Holiday yummies

I've been collecting holiday recipes for a project I'm putting together this holiday season. I thought I'd share a few of my favorites with you here. These come from a variety of sources -- the Hershey's and Nestle Web sites, a cookbook my church put together several years ago, a crockpot cookbook and the Kraft Food Web site.

Happy holiday eating!

Savory Parmesan Bites
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
2 cans (8 oz. each) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 cup chopped red peppers
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
HEAT oven to 350°F. Beat cream cheese and 3/4 cup Parmesan with mixer until well blended.
SEPARATE crescent rolls into 8 rectangles; press perforations together to seal. Spread each with 3 Tbsp. cream cheese mixture. Top with peppers and parsley. Fold 1 long side of each dough rectangle over filling to center; fold again to enclose filling. Cut each into 4 squares. Place, seam-sides down, on baking sheet. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan.
BAKE 13 to 15 min. or until golden brown.

Chicken Tortilla Soup
A great casual holiday meal.

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 can (4 ounces) chopped mild green chiles, drained
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cans (15 ounces each) diced tomatoes, undrained
½ to 1 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons fresh, chopped cilantro
4 corn tortillas, sliced into ¼ inch strips
½ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese to top soup
Put chicken thighs in bottom of crockpot
Combine chiles, garlic, onion, tomatoes,
½ cup broth and cumin in small bowl. Pour mixture over chicken.
Cover, cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours until chicken is tender. Remove chicken; use two forks to shred the meat and return to crockpot. Adjust seasonings and add more broth if necessary.
Just before serving, add tortillas and cilantro to crockpot. Stir to blend.

Overnight Egg Bake
Mike's and my favorite brunch main dish -- perfect for Christmas morning.

3 (12 oz.) cups shredded cheddar
2 (12 oz.) cups shredded mozzarella
6 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
1/3 cup sliced green onions
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 oz. cooked turkey sausage, cooked
½ cup flour
1 ¾ cup milk
2 tablespoons snipped parsley
8 eggs, beaten

In large bowl, lightly toss cheeses together. Sprinkle half of cheese mixture in ungreased 13-by-9 baking dish. In medium skillet, cook mushrooms, bell peppers and onion in olive oil until vegetables are tender. Arrange vegetables over cheese. Arrange sausage over vegetables. Sprinkle remaining cheese over sausage. (Tip: To make ahead, prepare to this point; cover and refrigerate overnight.)
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In large bowl using wire wisk, blend flour, milk, parsley and eggs. Pour over layers in baking dish. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until mixture is set and top is lightly browned. Let stand about 10 minutes before serving.


Candy Cane Blossoms
These are the cookies pictured above.

• 48 HERSHEY'S KISSES Brand Candy Cane Mint Candies
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons milk
• Red or green sugar crystals, granulated sugar or powdered sugar
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Remove wrappers from candies.

2. Beat butter, granulated sugar, egg and vanilla in large bowl until well blended. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; add alternately with milk to butter mixture, beating until well blended.

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in red sugar, granulated sugar, powdered sugar or a combination of any of the sugars. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and cookie is set. Remove from oven; cool 2 to 3 minutes. Press a candy piece into center of each cookie. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. About 4 dozen cookies.

Rich Raspberry Swirl Brownies
I started making these several years ago. Very rich, so cut them into small pieces. They are soooo good!

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup baking cocoa
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs, divided
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup seedless red raspberry jam
• 1 2/3 cups (10-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® SWIRLED™ Semi-Sweet & Premier White Morsels, divided
Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease 9-inch-square baking pan.

COMBINE cocoa, flour and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add 2 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Spread 1 cup batter into prepared baking pan. Sprinkle pecans over batter. Stir jam until smooth. Drizzle over pecans. Beat remaining batter and egg in same large bowl until light in color. Stir in 1 cup Swirled Morsels. Spread evenly over raspberry jam. Top with remaining Swirled Morsels.

BAKE for 30 to 33 minutes or until center is set.

Rich Chocolate Chip Toffee Bars
Another holiday favorite. Can you tell I like rich desserts? Another treat to cut into small pieces.

2 1/3 cups flour
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
¾ cup butter or margarine
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 cups (12 oz. package) semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 cup chopped nuts
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1¾ cup (10 oz package) English toffee bits, divided

Heat oven to 350. Grease 9x13-inch baking pan. Stir together flour and brown sugar in large bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles course crumbs. Add egg; mix well. Stir in half of chocolate chips and all of nuts. Reserve 1½ cups of mixture. Press remaining crumb mixture onto bottom of pan.
Bake 10 minutes. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over hot crust. Top with half of toffee bits. Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture and remaining chocolate chips over top.
Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with remaining toffee bits. Cool completely. Cut into bars.