Yummy in My Tummy Gifts

I had some really big plans this year for some edible gifts for our teachers.  I was thinking outside the box.  I was planning it out over the course of several days.  And I was really excited about seeing it all come together.

Then life happened--a new baby arrived a few days early, the baby required daily blood work, our family was blind sided by a sudden death, and I had COMPLETELY underestimated the ramifications of having 3 children under 4.  :-)

Since I didn't want to show up empty handed, I resorted to some old favorites.  Chocolate dipped pretzels and hot chocolate.  If you haven't made chocolate dipped pretzels before, I would be completely shocked.  Maybe it's just where I grew up, but these were a must have favorite around the holidays...and they are too easy!  All you need are some Pretzel Rods, dipping chocolate (almond bark, chocolate bark, or candy melts), and sprinkles....oh, and I bought this little chocolate melter at JoAnn's....it's awesome.

I got the two tubs of sprinkles on the left out of the dollar bin at Target.  I got the Wilton sprinkles canister at Joann's.

I used both green candy melts and white almond bark...separately.  

And then it's nothing more than dipping the pretzel in the chocolate and sprinkling them with festive sprinkles.  I laid mine on parchment paper to set.  Once they were ready, I bagged them up in Wilton pretzel bags.

While the hot chocolate is just as simple, it didn't go as smoothly in my house.  Clinton was a big helper. Heidi Sage was a big mess maker.  (Full recipes posted below.)

At the suggestion of Deborah I ran all my ingredients through the Food Processor.  It made this...

...look like this.  Probably a little more conducive to dissolving quickly and without lumps.

I had this big guy helping me every step of the way.

Here's Clinton stirring it all up.

This is my kitchen wishing I would get a housekeeper.  :-(

These are my kids wondering what in the world we're doing with giant marshmallows on sticks.  And in case you're wondering why they are missing their clothes--well, they're messy helpers as my kitchen (pictured above) will attest to--and I like to keep their cute clothes looking cute.

So the giant marshmallows were to make hot chocolate stirrers.  You should definitely use coffee stirrers for the handle.  I used cocktail stirrers, and they are clearly made for iced beverages...not hot ones.

We melted some chocolate in our handy dandy Chocolate Melter.

And we used some peppermint candies for an extra touch...

...but first we had to run them through the food processor for a minute.

Once our chocolate was melted and our candies pelted, we were ready to go!

 We dipped.

...and dipped again.

And came up with these.

I used small Wilton treat bags to bag up the marshmallows, and larger ones to bag up the hot chocolate.  I also typed up, printed, cut out, and taped on the instructions on how to make the hot chocolate using our mix.

Then we bagged up the pretzels and the hot chocolate mixes into the Christmas Tree bags.  I included one of our Christmas cards and we were all set.

Maybe next year we'll be on better ground and I can plan out my awesome Gift Basket a little better.  But let's be very clear...NO ONE complained about these treats.  So if you're looking for something yummy to whip up for the neighbors or Sunday School class or whoever you like to share things with, then these are definitely worth a try.

And for the Hot Chocolate recipes...

Gourmet Hot Chocolate Mix

1 1/2 C. plus 1 T. powdered instant dry milk

1 C. powdered coffee creamer

1 C. powdered chocolate flavored drink mix

3/4 C. powdered chocolate malted milk flavored drink mix

1/2 C. powdered sugar

In a large bowl, combine the above ingredients and stir until the mixture is well blended.  Place mixture in serving containers as desired.  Attach a tag with the following instructions:

Gourmet Hot Chocolate Mix

To make one serving:

3 T. Gourmet Hot Chocolate Mix

8 oz. (1 C.) boiling water

Marshmallows or whipped cream, optional

Place the Gourmet Hot Chocolate Mix in a mug.  Pour boiling water over the mixture.  Stir until the mix is completely dissolved.  If desired, garnish with marshmallows or whipped cream.

And for the other one...

Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix
2/3 C. powdered coffee creamer
2/3 C. milk chocolate chips
2/3 C. powdered sugar
2/3 C. powdered chocolate flavored drink mix
2/3 C. powdered instant dry milk
1 1/3 C. miniature marshmallows

In a large bowl, combine the above ingredients and stir until the mixture is well blended.  Place mixture in serving containers as desired.  Attach a tag with the following instructions:

Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa
To make one serving:
2 T. Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix
8 oz. (1 C.) boiling water
Marshmallows, optional


Place the Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix in a mug.  Pour boiling water over the mixture.  Stir until the mix is completely dissolved.  If desired, garnish with additional marshmallows.

Source for Hot Chocolate Recipes:  Gifts in a Jar: Cocoas, Cappuccinos, Coffees & Teas


Hope your Holiday is Tasty!


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