Nagle5 News: It is NOT too late to come up with something cute and semi-homemade for a Christmas treat!

As you can imagine, my week was thrown completely out of rhythm by my need for emergency oral surgery. Baking that I'd hoped to have done by today hasn't even begun. Christmas, however, doesn't really come with a fluid time line...next Saturday, we're done! What does that mean for me (and you)? We've got very little time left to make the magic happen, but make it happen, we will!

So, today, right now...I have a few quick, easy, and semi-homemade ideas for you to try. Let me know what you think...I'll be sitting in my kitchen making these today, too.

First things first:

Nutter Butter Santa Claus cookies.

You'll need:
1 package of Nutter Butter Cookies
1 package of a) vanilla bark, b) white chocolate chips, or c) white chocolate buttons (they sell those at Michael's and JoAnn's and, maybe, Walmart)
1 package of mini white chocolate chips or a little squeeze bottle (I use the squeeze bottle)
1 package of mini chocolate chips
1 package of red-colored sugar
1 package of red hots candies
Oh, and a silpat or parchment paper or something to let the cookies rest on that won't stick

Okay, now I know this sounds like a lot, but these go lickety-split.

First, open the cookies and have them easily accessible. (Taste one, just to be sure they're good.)

Lay out your parchment paper or silpat.

Pour your red sugar in a small cup (think kids' sippy cup) or on a flat plate.

Put your mini chocolate chips in a bowl so you can grab them individually. Same with your red hots and white chocolate chips*.

Now, melt your white chocolate in the microwave. If you're using white chocolate buttons, put about 1 1/2 cups of buttons in your microwaveable measuring cup and microwave for 1 minute, then stir. Then continue in 15 second bursts until you have a nice, smooth, creamy white chocolate. (Pour some into the tiny squeeze bottle if you have it and set aside, otherwise, leave it all in this measuring cup.)

Ready?

Take 1 Nutter Butter and dip it into the melted white chocolate about 1/3 of the way and pull straight back out. Shake off any excess.

Now take the same Nutter Butter and dip it into the red sugar (you're making Santa's hat) and lay it flat onto your parchment paper. Use your squeeze bottle of white chocolate and make three dots for his face (two for the eyes, which will be your mini chocolate chips, and one for the nose, which is your red hot) and then one on the edge of the hat (for his tassle). If you have mini white chocolate chips, make a small tassle dot, otherwise, make your tassle by making a bigger dot and skip the white chocolate chips! Press the two mini chocolate chips into the white chocolate for eyes and the one red hot for the nose and you're done!

Now lay this Santa aside and start with the next Santa. Before you know it, you'll have an entire batch of Santa's ready to add to your Christmas fun.

Oh, and did I mention this is a great one to just hand off to the kids? They love it and their Santa's are always just perfect!