Holidays/8 recipes

This easy make-ahead cocktail sausage recipe combines BBQ sauce's smoky, tangy flavors with the sweet, tart taste of cranberry sauce for a delightful burst of seasonal flavors.

A delicious blend of crunchy cereal, salty peanuts, and sweet candy-coated chocolate pieces blanketed in a buttery, peanut butter-enriched coating. This snack mix is perfect for any occasion you have guests to entertain; everyone will enjoy it. The recipe can be easily made in the oven or microwave and is perfect for sharing with friends and family.

Try this crockpot rendition of hot cocoa that is perfect for a large group of people!

Crispy, paper-thin chocolate lace cookies made with melted butter and unsweetened chocolate. Only 8 ingredients, 30 minutes, and you've got 3 dozen elegant holiday treats.

Southern boiled custard eggnog made from scratch with 8 egg yolks, cream, vanilla, and nutmeg. Spiked with whiskey or served virgin, this silky holiday drink serves 12.

Marcia Adams's maple baked ham: an 8-pound cooked ham glazed with pure maple syrup and served with a mustard-Worcestershire pan sauce. A classic holiday centerpiece with sweet-savory drippings.

Buttery brown sugar shortbread cut into triangles, topped with a glossy chocolate dollop and a crunchy shower of toffee bits. Makes 8 dozen bite-sized treats for holiday platters.

Slice-and-bake Swedish coconut cookies with golden edges and a buttery, tender crumb. Shape the dough into logs, chill, slice thin, and bake. Makes a whopping 8 dozen from one batch. Ideal for holiday cookie swaps.

"A tall, impressive cake that showcases the flavors and smells of the holidays. A three-layer extravaganza with a touch of molasses and shredded apple to keep it moist. It fills the house with a fragrance that beats the most expensive holiday-scented candle. It will be talked about long after the party is over." Source: The Pastry Queen Christmas, by Rebecca Rather

"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.