Holidays/6 recipes

"This cake is a rich, dark, moist fruit cake, very flavorful at Christmas. Try icing with almond paste for a more festive touch. This recipe is started in October or November so as to let it mellow before the holidays. I remember very well my mother storing her fruit cake in an old butter churn that belonged to my grandmother and great grandmother. I wish that I had that old crock."

Holiday gingerbread cutout cookies made with molasses, brown sugar, and warm spices. Dough chills for 1 hour, rolls to perfect thickness, then cuts into festive shapes ready for decorating.

Chewy oatmeal cookie dough shaped into snowmen and decorated for the holidays. A fun winter baking project for kids that makes four big cookie snowmen.

No-bake walnut chocolate rum balls rolled in cocoa powder. Made with grated milk chocolate, chopped walnuts, powdered sugar, and real rum. A rich holiday candy ready in 15 minutes, makes 2 1/2 dozen.

I got this recipe from "TheSouthernLadyCooks.com" Here's a blurb from her website: "These rolls will melt in your mouth. I have made them for years and they are wonderful. My family looks forward to these rolls during the holidays. I think this recipe was on a box of grits years and years ago."

White chocolate orange buttercream for a holiday Buche de Noel, made with egg yolks, half-and-half, and Grand Marnier. Part 1 of a stunning Christmas log cake topped with toasted almonds and cranberries.

Old-fashioned divinity candy with holiday, chocolate, and ginger variations. The classic Southern white candy: cloud-light, melt-on-your-tongue texture, made by streaming hot syrup into beaten egg whites.

Crown roast of pork stuffed with apple, cranberry, and bread dressing for elegant holiday entertaining. Showstopping centerpiece feeds 16 in 3.5 hours.

Chewy, warmly spiced mincemeat squares with cinnamon, nutmeg, and bran, drizzled with a sweet confectioners' sugar glaze. A cozy holiday baking treat that makes 16 shareable squares.

Tiny Bohemian chocolate cookies with melted milk chocolate, grated walnuts, and butter, baked low and slow until they melt on your tongue. Makes 16 dozen bite-sized cookies for holiday platters.

Classic coffee Irish cream liqueur with whiskey, Kahlua, and sweetened condensed milk ready in 1 minute. Shake, chill, and serve this creamy homemade holiday cocktail.