Holiday Gift Guide - For the Baker

I hope you all had a very Happy Thanksgiving! I was lucky enough to spend my Thanksgiving with my wonderful family in the Bay Area. I am so thankful for getting to see my family and close friends, but I STILL cannot believe that the holiday season is here! I am already trying to think of great gift ideas for everyone on my list. I know it is hard to find the perfect gift, so I've decided to do a Holiday Gift Guide for the entire month of December. Each week I will post a different Holiday Gift Guide. This week's gift guide is for the bakers in our life (something I have some experience in). Yes, I want EVERYTHING on this list :)

1. Sweet Creations Peppermint Bark Mold - On Sale for $8.12

Nothing says the holidays like some good old-fashioned peppermint bark. Your favorite baker will love this peppermint bark mold, so she/he can create their own bark bars with fun holiday sayings. You can be the taste tester :) 

2. Do-It-Yourself Cookie Cutters - $24.95

Bakers will love these crafty cookie cutters. The receiver of this gift can create personalized cookies with the custom shapes and fun sayings included in the set. 

3. Gingerbread Cake Pop Molds - $11

Cake Pops are the bite size dessert of choice these days, and this gift allows us to put a festive spin on the yummy treat. The baker in your life will really enjoy making little gingerbread men cake pops with this gift. The pops themselves will even make great gifts.

4. Chanel Logo Candies

This is the perfect gift for that baker/fashionista. These Chanel Logo candies are perfect for eating as is or to use to decorate desserts. Bakers can use them to top their delicious cupcakes or decorate anything really.

For more fabulous gift ideas, follow our Holiday Gift Guide Board on Pinterest. We will be pinning several great gift ideas every day!

***GIVEAWAY*** Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

We received such a great reaction for our homemade peanut buttercups that we are giving a box away! We will mail you a box of 12 yummy peanut butter cups. To enter the giveaway, subscribe to our blog and leave a comment below telling us about your favorite homemade dessert. To increase your chances, follow us on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/bitesdesserts), twitter (https://twitter.com/bitesdesserts), and pinterest (http://pinterest.com/bitesdesserts/). To increase your chances even more, share our blog or facebook page with your friends! Giveaway ends on 10/20 at noon PST, so make sure to enter before then! Good Luck!!!

xoxo

Easy DIY Peanut Butter Cups

Looking for an easy way to curb that chocolate craving? Try this EASY recipe for home made peanut butter cups. If you don't like peanut butter, you can also use other fillings. I used graham cracker crumbs and marshmallow fluff to make s'mores cups. They were amaaaazing!

What you need:

Chocolate: Any type (white, milk, dark)  and in any form (bars or chocolate chips)

Mini Cupcake Pan

Mini Cupcake Liners

Jar of Peanut Butter

 or

Graham Cracker Crumbs and a Jar of Marshmallow Fluff for the S'mores Cups

What to do:

Step 1: Melt your chocolate any way you see fit. It doesn't matter if you use the microwave or a double broiler.

Step 2: Line a mini cupcake pan with cupcake liners of your choice. I chose some basic silver ones.

Step 3: Pour some melted chocolate into the liners so that you have the covered the bottom of the liners with chocolate. The liners should be less than half full of chocolate.

Step 4: Use a mini ice cream scoop (or spoon) to scoop some peanut butter on top of the chocolate. I used crunchy peanut butter for an extra crunch but any type of peanut butter will do.

If you want to make the s'mores cups, after you have poured some melted chocolate on the bottom of the liners, top the chocolate with graham cracker crumbs and a spoon of marshmallow fluff.

Step 5: Pour the remaining melted chocolate on top of the filling. You should see no filling. You can use a spoon to smooth out the chocolate. If you want to be adventurous, top the cups with sprinkles or graham cracker crumbs.

Step 6: Place the mini cupcake pan in the fridge and let the cups set for 15-20 min. Once the cups have hardened, take them out of the fridge and enjoy!

You can package them up and share them with friends. I like to package them in a nice cellophane bag with a bow. They also make cute and easy favors, especially if you're having a halloween party this year :)

take a bite!

xoxo