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Simplify
the Season
Nutty Chocolate Pretzel Bars,
Festive Garden Wedges,
Crescent Wrapped Brie and
Savory Ranch Chex Mix
(Family Features) - The halls are decked, the lights are strung. All that's left to
consider is the food - your favorite part. But finding the time
to enjoy holiday cooking, when schedules are packed with cocktail
parties, potlucks and gift exchanges can be daunting to even the
most experienced home cook.
Get the most out of this holiday season by keeping things simple.
It's easy to embrace the holiday hustle and bustle by
incorporating a few time-saving tricks into your kitchen routine.
Shake & Serve - When hosting a holiday gathering, it's great to
have a quick and easy snack to serve. Make things super simple by
mixing the ingredients for Savory Ranch Chex Mix in a large Glad
zipper bag. Just seal, shake and serve.
Instant Pastry Bag - Decorating desserts during the holidays is a
fun activity for the entire family. To kick up the fun factor a
notch, make your own pastry bags to drizzle decorations over your
delicious desserts! To make a pastry bag, place chopped up candy
coating or chunks of chocolate inside a small zipper food storage
bag. Do not seal; microwave 30 to 60 seconds, kneading bag every
15 seconds. Snip off a small corner and drizzle over desserts.
Fun and simple!
Oven Time - Prefer that "made from scratch" taste but short on
time? With a few Pillsbury convenience products, like slice-and-
bake cookies or ready-to-bake crescent rolls, you can make
delicious and festive dishes your family will love without
working in the kitchen for hours.
Bake & Take - Save a step with casseroles and bar cookies. Use
disposable bakeware, like festive red or green OvenWare. You can
bake your treat in the oven and serve it in the same container.
Save yourself from dirtying another dish.
Food Exchange - The cookie exchange has long been a holiday
tradition. This year, instead of a cookie exchange, gather all of
your friends and host a food exchange! Ask all of your guests to
bring their favorite holiday dish, along with the recipe. Your
guests will go home with several new holiday dishes they can
serve their family or bring to other holiday parties. What a
wonderful present!
Quick Cookie Bliss - Add some bliss to your holiday cookies!
Purchase Pillsbury refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough, bake
in the oven, then top each cookie with a striped chocolate or
white candy drop.
Nutty Chocolate Pretzel Bars
Prep Time: 20 minutes (Start to Finish: 1 hour 30 minutes)
36 bars
1 can (10 ounces) deluxe salted nuts, coarsely chopped
1 roll (18 ounces) Pillsbury refrigerated sugar cookies
1 cup English toffee bits
1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
1/3 cup butterscotch chips
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup coarsely chopped salted pretzels
1 ounce vanilla-flavored candy coating, chopped or 2 tablespoons vanilla candy chips
- Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 13- x 9-inch pan with cooking spray.
Spread nuts evenly in pan. Cut cookie dough into 1/2-inch-thick
slices; arrange slices over nuts. With floured fingers, press
evenly in prepared pan, such as Glad OvenWare (prep according to
instructions). Sprinkle with English toffee bits; press in
lightly.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack
30 minutes.
- In large microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and
butterscotch chips on HIGH 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, stirring every 30
seconds, until smooth. Stir in peanut butter. Gently stir in
pretzels. Spread evenly over crust.
- In small microwavable bowl, microwave candy coating on HIGH 30
to 60 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds, until smooth. Drizzle
over bars. Refrigerate until chocolate is set, about 15 minutes.
For bars, cut into 9 rows by 4 rows.
Festive Garden Wedges
Prep Time: 15 minutes (Start to Finish: 1 hour 35 minutes)
16 wedges
1 1/2 cups of Original Bisquick mix
1/3 cup boiling water
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream, mayonnaise or creamy salad dressing
8 medium green onions, sliced (1/2 cup)
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1/8 teaspoon red pepper sauce
3 cups chopped or sliced fresh vegetables (mushrooms, radishes, celery, red onion, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, bell
pepper, yellow summer squash, j¡cama)
1 cup shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese (4 ounces)
- Heat oven to 450°F (475°F for high altitude). In bowl, stir
baking mix and boiling water until soft dough forms; beat
vigorously with spoon 20 strokes. Using fingers dusted with
baking mix, press dough in ungreased 12-inch pizza pan, pinch
edge to form 1/2-inch rim. Bake about 10 minutes or until light
brown. Cool 10 minutes.
- Stir cream cheese, sour cream, green onions, horseradish and
pepper sauce until well blended; spread evenly over crust. Cover
with Glad Press'n Seal sealable wrap; refrigerate 1 to 2 hours or
until chilled.
- Just before serving, top with vegetables and cheese. Cut into
wedges or squares.
Crescent Wrapped Brie
Prep Time: 20 minutes (Start to Finish: 1 hour)
12 servings
1 can (8 ounces) Pillsbury refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 round Brie cheese (8 ounces)
1 egg, beaten
Crackers and sliced apples or pears, if desired
- Heat oven to 350°F.
- Separate dough into 2 squares. Press perforations to seal. Use
knife to cut and round off corners of both squares. If desired,
use small cookie cutter to cut out small decorative shapes from
discarded corners. Place 1 square on ungreased cookie sheet;
place cheese on center. Place remaining square over cheese. Press
dough evenly around cheese. Fold bottom edges over top edges;
seal completely. Decorate top with dough cutouts as desired;
brush with egg.
- Bake 20 to 24 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 15 minutes
before serving with crackers.
Tip: Punch up the flavor! Cut Brie crosswise and spread with 2
tablespoons apricot jam and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons dried
cranberries before wrapping in dough.
Savory Ranch Chex Mix
Prep Time: 10 minutes (Start to Finish: 10 minutes)
13 cups snack
9 cups Corn Chex, Rice Chex or Wheat Chex cereal (or combination)
2 cups small pretzel twists*
2 cups bite-size cheese crackers
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 envelope (1 ounce) Hidden Valley "The Original Ranch" salad dressing and seasoning mix (milk recipe)
- Mix cereal, pretzel twists* and crackers in large Glad food
storage bag.
- Add remaining ingredients; seal bag. Shake until well mixed.
*If serving to children under four years old, omit pretzels.
For more recipes and tips, visit www.bettycrocker.com. For food
storage ideas, visit www.glad.com.
SOURCE: General Mills
The Glad Products Company
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