to the “hard crack” stage (approx. 300 degrees), stirring constantly.
Pour out on a buttered cookie sheet and spread around. Don’t get too thin or the resulting candy will be too fragile.
Immediately sprinkle with chocolate chips, and chopped nuts if desired. Spread chocolate chips over the hot mixture until the chocolate completely melts and forms a smooth layer.
Let cool (use the fridge or freezer to speed things up). When completely cool and firm, break into pieces.
Place waxed paper between layers when storing.
Ingredients
1 pkg. pretzel rings
1 (8 oz) pkg. HERSHEY’S HUGS
Holiday M&Ms (Green and Red)
Directions
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper or Release aluminum foil. Put a single layer of pretzel rings on top of wax paper. Unwrap HUGS and place one on each pretzel ring. Bake for about 8 minutes, until HUGS start to melt. Remove from oven and press an M&M on top of each candy, making sure the melted chocolate touches the pretzel all the way around. Cool on pan until the chocolate is solid again.
For extra variety, our recipe also works well with HERSHEY’S KISSES.
Note: Different varieties melt faster than HUGS; check frequently to determine optimum heating time.
Ingredients
1 cup flour
2 cups rolled oats
½ cup pecans
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
8 tbsp butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 egg
¼ cup maple syrup
½ tsp vanilla
¾ cup chocolate chips
Directions
In one bowl mix flour, oats, pecans, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.In another bowl combine butter and sugars, then beat in egg while drizzling in syrup and vanilla. Finally, combine dry bowl into wet bowl and add chocolate chips.
Mold cookie dough into 1¾ inch balls (a #24 scoop can be used here), and place them on a parchment‑lined or silicone baking sheet. Press down on the center of each ball to flatten.
Cook for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees.
The recipe makes about 20 cookies.
Ingredients
1 cup sugar
¾ cup Crisco (shortening)
1 egg
¼ cup molasses
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. cloves
½ tsp. ginger
½ tsp. salt
Directions
Blend all ingredients together.
Chill 2 hours.
Grease cookie sheet.
Roll into small balls and dip them into sugar.
Bake at 375° for 10 minutes.
Makes 5 dozen cookies.
Ingredients
1 ¼ cups (2 ½ sticks) of butter
2 cups of sugar
2 large eggs
1 tbsp of vanilla extract
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1 ¼ cups of unsweetened cocoa
1 tsp of baking powder
2 cups of white chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
In bowl using an electric mixer, beat butter with sugar at a medium speed until creamy.
Add eggs, beating at a low speed until combined.
Add vanilla, flour, cocoa and baking powder to mixture until combined.
Fold in white chocolate chips.
Roll into 1 inch balls and place on baking sheet.
Allow three inches between cookies.
Bake at 300 degrees for 16-18 minutes.
Let cool for ten minutes on baking sheet and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Makes 3 ½ dozen cookies.
