1st Place
DIRTY BALLS
by Amanda

Finely crush 1 pack oreo cookies – do not leave chunks, do not use double stuff.

8oz cream cheese softened.

Mix oreo cookies and cream cheese with mixer until well combined.

Roll into balls and refrigerate about 30 minutes.

Melt white dipping chocolate and dip balls in the chocolate.

Allow to dry on wax paper

Refrigerating balls make it easier to dip in chocolate.

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2nd Place
RED VELVET COOKIES
by Amanda

1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon red food color
1 egg
3/4 to 1 cup Betty Crocker® Rich & Creamy cream cheese frosting
1/4 cup chopped nuts

Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, cocoa, butter, sour cream, food color and egg until soft dough forms.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 8 to 9 minutes or until set. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely, about 15 minutes.

Frost cooled cookies with frosting. Sprinkle with nuts. Store tightly covered at room temperature.

From: Betty Crocker.

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3rd Place (tie)
OREO PUDDING BARS
by Jen

35 OREO Cookies
6 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. cold milk
1 tub (12 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided
2 pkg. (3.9 oz. each) JELL-O Chocolate Instant Pudding
3-1/4 cups cold milk
make it

PROCESS cookies in food processor until fine crumbs form. Transfer to medium bowl; mix in butter. Press onto bottom of 13×9-inch dish. Refrigerate until ready to use.

WHISK cream cheese, sugar and 2 Tbsp. milk in medium bowl until blended. Stir in 1-1/4 cups COOL WHIP; spread over crust.

BEAT pudding mixes and 3-1/4 cups milk with whisk 2 min.; pour over cream cheese layer. Let stand 5 min. or until thickened; cover with remaining COOL WHIP. Refrigerate 4 hours.

From: kraftrecipes.com.

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3rd Place (tie)
ROLO COOKIES
by Loden

2 1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa
1 tsp. soda
1 c. sugar
1 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. butter, softened
2 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1 c. chopped nuts (your choice)
60 Rolo candies
4 tbsp. sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In small bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and soda; blend well. In large bowl, beat sugars and butter until fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs; beat well. Slowly add flour mixture; blend well.

Stir in 1/2 cup nuts. For each cookie with floured hands, shape about 1 tablespoon dough around caramel candy, covering completely. In small bowl, combine 1/2 cup nuts and 4 tablespoons sugar. Press one side of each ball into pecan mixture.

Place, nut side up, on ungreased sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 9 minutes. Cool slightly and remove from sheets. 60 cookies.

From: cooks.com.

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MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
by Stephanie

1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon mint extract
6 to 8 drops green food color
1 egg
1 cup creme de menthe baking chips
1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, butter, extract, food color and egg until soft dough forms. Stir in creme de menthe baking chips and chocolate chunks.

Using small cookie scoop or teaspoon, drop dough 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool 3 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Serve warm or cool completely. Store tightly covered at room temperature.

From: Betty Crocker.

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CHOCOLATE ESPRESSO SNOWCAPS
by Rachelle

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 teaspoons instant espresso
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 large egg
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon milk
Confectioners’ sugar, for coating

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, espresso, baking powder, and salt. With an electric mixer, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg until well combined; mix in cooled chocolate. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture; beat in milk until just combined. Flatten dough into a disk; wrap in plastic. Freeze until firm, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Shape dough into 1-inch balls.

Pour confectioners’ sugar (about 1/2 cup) into a medium bowl; working in batches, roll balls in sugar two times, letting them sit in sugar between coatings.

Place on prepared baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies have spread and coating is cracked, 12 to 14 minutes; cookies will still be soft to the touch. Cool cookies on a wire rack.

Makes 18

From: Martha Stewart

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REINDEER POOP
by Rachelle

1 jar (16oz) dry roasted unsalted peanuts
1 jar (16oz) dry roasted salted peanuts
1 pkg. (12 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 bar (4 oz.) German Chocolate-broken into pieces
3 #s or 2 planks White Bark-broken into pieces

Put ingredients into a 4 or 5 quart crock pot in the order listed. Cover and cook for 3 hours on low. Do not remove the lid during this time.

Turn of and cool slightly. Then stir to mix thoroughly and drop by teaspoonfuls on waxed paper. Let cool thoroughly. Approximately 170 pieces.

NOTE: At about the 2 hour mark I smelled burning. When I opened the slow cooker the peanuts were burning and the chocolate was scorched to the sides of the pot. I tried to scoop out the burned stuff and get the rest on waxed paper as soon as I could. I also used too large of a scoop so my pieces were big. If I’d used the smaller scoop, they’d have been more bite-sized.

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CHRISTMAS STAINED GLASS COOKIES
by Mary (Mom)

1 (12 oz.) pkg. chocolate chips
1 stick of butter
10 1/2 oz. pkg. colored mini marshmallows
1 c. chopped nuts
7 oz. pkg. coconut

Melt the chocolate chips and butter, stirring often. Cool to room temperature. Add nuts and marshmallows. Fold and mix together. Divide in half.

Sprinkle coconut on waxed paper. Form the mixture into a log and roll in coconut. Wrap waxed paper and refrigerate several hours.

Slice into cookies and enjoy.

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CHINESE NEW YEAR COOKIES
by Anne

1 (6 oz.) pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (6 oz.) pkg. butterscotch chips
1 (3 oz.) can chow mein noodles
1 c. salted peanuts, chopped

Melt the chips in a double boiler. Mix in noodles and nuts. Drop by teaspoon on waxed paper. Yield: 36.

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CLASSIC SPRITZ COOKIES
by Katie

1 1/2 c. butter
1 c. granulated sugar
1 egg
2 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
3 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thoroughly cream butter and sugar. Add egg, milk, vanilla and almond extract; beat well. Stir together flour and baking powder; gradually add to creamed mixture, mixing to make a smooth dough. Do not chill.

Put dough into cookie press and press cookies onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 10 – 12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Remove cookies from sheet; cool on rack.

Makes 7-8 dozen cookies.

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HOLIDAY BARK
by Jessica G.

8 ounces white chocolate, chopped
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
7 ounces salted cocktail peanuts (1 1/2 cups)

Place white chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until chocolate melts. Remove from heat.

Melt bittersweet chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring occasionally.
Stir in peanuts. Spread on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet, spreading peanuts in a single layer.

Drop spoonfuls of white chocolate on top, and swirl chocolates with a skewer. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. Break bark into large pieces. Bark will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.

Makes 1 1/4 pounds

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5-LAYER BARS
by Kristin

1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup butterscotch morsels (I used only chocolate chip since I didn’t have butterscotch)
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted (I drizzled a bit more butter than the recipe called for)
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. (I sometimes just melt the butter in the 9×13 pan in the oven while it preheats.) Press into bottom of a 9 by 13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle remaining ingredients of mix over crumb mixture. (I usually do chips, then nuts, then coconut). Pour sweetened condensed milk over the layers. Bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool and cut into bars.

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JACK-N-GINGER COOKIES
by Jill

1 14.5 oz. box gingerbread cake & cookie mix (I could not find a gingerbread mix so I made my own gingerbread mix based on a recipe from allrecipes.com)
1/4 cup Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7
2 T butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, mix gingerbread mix with 1/4 cup Jack and melted butter. Roll out a small amount of dough to 1/8 inch thickness on lightly floured board. Cut out cookies with shaped cookie cutter(s); arrange one inch apart on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 to 2 1/2 T Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7

In a small bowl, mix powdered sugar and 2 to 2 1/2 T of Jack to a spreading consistency. Frost cookies as desired.

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