My Mom and I will be beginner-level-baking (lol no really) as a fun activity to do together this holiday for gift giving. We will pick a few different kinds of cookies and dessert treats to divide and pack up for office with multiple head counts and a few neighbors and friend's households as well. It would be nice to have a nice mixed plate/variety to share with each drop off location. I'd just like to gather some ideas for some easy/simple sweets to make that can be shared with multiple people per drop off. What might you make for a Christmas mixed sweet treats platter? or recommend a beginner make? or want to see on a platter???

One last thing, I can't break the bank here so no fancy expensive stuff and we plan to home scratch what we make... I don't know, I was thinking maybe a few kinds of cookies... a bar type treat and maybe some muffins as I don't want to deal with slicing loaves...I am also catering to different diets so I'd like a nice mix of a healthier choice, a middle grounds "okay, it's the holidays, one or two won't hurt" choice and a sinful "Santa, I've been real bad" choice LOL So mild to wild, you get the point. Variety! Oh and if this helps we would need about 3 dozen treats a platter for about 4+ offices and about 1-2 dozen treats a platter for 4+ households... I need to finish the list but we need a lot so I'm not sure of costs.

Ps. I want to get a cookie press. Are they as neat as they look?

I like to make butter cookies (I use different flavor extracts like lemon or almond). I also make a spice cookie that is really good and makes a lot of cookies. You could make a homemade biscotti. I need to find all of my cookie recipes.

Those are great cookies Riley, thank you. Mmm love the almond flavor ones too. As for biscottis, that may be a little too advanced for us. I am not sure if I could shape them right but it would be a nice try for Mom and I when looks don't matter and even if we fumble we can still rumble the batch lol or devour!

Cookies press are a lot of fun.  I do the Christmas trees green and then there is one that looks like a wreath. It takes a little practice to learn how to press them out but you can practice and just put the cookie dough back in the press and try again..One piece of advice dont twist and push too hard or you can break them. Check out the wiltons website for recipes.   These look really cute on a platter. Another cheap and easy treat is to dip the small pretzels in the almond bark. Almond bark can be the white or the chocolate. I like the white for Christmas. You just melt it in the microwave, dip and lay them on a piece of wax paper or parchment paper or the bag from a box of cereal....the frugal way.  hehe   You could sprinkle some colored sugar on the pretzels to make them look more festive.Babs

BB, Do try the biscotti. You won't find it difficult to shape them acceptably. IMO, homemade ones will never be quite as long as the commercial ones, but so what? One of my favorite, easy  to make for Christmas cookies is chocolate crinkles because of their snowy appearance.  AM

Anna Marie:

BB, Do try the biscotti. You won't find it difficult to shape them acceptably. IMO, homemade ones will never be quite as long as the commercial ones, but so what? One of my favorite, easy  to make for Christmas cookies is chocolate crinkles because of their snowy appearance.  AM

 

Hi annmeerie cheapskate50 is making gengerbread and butter cookies with santa cook outs and yours sound good to so if you see cheapskate and I as mice in your house try not to step on us first before we say our last prayer I at least wamt to die happy my last meal was a cookie.

 If you have mini muffin pans, you cn make muffins with any quick bread recipe (thus eliminating loaf slicing). Gingerbread ia winner, as are gingerbread men. Candy cane cookies, brownies. A box of good gingerbread or brownie mix will not cost much at all: most mixes can also be made into cookies, spraring you too much labour and expense.

I am sure gayla has a basic cookie recipe that can be made into many flavours with some additions. You could line the baskets or trays with red and green tissue paper and tie a ribbon around them.

Add a couple of candy canes to your platters too. Makes it look nice, Babs