Holly Jollies – Christmas Candy On A Budget, In A Hurry!
This is the busiest time of year for most of us. We have all of the decorations to put up and tend to, presents to shop for and wrap, visits to Santa, to see lights, to see family…and on top of it all we really want to bake and prepare treats for those we love and appreciate!
I prefer, whenever possible, to give a homemade gift rather than a storebought, but sometimes I just don’t have the time in the kitchen that I’d like. Ironically, the time of year I’d like to cook the most is also the time of year I have the least amount of time to do it in. Holly Jollies come to the rescue! My kids love making these with me and you can easily turn out a customized candy in very little time and using very little money. Chances are, you may even have some of the ingredients on hand already.
For this tutorial, I made enough Holly Jollies to send to twelve teachers and staff members of my kid’s schools in about half an hour, start to finish! Could it get any better than that? It sure can – I only had one bowl and on spoon to wash when I was done! ~grins~
Ingredients are mostly up to you but they start with mini muffin papers and almond bark. I like to get a different color or pattern mini muffin paper for each variety, and then give an assortment to folks that they can easily tell apart. I love using almond bark in these because it is just a little over two dollars a package and each package, with add ins, will make about 36 mini muffin sized treats.
The kids really like rice krispies added in there but Ricky’s favorite is salted peanuts.
Now some folks will tell you to melt this big old hunk of chocolate in a double broiler but last I checked, not many of us had a hankering to make something difficult when it could be easy. So what we’re gonna do instead is plop this thing in a large mixing bowl and stick that puppy in the microwave.
Let’s microwave it for 90 seconds to start.
I know, I know. It doesn’t look like it’s making much headway but hang in there, honey bunches.
Now stick it back in for about 45 seconds and then stir it up a bit. The package says to microwave it for thirty seconds at a time but you know how I like to live dangerously and all that… Keep on doing this, stirring it after every thirty seconds, and in a few cycles it will be all smooth and creamy.
While that is melting, put your mini muffin papers in your mini muffin pan.
I bet y’all are ashamed of me for using this one. It’s old and stained, but I promise it’s clean. Usually, I make regular sized muffins for Southern Plate because I have what I call a “stunt pan” that I use only for posts so it doesn’t get all stained up like muffin pans tend to do. I’ve caught Ricky about to use that one a time or two and get this look of horror on my face as I seem to call out in slow motion “nooooo! That’s my stunt pan!”.
But hey, it’s Christmas, we’re all a bit overextended, so I figured y’all could just pretend this one was all pristine and such.
Looky here, almost done.
Smooth as can be and ready to go!
This is where I call in the experts. Everyone knows that candy tastes better if you let kids do it.
They’re just naturally sweeter than us 
Getting my kids in the kitchen is extremely important to me, but especially so at Christmas. If I’m making something for them to give, I want them to enjoy the happiness (and learn the importance) of giving something you personally had a hand in making. In my mind, this is one of those activities that helps them to grow up with their heads in the right place.
They are also very proficient at the latest quality control techniques and therefore will insist on tasting the rice krispies before they use them!
I use several things in these Holly Jollies, but I only do one ingredient per batch.
- Peanut holly jollies, with salted peanuts stirred in (Ricky’s favorite)
- Rice Krispie Holly Jollies, with rise krispies stirred in (kid’s favorite)
- Raisin Holly Jollies, with raisins stirred in (one of my favorites)
- Cranberry Holly Jollies with dried cranberries stirred into white almond bark. (My top favorite)
The sky is truly the limit with these.
Whatever add in you choose, you’ll want to add about two cups of it as Katy Rose is doing here.
Speaking of Katy Rose…
She goes to preschool in a church and brought this coloring picture home. She took it out of her backpack and brought it to me and asked:
“Mama, is Jesus wearing a Snuggie?”
~snickers~
And stir it well.
Once you have your add ins mixed in there well, spoon it into your mini muffin papers.
This is going to make about three dozen.
But what I do is once I fill up my muffin tin (it only holds 24), I just spoon the rest onto waxed paper.
Allow those to harden, it won’t take long.
Here are our muffin paper ones…
and here are the ones from the waxed paper.
Now just go crazy and have fun! I use a different add in for each package of almond bark. This is peanuts.
Remember to get the salted ones, they are just wonderful in this!
I love dried cranberries stirred into white almond bark and it’s really pretty for the holidays, too!
This would also be great with nuts added in as well, or why not just do the white with cashews or other dried fruit that you like?
Seriously, knock yourself out with these.
Once you get your chocolate melted you can have these babies done from start to finish in about five minutes and it only dirties up one bowl.
This is the most fuss free holiday recipe I have!
In about half an hour, I was able to turn out enough Holly Jollies for twelve teacher’s gifts.
I packaged them in the little clear cellophane party favor bags you get in the party section at Wal Mart or the grocery store (my Dollar General has them, too). You get about twenty for a little over a dollar. I LOVE THOSE THINGS, especially this time of year. I use them for so many things. They are perfect for candy, cookies, and even miniature loaves of bread. They are also pretty enough to just tie with some curling ribbon and deliver as is.
Most importantly, it allows you to create gifts for folks and not have to spend more on the packaging than you did making the gift!
For my Holly Jollies, I found these little tin buckets at Target for $1.00 each, and picked up a few. I normally don’t spend that much on packaging, though.
I also picked up a package of plastic Christmas themed cups at Wal Mart, they were three for $1.50 but you can also get others that are 5 for $1.00 there if you like. I just put my Holly Jollies in a clear party favor bag and stuck them down in there. I included a couple of each type of Holly Jolly with each cup for variety. The kids just loved being able to take these to school! Doesn’t it make you feel good to see kids so excited to be giving things to folks?
I love those little munchkins.
Holly Jollies are so quick, easy, and economical that you can afford to give treats to all of the kind people you encounter regularly throughout the year.
We always think of teachers, but what about the school’s support staff? Does your child eat in the lunchroom – what about the lunchroom ladies and the school janitor? All of these are folks who can make your child’s day with a smile and a kind word. I’ll just bet that if you sent them some Holly Jollies, you’d make theirs, too.
Holly Jollies
Ingredients
- 1 Package Almond Bark (white or chocolate)
- 36 mini muffin papers
- 2 Cups of one or more of the following (get creative!): Salted Peanuts, Rice Krispie Cereal, Dried Cranberries, Raisins, crushed candy canes, Other salted nuts,Your favorite dried fruit, chopped to the size of raisins
Instructions
- Line a mini muffin tin with mini muffin papers. Place almond bark in a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave for a minute and a half; stir. Return to microwave and microwave for about thirty seconds at a time, stirring each time, until bark is smooth and creamy.* Remove from microwave and stir in two cups of your choice of add in. Spoon into mini muffin papers and allow to sit until cool and hardened. You can put them in the refrigerator to speed up the process if you like.
- Package and give with a smile on your face and a grateful heart. *Note: Take special care not to allow even the tiniest drop of water to get into the bark as it will clot up if you do.
Google Recipe View Microformatting by ZipList Recipe Plugin
Ingredients
- 1 Package Almond Bark (white or chocolate)
- 36 mini muffin papers
- 2 Cups of one or more of the following (get creative!): Salted Peanuts, Rice Krispie Cereal, Dried Cranberries, Raisins, crushed candy canes, Other salted nuts,Your favorite dried fruit, chopped to the size of raisins
Instructions
- Line a mini muffin tin with mini muffin papers. Place almond bark in a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave for a minute and a half; stir. Return to microwave and microwave for about thirty seconds at a time, stirring each time, until bark is smooth and creamy.* Remove from microwave and stir in two cups of your choice of add in. Spoon into mini muffin papers and allow to sit until cool and hardened. You can put them in the refrigerator to speed up the process if you like.
- Package and give with a smile on your face and a grateful heart. *Note: Take special care not to allow even the tiniest drop of water to get into the bark as it will clot up if you do.
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Gifts of time and love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly merry Christmas.”
~ Peg Bracken.
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Posted by Christy Jordan
on Dec 3 2009. Filed under Dessert, Holidays, Southern Plate Kids.
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Thank you for such a super give idea! Love the one bowl and spoon thing and the treats look yummy!! Thank you for sharing all your great ideas with us!
The cranberry and white bark sounds good…
Hmmmm. Just made a batch of the chocolate ones….fab! Then had an idea to make a batch of vanilla with crushed almonds and coconut. AWESOME! Tastes like the Raffaello Coconut Creme White Chocolate candy that’s so expensive….and this mock one is only a fraction of the cost. Yippeee!
OMGosh!! That sounds like heaven!!
OMGosh!! Seriously you have GOT to be the smartest woman alive!! I NEVER in my life would of thought to put these together!! My mum makes what I call
Reindeer Treats –
round pretzels
almond bark (white)
plain M&M’s
waxed paper
lay out waxed paper, place pretzels on waxed paper, melt almond bark in microwave until smooth, place about a teaspoon (or less) in each pretzel (you gotta be quick the bark hardens quickly), place an m&m on top of the almond bark (my mum puts the m&m w/ the writing down), let harden.
After you’ve done all you want & TRUST me you wanna do A LOT, place them in a sealed container in the freezer, that way you can pull out as many as you like for when you have company. They are BETTER cold.
I don’t know if my mum made this up, or got the recipe somewhere, so I’m not saying my mum is the originator of this recipe, I just know it’s quick, awesome & I call them Reindeer Treats. Enjoy!!
you can also do this with hershey kisses-the hugs are especially good! you just put the pretzels out flat on a cookie sheet…put a kiss on each one, put in your oven on the LOWEST heat setting for about 4-5 minutes just until it starts to melt then take them out and put an m&m on there and squoosh it a little bit! yum!
You can also make homemade “turtles” with Rolos in place of the almond bark and a pecan half in place of the m&m. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. Spread mini pretzels in single layer on the wax paper. Place 1 Rolo on top of each pretzel. Bake in oven at 200 for 4-5 min. Remove from oven and place a pecan half on top of each Rolo and press to flatten. Refrigerate to set.
I made these last Christmas for my gift baskets and plan to do them again this year. I made 3 kinds; the cranberry, the peanut and a fruit and nut version (raisin and peanut). They were all delicious. Thanks, Christy!
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Geeeeeesh – I sent the husband our for the ingredients for a double batches of Snowman Soup, and Fruit Crisp. Son #4, had to go get treat bags. Now it looks like I have to send them both out again. I want to make Rick Krispie, Raisin (but I’m going to add pecans), and White Chocolate Cranberry Holly Jollies:-)
BTW – will you be available to come with me to my next doctors appointment?
You’ll need to confess, that you are the reason why I will have gained so much weight over the next 4 week!
A friend at work brings these into the office every Christmas. She does the white almond bark and adds not only dried cranberries but also pistachios. Very Christmassy with the white chocolate, red cranberrries and green pistachios – and very yummy too!
Pistachios! What a great idea! I’ll have to try them that way next year
Christy I do these all the time. But I always just placed them on wax paper to form up. I thought that the paper from the little cups would stick to the candy. But if your doing it, then girl, I will too. I like to mix pecans and miniature marshmellows and sometimes add raisins to them. I love the appearence of the paper cups. Yeah, the girl has done it again. I love your new cook book, and love all the hints that you give to us. You are an angel without wings, but your earning those wings. I don’t know how you get all of the things you have to do, done in the daytime. How late do you stay up at night, completing your works. lol
Just keep all the idea’s coming. We do love them.
Hi Christy,
Where can I find almond bark? I never heard of it being sold in the grocery stores.
Merry Christmas!
It’s on the baking aisle right next to the chocolate chips. It’s just candy coating and sometimes it is called Candy Quik. I have no idea where “Almond bark” came from but there are no nuts in it! lol
Thanks Christy,
I tried finding toffee bits the other day and they said they didn’t carry them. Hope I can find almond bark. lol
I think you can get almond bark at Joann’s or Michael’s.
I just had a flashback as i was looking at the chocolate ones–they looked just like the GooGoo Clusters I used to get when I visited Nashville years ago on business. Wonder if you could add marshmallow cream to these with the peanuts–then it would be a GooGoo Cluster Clone!!!!
I do these every year – using pecans – although they are so expensive now I may have to find a substitute this year. Every one enjoys snacking on these. My MIL makes them, too, and she toasts the pecans before making the candy. They taste great both ways.
There are several gentlemen at church who have tremendous sweet teeth and both of their Wives are Diabetic so when I make candy I take them some and after reading this recipe and seeing how easy it is I know what kind of candy I will be giving them this Christmas.
Thank you so much
Mary
from, WV.
these turned out great-i did milk choc w/rice krispies and raisins and white choc w/cranberries n pistachios!
Question: Did you use paper mini muffin liners, or did you have to use the foil ones? TY!
I used paper and they worked just fine!
Hi! I meant to post a comment last weekend and completely forgot. I made your Holly Jollies for a cookie exchange my stamping group had. I was going to make cookies and then when I got your email about these and saw how easy they were, I knew I had to make them. I thought if Katie Rose can do this, so can I!
Just like you said they were super easy and didn’t take any time to make. My group loved them and so did husband. Thanks so much for an awesome recipe. I put a post on my blog about them. 
I made these for work today and everyone thinks I’ve been slaving away making chocolate and candies. Hee! Hee!
Thank you so much for all of your ideas and recipes!
I work at a drop-in center for people with mental illnesses, and we needed a quick, no-fuss holiday activity for December; your post on Holly Jollies came just in time. Everybody LOVED making these; they are awesome, and now we’re loaded up on holiday candy for all our visitors to enjoy! Thank you, Christy!
I just finished making 4 batches to give to coworkers! I made milk chocolate with Rice Krispies, milk chocolate with Golden Grahams cereal and mini marshmallows (the best!), white chocolate with Craisins, and white chocolate with Rice Krispies and crushed candy canes. They all look so cute and they taste good, too. I hope everyone likes them! I have several ideas for different kinds next year, too. Thanks so much for the idea, Christy!
Also, maybe my mini muffin cups were really stiff, but I found that I could fill them just fine without putting them in a muffin tin. And I put a little something on top of all of the varieties except for the Rice Krispies- the S’more ones got a marshmallow, cranberry got a Craisin, and peppermint-Rice Krispie got some crushed candy cane. Made them look extra pretty
What a great idea!
Yummy! Have a Merry Christmas Annarose!
what a great idea for using the golden grahams! I am gonna have to run out to the store now hahahah!
Our kids loved the Golden Grahams/mini marshmallow version. I loved that you could have S’mores without a mess!
I just made these this weekend for gifts. They are so easy and delicious! I was able to just line my mini muffin papers on a baking sheet and fill them. I made milk chocolate & peanuts, milk chocolate & rice krispies, and white chocolate & crushed candy canes. They all are great! Thanks for this easy & yummy idea!
I am so glad you liked them….they are so easy.
HOLY COW. you weren’t lying! I went into the kitchen at 1137 pm (yeah, I have a procrastination problem lol), and before midnight I had made half a bar of chocolate (with krispies) and half a bar of white chocolate with almond slivers and coconut
Can you use chocolate chips in place of Almond bark, or do you need to add something to it t make it the right consistency? I live overseas and can’t find Almond Bark anywhere!
Yes, you can use chocolate chips!! It will make it a little richer but will still be great!
Christy, thank you. My 6 year old daughter and I made these for her 1st grade class Xmas party. We made a rice crispy batch and a peanut batch, with one block of almond bark. They were a hit, so easy to make and a wonderful time spent with my daughter. I found you site last year and I know I can count on you for those go to recipes. Please keep them coming.
These are the best lil things! I want to hear everyone’s ideas for what they’ve used! I did the milk chocolate and peanuts. Then I did tiny pretzel sticks, broken by hand because the lil chopper makes them dust, with white chocolate. They seem to be the favorite. I am wondering if anyone has used caramel, I thought maybe you could chop it then add to melted chocolate. Then what about peanut butter. Someone said they used peanut butter but how. Never thought of pecans – those are my favorite. Any the marshmallows and golden grahams – YES! I will be making those next – just a few moments from now. Thanks for this awesome, quick and easy recipe. I too would have never thought to do this. Christy you are a cooking genius!
~giggles~ So glad you liked them Connie! I hope you have a Merry Christmas!
OMG, those are so delish looking and such a great idea!!! LOVE IT!!!! Thank you for sharing ~
Helen
Helen’s Cooking
We are making ‘turtles’ out of the melted chocolate this year….adding in some of those caramel bites (from Kraft), chopped pecans and mini marshmallows. Oh my goodness, YUMMMMMMM!!!!!! Those lil caramel bites are pure dangerous to my waistline and pocketbook too!
These look so good! Can you buy almond bark made of sweetener instead of sugar?
This is something I have to make with my kids- they will love them! I also love the different variations. Your daughter’s question was too cute- kids are just so funny!
My fave is with peanuts and crunchy chow mein noodles (“Haystacks” is the name of the recipe I use). I like to decorate them with Christmas sprinkles too. Sure am missing making all my candy this year courtesy of a hot work project
I love making those candies like that. SUPER easy and quick and everyone thinks you spent hours making them.
Christy ~ if you really want something that is super yummy use the white almond bark. Quickly toast some almonds (I use the slivered pieces) and add those to the bark once it’s melted along with the dried cranberries(or Craisins) then pour onto a baking sheet with sides to harden. Once hardened, flip out onto a cutting board and chop into pieces, or just break into pieces.
Those are a huge hit also.
Just made the chocolate almond bark with peanuts, hubby said how much did them *turtles* cost you LOL….he had no clue I bought 6 blocks of almond bark, a $4.00 5 lb can of peanuts, rice krispies, and candy canes…..
How well would this work with M & M’s??
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This recipe saved me today! 15 minutes, start to finish, and I have 3 dozen goodies to take to church tonight for the carol sing. Thank you!
Thank you for the idea! I need something quick to put together for gifts!! This is awesome!!!
Brenda Herring
Oh, these look like fun!
Your little girl looks so much like you–just adorable!
Woohoo I know what I am making the girls at work now for Christmas.
I can’t wait to try these Holly Jollies! Christy, I absolutely love that you’re all about saving money whenever possible! I’m a single mom, and I have to watch every dollar I spend. Thanks for keeping it real, girl!
That Snuggie comment from your daughter cracked me up!
This is the second time I’ve read about your “HOLLY JOLLIES” and I just realized I have all the things needed to make your white/cranberry ones. I think I’ll be making these very soon. Thanks so much for putting it out there to remind us….and so easy too….
You are just wonderful!!!!
I love adding broken pretzel pieces to these–wonderful mix of salty and sweet!
I took a big old batch of these to work and everyone begged for the recipe…I love the endless combos!!! My favorite is broken pretzels and peanut m@ms dropped onto parchment, all the shapes are different and it looks like you spent hours on them! I use half a block at a time because a full block starts hardening before I can finish!
I just bought almond bark at my Kroger store. The package looks very large, each package is 24 ounces with 12 squares per package. What size package has everyone been using? I want to get the proportions right. I want to do this project with my 4 year old grandaughter to take to her preschool. Any help would be appreciated.
We’re going to do colored fruit loops and peanuts. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Oh FUN!! I can’t wait to hear how these do!!
I made these last night! Awesome! One batch I did chocolate with the krispies and the other I did cherry craisins and white almond bark. I can’t decide which I like better. They were both great and helped fill the cutest tins I made for family members. Thanks!!
I am so glad to hear that you like them!!!! Merry Christmas!!
Hey, Christy! Merry Christmas!!! Just made bunches of these: cheerios and cranberries (I like the saltiness of cheerios in candy), cashews and cranberries, sunflower seeds and cranberries, and prretzel pieces with sunflower seeds and cranberries, all in vanilla bark. It was so much fun! I made these last Christmas as well, and gave you all the credit! Don’t know what we’d do around here without you and all your neat ideas–Thanks a bunch! Mary