Today I have a craft for you that is very yummy. You can make these for yourself or give them as a hostess gift when visiting this autumn. They make great gifts. I gave them last year for Christmas using a variety of recipes. I chose two recipes today, one for White Hot Chocolate and one for Chocolate Chip Cookies. Can you tell I’m a chocoholic?

Image: istockphoto

For these recipes you will need a quart jar. If your jar is airtight add the ingredients directly otherwise place them into an airtight Ziploc bag and attach the lid. Add a tag with directions to the neck of the jar. Wrap the jar up with some cellophane, clear or colored, and add some curling ribbons and a bow to finish off this gift.

White Hot Chocolate

• 1 tsp. vanilla powder
• 1 tsp. dried orange peel
• 1/2 cup grated white chocolate or white chocolate chips

Combine and blend the ingredients in a small bowl. Store in an airtight container.

Tag Instructions:

White Hot Chocolate (Serves 2)

• 1 and 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup White Hot Chocolate Mix

In a small saucepan, heat the milk until bubbles form around the outside. Add the White Hot Chocolate Mix and whisk until the chocolate is melted. Continue to whisk until the mixture is hot.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

Combine the flour, baking soda, white sugar, and the chocolate chips. Place 1/2 of the mixture in a clean quart sized glass jar, and pack firmly. Place the brown sugar on top, again packing firmly. Place the remaining flour mixture on top. Cover with a lid.

Tag Instructions:

Empty contents of jar into a large bowl. In separate bowl combine 3/4 cup of butter, 1 1/2 eggs, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until creamy. Add to dry mixture. Drop by tablespoonful onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and bake in a preheated 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Makes 2 dozen.

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Post from: Blisstree

Goodies in a Jar

Regular potatoes – swap for sweet potatoes. Not necessarily Grandma’s sweet potato casserole (which is loaded with sugar) but cooked sweet potatoes with a little butter are a good alternative. They won’t spike your insulin as much, they’re less caloric, and they contain more fiber.

Cranberry sauce – swap for sugar-free Jello with fruit. We always have a Jello dish during the holidays, which I eat instead of the cranberry sauce (chock full of sugar and extra calories). My favorite is the raspberry flavor with real raspberries inside. You can put the fruit in before you put it in the fridge to set.

Eggnog – swap for hot chocolate made with Splenda. All the alcohol, sugar and fat in eggnog won’t be kind to your waistline. If you make the hot chocolate with skim milk, it’ll be around 90 calories per cup.

Got any more swap ideas? Post them in the comments!

Claire

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Healthy Swaps For Favorite Christmas Treats