By Annie

This week finally started making some desserts for the holidays. For future reference, I always refer to all dessert-making as “baking” even if there is no actual baking involved, which is often the case. Case in point: these rice krispies treats.

You’re probably familiar with the very simple procedure involved in making traditional rice krispies treats.

In a large pot, add one stick of butter, let it melt, and add a bag of marshmallows. Stir. Then add your rice krispies.

But it’s the holidays! You need to do something special with your treats instead of just throwing the mix into a pan and letting it cool in the fridge. So here’s a good way to add some interest.

Take a small handful of the mix and roll it into a ball and place onto wax paper on a cookie sheet. Then get some sprinkles, chocolate, or whatever you want to use to decorate. My mom and I used red, green and white sprinkles in celebration of the season.

It’s easy as that! Now just put your snazzy holiday treats into the fridge and let them cool like normal.

I’ll be posting a lot of holiday “baking” entries this week, so keep checking back!

By Annie

Today marks the beginning of Hanukkah. In celebration, I’ve scoured the internet for some great Hanukkah-themed handmade items. Enjoy!

The Hanukkah Project is a 12 song compilation cleverly packaged as a Hanukkah gift. Only $10 – click the photo to view the listing.

Kids Craft Weekly has some great ideas for Hanukkah cards, like this dreidel one. They’ve also put together a macaroni menorah.

This platter of “glittered sufganiyot” (jelly doughnuts in normal language) by Martha Stewart can be a cute dessert for your holiday guests.

By Annie

Time for another hat! This one is obviously in celebration of the holiday season – a knit Santa hat!

When I was little I always loved getting into the holiday spirit with one of my family’s many santa hats. You know these are a must for Christmas parties.

This one is sized for a toddler, but I’m planning on making a few more before the holidays are over. You can find this one on my Etsy shop.

Happy holidays!

By Annie

I already have a love for all things dessert, and this is especially true for cupcakes. So when you combine that love with my love of knitting – well, you can imagine.

I’m working on some cupcakes with different colors, sprinkles, etc. in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out. In the mean time, this hat is available on my Etsy shop.

By Katelyn

I have an affinity for facial hair and sweets, which is why I found this picture so delightful.

Maybe this year instead of making traditional Christmas cookies I’ll just make cookies in the shapes of various facial hair styles.

By Annie and Katelyn

By Annie

I’ve recently finished a whole lot of hats, so you can expect a lot of new-hat-posts in the coming days. I really like this one, because my favorite animal is the penguin.

You can find this hat on my Etsy shop – just $10 for one lucky penguin lover!

By Annie

When it comes to homemade meals, it doesn’t get much easier than salads. But it’s a little too easy to get stuck in an iceberg lettuce and ranch dressing rut. To avoid this state of salad monotony, you need to build up a collection of interesting toppings and dressings.

Photo: Savour Life

There are so many great things you can do with salads, but sometimes you have to think outside the box. Try fruit instead of vegetables. Try nuts or seeds instead of cheese. And not all of your dressing needs to come from Kraft.

During the holiday season, there are a lot of festive ways you can dress up your salads. Here are some ideas you can use for inspiration.

By Annie

Thanksgiving is a terribly busy day, and let’s face it, you could use all the help you can get.  Whether this is your first time hosting Thanksgiving, or you’re a seasoned veteran who is also in charge of keeping the kids under control and entertaining your lovely (but demanding) mother-in-law, it never hurts to use a couple of shortcuts when making dinner.

Photo: AP/Boris Grdanoski

For great tips on how to make your Thanksgiving dinner just a little bit easier, view my entire article here.

By Annie

Did I mention that I love it when people crochet the most ridiculous things? This definitely falls into that category. In honor of Thanksgiving, why not make yourself (or a loved one) this extremely elaborate and large hat that looks like a turkey is sitting on your head?

Photo: Angelicacatrina

My favorite part is the feet that tie under your chin, because I think the hat might fall over if those weren’t there.