This puppy chow's in a holiday movie
and more semi-homemade treats to assemble.
For those of us timid or time-crunched bakers who would rather receive than make intricately arranged cookie boxes, there are still treats that overflow with joy that we can make and bring to every party and give to every person we pass by.
My go-to sweets that are more assembly than baking include:
These Magic Bars I made for my nonna
Granola—SJ’s Popcorn Granola for thrills
Peanut Butter Squares from How to Be a Domestic Goddess, which I’ve been making since elementary school
- ’s grandmother’s Cinnamon Toast Cookies (h/t Genius Desserts)
Puppy Chow [gift link]
Let’s also not forget that SJ’s fudgy almond cookie cake would ship and travel marvelously. If savory is more your jam, here’s a list [gift link] of 50 semi-homemade snacks and appetizers.
And then there’s today’s treat, which is Puppy Chow that is naturally nut-free and easily vegan (use vegan bittersweet chocolate and confectioners’ sugar). It tastes like Teddy Grahams and maple syrup and holding hands and six-inch ribbon curls. Really!
From SJ:
Every year, I make a grand plan to bake holiday cookies for anyone I’ve ever met; they’ll be packed in neat cellophane bags and given out like I’m Oprah or something. But then, when it’s 9 p.m. and my cookies have spread into amoebas instead of holding their intricate shapes, I’m left wondering if I even know how to bake anything at all. Is this what the holidays are all about?!
So while I still have a few cookie recipes on my list (including these Buttery Jam Diagonals and these Snow Globe Cookies), my default this year is Cookie Butter Puppy Chow, in which Biscoff cookie butter—looks like nut butter, tastes like speculoos spice cookies—and a bit of ground cinnamon replaces the usual peanut butter for a gingerbready combination. Cloaked in confectioners’ sugar, Chex-sized pieces of actual cookies deliver snappy crunch and extra spice when you least expect it. It’s still Puppy Chow, but starring in a holiday movie.
Cookie Butter Puppy Chow makes a nice gift that’s a step up from pretzel-kiss-M&Ms, yet still achievable in the chaos of the season/world. Divvy it up into jars, tie each with a ribbon, and you’ll likely still have enough leftover to keep a stash in your freezer for when you need it most (like tonight—it goes well with espresso or amaro).
Give the gift of dinner & dessert
If you’ve enjoyed this newsletter, perhaps someone else might, too? Consider a gift subscription to 40 Ingredients Forever for anyone looking for simple but delicious weeknight dinners and desserts. Schedule the subscription to arrive on whatever date you wish, and you can download and print out or email this little gift certificate to the lucky recipient.
Cookie Butter Puppy Chow
Yield: about 9 cups