Might be taking that 12 Days of Christmas thing a bit too seriously...

One would assume that all the holiday baking est fini, n'est-ce pas? AU CONTRAIRE, mon frère! The lady who won one of my silent auction prizes at a benefit concert back in September is having a game night or card party or some such tonight, and she ordered small platters of sweet treats for the event. She specifically asked for those pretzel Rolo treats that are (aside from unwrapping all of the Rolos) super-easy and quite yummy--especially when topped with a cinnamon almond. Then I also made this white chocolate peanut butter krispie candy from a recipe I found on Pinterest, and lastly, the Pioneer Woman's minty brownie bites. Initial taste-testing proved more than satisfactory (tee hee), but I hope the party hostess agrees.

For the pretzel Rolo treats, you simply unwrap some Rolo candies, place them on top of small pretzels, and bake in a 300-degree oven for three or four minutes, until the Rolo is soft but not melting to the point of losing its shape (yes, I realize that I screwed up that part on mine...oh well). Then remove them from the oven and immediately place a toasted pecan (or in my case, a cinnamon almond!) on top of the Rolo and press down lightly. Let the treats cool, and that's it! At Christmas, you might also choose to use red and green M and M's for the tops of the treats. Use your imagination!


White Chocolate Peanut Butter Krispie Candy
(Source: Plain Chicken, via Pinterest)

2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
2 cups dry roasted peanuts
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 cup peanut butter
2 pounds white chocolate chips (2 12-oz packages plus 1 1/3 cups)

In a large bowl, combine cereal, peanuts and marshmallows. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate and peanut butter on High for 1 minute and then in 30 second intervals until fully melted. Stir chocolate into cereal mixture. Mixture will be slightly runny. Drop by tablespoons onto waxed paper. Let set until firm, 2 hours. Store in an airtight container.






Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Mint Brownie Bites
(Source: The Pioneer Woman Cooks!)

50 whole Andes Mints, unwrapped
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 whole eggs
3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon mint extract
1 tablespoon butter
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely*

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray mini muffin pan generously with baking spray. Melt unsweetened chocolate in a bowl in the microwave. Remove from microwave and stir in 8 Andes mints until all melted. Let cool slightly.

In a mixer with the paddle attachment, cream one stick of butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time. With the mixer on low, drizzle in the cooled chocolate mixture slowly, mixing until it's combined. Add flour and mix thoroughly. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, add mint extract, then mix again.

Using a tablespoon or cookie scoop, scoop batter into mini muffin tins. Bake until done, about 13 to 15 minutes. Turn upside down out of pan and allow to cool.

Combine 25 unwrapped Andes mints in a bowl with the tablespoon of butter and chopped bittersweet chocolate. Microwave and stir until melted and smooth. Dip the brownie bites in the chocolate, concentrating on the top "cone" part. Allow to set for a few minutes. Chop the remaining Andes mints and sprinkle them on the top.

Set in the freezer for 10 minutes if you need them to set right away. Yum!

*I think one ounce of bittersweet chocolate must be a typo, as I used about a cup of bittersweet chocolate chips melted with one tablespoon of butter and the 25 Andes mints, and it was just barely enough to dip the 24 brownie bites that this recipe yielded for me.