Christmas Cookie Bell Pull
This is an edible Christmas decoration, and is a charming way to display parting gifts for your Christmas open house or other seasonal celebrations! You can adapt this to many other holidays or children's parties simply by changing the type of decorated cookie you use. (Click here for some fantasic holiday cookie recipes!)

What you need:
Decorated Christmas cookies, preferably large
Plastic wrap
Curling ribbon, silver, gold, green, or red

Take a long piece of plastic wrap (at least three feet long) and spread it out on the kitchen counter.

Place large decorated cookies, face down, in a vertical line down the center of the plastic wrap, leaving a couple of inches between the bottom of one cookie and the top of the next one.

Fold each side of the plastic wrap over the cookies to seal them in. Now carefully twist the cookies one by one in plastic wrap over so the decorated part is facing up. You will now have a long row of cookies, each separated by a twist -- sort of like sausage links.

Now, take curling ribbon and tie a bow around both the very top and the very bottom and also between each cookie. Be sure to make the very top one with a loop for hanging.

Hang the decoration near your door, and when someone is leaving, cut the bottom cookie off (below the tied ribbon so the next one doesn't fall out), and send your guest off with a treat!

This decoration is lots of fun, and especially nice if you've got wonderful handmade or hand-decorated cookies to use. These also make wonderful gifts for the holiday season. They're excellent for work colleagues, teachers, as hostess gifts and more. For a fun-filled family project, let the kids join in; they can fill the bags, tie the ribbons or add the marshmallows.

Snow Man Soup!

What you need:
1 recipe Warm and Toasty Hot Chocolate Mix (below)
100 mini marshmallows
20 small cellophane gift bags
20 gift tags -- with poem (see below)
Ribbon

Make recipe for Warm and Toasty Hot Chocolate Mix as instructed below. Place 1/2 cup of Hot Chocolate Mix in each individual cellophane bag. Top with 5 mini marshmallows per bag. Tie closed using ribbon of you choice (rafia is nice) and attach gift tag. Place completed bag in a nice Christmas mug, with a candy cane over the side. Homemade chocolate dipped spoons also make a nice addition to the mug, depends on how fancy you want to be.

Warm and Toasty Hot Chocolate Mix

1 package non-fat dry milk powder - (25 1/2 ounces)
1 jar powdered non-dairy creamer - (16 ounces)
1 container presweetened cocoa powder - (16 ounces)
1 jar instant malted milk powder - (13 ounces)
1 cup sifted powdered sugar

In an extra-large bowl, combine all of the ingredients. Store tightly covered until ready to prepare gift bags.

To use, combine equal parts mix and boiling water.

Yield: 10 cups or 20 gift bags.

Here's the poem to include:

Was told you've been real good this year
Always glad to hear it
With freezing weather drawing near
You'll need to warm the spirit
So here's a little Snowman Soup
Complete with stirring stick
Add hot water, sip it slow
It's sure to do the trick!

Links, information and more for you

Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats (A 30-Minute Meal Cookbook)

About the authors: Lara Brooks (aka Recipe Lu) confesses that she is full-fledged foodie. She lives with her husband and son (born April 2000) in Toronto, Canada, which she says is "a wonderful city for experiencing and experimenting with different ethnic cuisines." Her interest in cooking and entertaining began at a very early age, and all aspects of food became her life passion -- much to the delight ofher friends and family. Looking for a new recipe? Check out Lu's Recipe Extravaganza, or for more articles by Lara Brooks, click here!