Hanukkah just ended, and Christmas and Kwanzaa are just around the corner. Pumpkin spice season is drawing to a close and rich peppermint should be welcomed with open arms. Fill your house or apartment with the wonderful smells of these holiday desserts (and get on your roommates’ good sides).
Andes Mint Cookies
These are a favorite within the Kramer family, and for good reason. I may be 20, but I still leave for Texas every winter break crossing my fingers that these will be readily available around the house when I get home. Just one and you’ll understand how incredibly addicting they are. Sprinkles are optional, and personally, we leave them off. These are so good they don’t need to be dressed up.
Clementine Cake
I haven’t attempted this cake myself, but one of my friends made it last year for a dinner party and I fell in love. It’s not the sweetest cake ever, but it tastes like winter. And with only five ingredients, what could go wrong? For a more interesting color and slight flavor variation, try swapping two clementines for a blood orange in the recipe.
White chocolate snack mix
If you’re not really a baker, then this is for you. I made this last year for a tacky sweater party because I remembered it from my childhood, and I was heartbroken that we didn’t have any left over. This stuff takes less than 15 minutes to throw together, and it’s so delicious.
White peppermint hot chocolate
Is it obvious that I love chocolate? Anything peppermint reminds me of candy canes in elementary school, and I can’t get enough of it. If you have a serious sweet tooth, then this hot chocolate is for you.
Chai Cake with Honey-Ginger Cream
Winter means cardamom, and cardamom means chai. Warm, milky, sweet, spicy chai. Some days, I’d rather curl up with a cup of chai than anything else, so why not put it in everything, like cake?
Rugelach
I’ll admit, I’ve never actually had rugelach before, but Kansas City has such a large Eastern European population that I can’t avoid seeing it everywhere this time of year. And, it’s never too late to keep celebrating Hanukkah, especially when you get to eat these.
Holiday Bark
My best friend’s family makes bark every year, and I have very distinct memories being very excited to receive her homemade peppermint bark the week before winter break in middle school. It was almost like the first real sign of the holidays. The best thing about bark is that you can be as creative as you want, and it’ll almost always come out tasting amazing. Don’t be afraid to scour the internet for recipes, or make up your own!