The holidays are a time of warmth, love, festivity and, of course, food.

By Collyn Burke

 So whether you are looking to make a homemade goodie gift, or just a sweet treat to share with loved ones, try out these sugary snacks.

Candy Cane Kisses Cookies

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups powdered sugar

1 ¼ cups softened butter

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 bags of Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses

⅓ cup granulated sugar

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine butter, powdered sugar, egg and vanilla extract and mix until creamy.

In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder, flour and salt.

Add the dry mixture into the wet mixture and mix until it reaches a crumbly texture.

Shape into one-inch balls.

Roll dough balls in granulated sugar.

Bake for eight minutes.

Let cool for at least two minutes.

Remove wrappers from Hershey’s Kisses, press one Candy Cane Kiss into the middle of each cookie.

Enjoy!

Eggnog Pie

Ingredients:

    1 package of instant vanilla pudding

    2 cups cold eggnog

    1 cup of cold whipped cream

    1 graham cracker pie crust

    1 tablespoon nutmeg

Instructions:

Mix the vanilla pudding mix with the eggnog for two minutes.

Fold in the whipped cream with the eggnog and pudding mix.

Pour mixture into graham cracker pie crust.

Refrigerate for at least four hours.

Sprinkle pie with nutmeg.

Enjoy!

Strawberry Christmas Trees

Ingredients:

    1 package of strawberries

    12 oz. package of white chocolate chips

    Green food coloring

    1 package of Oreo cookies

    1 can sugar pearl sprinkles

    1 can star sprinkles

    Tooth picks

Instructions:

Cut the tops off of all the strawberries.

Push a toothpick through the pointed end of the strawberry.

Separate the white chocolate into two bowls.

Melt chocolate in both bowls.

In one of the bowls, mix in three drops of green food coloring.

Cover the strawberry in the green chocolate.

Decorate the chocolate covered strawberry with sugar pearl sprinkles.

Spoon a quarter-size amount of the melted white chocolate onto the flat side of the Oreo.

Place the strawberry onto the white-chocolate-covered Oreo.

Remove the toothpick.

Place a star sprinkle at the top of the strawberry.

Enjoy!

Homemade Caramels

Ingredients:

    1 cup of butter

    2 cups brown sugar

    1 cup light corn syrup

    1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk

    2 teaspoons vanilla extract

    Cooking spray

    Tinfoil

Instructions:

Combine butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and condensed milk in a saucepan.

Bring to a boil over medium heat.

Stir for 30 to 40 minutes.

Remove from heat and carefully stir in vanilla extract.

Cover a 13 x 9 pan in tin foil.

Spray pan with cooking spray.

Pour caramel into pan.

Let cool for at least one hour.

Use the tinfoil to pull out the caramel from the pan.

Cut caramel into 1-inch squares.

Enjoy!

Candied Pecans

Ingredients:

    2 pounds shelled pecan halves

    2 egg whites

    2 teaspoons cold water

    1 cup sugar

    2 teaspoons cinnamon

    ½ teaspoon salt

    ½ teaspoon nutmeg

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.

Stir rapidly to froth egg whites and cold water together until the mixture appears white and bubbly.

Cover pecans in egg white and water mixture.

Stir in sugar, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg.

Place pecans on a baking tray.

Bake for 1 ½ hours, stirring every half hour.

Let cool.

Enjoy!