Gifts From Your Kitchen
Some of my fondest memories of Christmas as a child involve me in the kitchen with my Mama, mixing up candies and goodies to give as gifts to family and friends. Even folks who don’t enjoy cooking other times of the year are quick to crank out any number of goodies during the holidays. Nothing says Merry Christmas to a Southerner more than something from your kitchen, made with care and given with love.
Nowadays it seems more difficult to find the time to get into the kitchen but homemade gifts are appreciated even more as a result. Today I thought I’d bring you some great ideas that to help you have an old fashioned Christmas regardless of how rushed your schedule may be.
Holly Jollies
Holly Jollies are just about the handiest little Christmas candy you could ever hope to make and they really save the day when holiday schedules get hectic. I whipped these up last year when I was finishing up my book and it ended up being one of the most popular holiday posts of all time on SouthernPlate.com. Simply start with almond bark (sometimes called candy coating) and choose your favorite add-in. I like t make five or six varieties and use different mini muffin papers to differentiate between each type. I make up little gift bags for everyone with an assortment and its always a hit at schools or around the office.
Click here for Holly Jollies Recipe
S’Mores Kits
I have two children in elementary school and they both have big hearts. This is something that I’m proud of as a mother, but it isn’t easy to accommodate when Christmas rolls around and they want to give a gift to every single classmate. S’more’s kits to the rescue! We usually set up an assembly line one evening and the whole family works at assembling the inexpensive kits. My youngest enjoys coloring the labels while my oldest stuffs the bags and I seal them with the customized topper. In no time at all we have gifts for nearly fifty children and with hardly a dent to our budget!
Click here for S’mores Kits instructions and free printable tags
Chocolate Gravy Mix
Folks who know what Chocolate Gravy is light up when presented with the mix to make this decadent childhood treat at home. If you give it to someone who is new to this old fashioned Southern treat expect a puzzled look, but rave reviews once they have a chance to try it. I include a card with instructions for using the mix on one side and the original recipe on the other, because we all know one time of eating chocolate gravy just isn’t enough!
Click here for Chocolate Gravy Mix instructions and free printable tags
Snowman Soup
Who doesn’t love hot chocolate? Thrill your kids by showing them how to make their own mix at home and then assemble it into these cute little kids to pass out to family, friends, and classmates!
Click here for homemade hot chocolate recipe and free printable Snowman Soup Tags
Fruit Crisp Mix
Who doesn’t love a good fruit crisp? Served piping hot with vanilla ice cream slowly melting into the yumminess, fruit crisp makes the ideal dessert. You can often this mix for sale on the shelves of specialty shops, with an astonishing price tag! I have seen a single recipe of a crisp mix selling anywhere from $5.99-$7.99.
Click here for Fruit Crisp Mix recipe and free printable tags
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Posted by Christy Jordan
on Dec 8 2010. Filed under Holiday Favorites!, Holidays.
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Thanks for the great ideas! I hope to make a few Holiday treats to give out to my family this year too! Love your blog!
Thank you so much and hope you have a Merry Christmas!
Thanks for the ideas…. this will be great for teachers…
Merry Christmas Tracy!
Just saw your article in The Huntsville Times! Exciting!
~squeal~ Thank you Erika!
Thanks, as usual, Christy for more great ideas. I have been making the Fruit Crisp for years – often use a can of (cheap/sale) cherry or blueberry pie filling, and add some slivered almonds to the mix! Happy Holidays
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you too Judy!
Thank you sweet girl for putting these all on one post. Lisa made the holly jollies last year, everyone loved them.
love ya sis.
Thank you JoAnn, Merry Christmas!!!
I LOVE THE PRINTABLE GIFT TAGS!! Thanks Christy!!
You are so welcome! Merry Christmas!!
Love these ideas! Thanks for sharing…I’ll be using all of them in the next couple of weeks!!!
Can’t wait to hear how everything turns out Laurie!
I just want to say Thank you for your web site & Facebook page. I love your sweet southern hospitality. It is a great place to share wonderful memories & great food ideas. Thanks again.
Aww, thank you so much Robbi, you just made me day!
Love em!!!!! I’m making a few gift baskets this year and planning on trying my hand at chocolate and other flavored/drizzled flavors, these will make a nice addition also.
Thank you Christy, for taking the time to share with all of us. (((Hugs)))
Thank you Kathy! I know everyone will be thrilled with your baskets. Merry Christmas!!
Merry Christmas, Christy! Thank you for making each member of your Southern Plate Family feel special and for giving us such tasty and quick-to-make recipes to make others feel special, too! We appreciate what you and Southern Plate do to give us joy all through the year! May God continue to bless you as much as you bless us!!
Merry Christmas to you deebee!! I am just thrilled to have each of you as part of the SouthernPlate Family!
Please do not give teachers food gifts. They will most likely be trashed. A gift card from your favorite grocery store along with these recipes would be wonderful!
I think you have to know the teacher. In some cases that might be true and in others not.
I made your holly jollies last year and they were so good.
I am not sure about the last commenter but I always give homemade goodies as gifts to my son’s teacher and the aid who was the same for k-2 and they have always been loved. Christmas baskets are my thing I look forward to for weeks:) I just have this thing of wanting to be the mom that is loved by the teachers
~giggles~ I completely understand!
Thanks bunches!!! You are a jewel!
Ohh, Thank YOU!
I made several batches of the Hollie Jollies yesterday. Gosh, those things are easy, but sooooo good. My favorite is the chocolate with salted peanuts and raisins. I bought some Walmart trail mix, the one with sunflower seeds, dried cranberries and whole almonds. OMG!
I’m not so crazy about the white almond bark, but I did end up making, coconut with slivered almonds, then a batch of white bark with trail mix and extra cranberries. Pretty good, but not as good as the chocolate ones. Also did rice krispies in one batch. Thank you !!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!
Yummm! I should come to your house for a vist! I am so glad everything turned out good.
I found snowman soup last year and LOVED it…I also know you had a recipe or directions for frozen cookie dough that you gift wrapped and gave out – I can’t seem to find it now…help?
Christi. I know what fried apples are but where do you buy fried apples in the can. You see I dont live in the south. Do you mean apple pie filling.
Thank you for these recipes! My 8 year old son loved making up bags of snowman soup for his 24 classmates. His friends loved the gift and they were so cute! Also, I had a cookie exchange party and was wondering what to do w/the chocolate I had left from the chocolate fountain..I made Holly Jollies! I bought those buckets from Wal-mart and packaged a variety of candies for all the teachers. Again..they were a hit! What fun! Merry Christmas!
Yay! I am so glad everything was such a hit and that you got to have fun making it all with your son!
Just made your Smores for my daughters classmates. Thanks for such a fun and inexpensive idea!
Christy, thank you so much for the time and effort you spend to enrich and bless so many lives. You are like a daily dose of sunshine for me and to many others.