Two Holiday Treats: Peppermint Bark Shortbread & Homemade Marshmallows
RachelThe countdown is on to Christmas! And I realized that I still have so much to tell you about! So today I'm going to get right down to business (or bid nid, if you will) and tell you about 2 fun and delicious holiday treats that I hope you'll try!
Immediately following the Virtual Cookie Swap Party, I just couldn't get many of the cookies out of my head. The number one on my list? Hailey's Candy Cane Shortbread! Some may say that shortbread isn't that exciting, but I really love it in any version. I'm not really a huge chocolate eater, and so a cookie like shortbread is simply perfect to me. Buttery, sweet, delicious. Hailey's idea to add candy canes just got my mind reeling. I used her exact recipe, but took it one step further...I added in 1/4 C semisweet chocolate chips and 1/4 C white chocolate chips for a peppermint bark flavor.
The result? I loved them! The candy canes added just a hint of crunchy peppermint, while the chocolate added some...well, chocolatey goodness. Head over to Hailey's blog for the original recipe and add in the chips if you like! Also, for crushing those pesky candy canes, I just peeled of the wrapper, placed them in a small zip top bag and went to town on crushing them up. Easy as pie...er, cookies.
Next up on the list...homemade marshmallows! I had been wanting to make marshmallows for quite some time now, but felt completely intimidated. When Shaun found and DVR'd an episode of Good Eats for me where Alton tells viewers all they need to know about the gelatinous bits of yum, I knew it was destiny. So I made them, directly from Alton's recipe.
Though it took a little skill and quickness to actually spread the marshmallows into the pan without making a giant mess of myself and my kitchen, these were incredibly easy and so worth every moment of preparation. They make store bought marshmallows look like...well, complete garbage, to be honest. Add these to hot cocoa, coffee, or just simply pop them like it's your job. You won't be disappointed.
So there you have it. Two fun holiday recipes that I'm totally crushing on this week! I hope you give them a try! Have a great day everyone :)
Questions of the Day:
Do you still have a lot of baking on your holiday list? Aside from some cupcakes for Christmas day, I'm pretty much done with mine!
What are your plans for this week?
Reader Comments (7)
your marshmallows look great!!!!
I have also wanted to make marshmallows for some reason! I don't even like marshmallows but I'm thinking homemade ones might be very different...
Ooh, I love the look of your peppermint bark shortbread! How fabulous. I'm making another batch of peppermint bark today...then maybe some more fudge :)
I've been wanting to make homemade marshmallows forever! Those sound amazing and those cookies look delicious, too!
I have to tell you - I wish I lived next door so I could constantly sample your goodies and parties!
This week is pretty chill - having no school is making me a little lazy! I am way behind on brick & mortar shopping though, so I'll need to get going on that soon. Like today!
I need to STOP the baking now! I'm looking forward to getting back to California and devoting myself to eating avocado salads and salmon for 2 weeks. Okay ... maybe 2 days.
I REALLY want to try the homemade marshamllows!! Weirdly I just had a store bought one for pudding last night (we had some leftover from the sweet potato casserole I made!). I actually really like them but Im thinking homemade would be whole new levels of deliciousness...??
I am so glad you made them and enjoyed them! i love the idea of adding some chocolate to make it more like bark, mmmm
i also tackled my fear of marshmallows! just yesterday i made some peppermint marshmallows and they knocked the store-bought ones out of the water! your marshmallows look perfectly pillow-y :)
Merry Christmas to you and Shaun!