Holiday Treats: Candy Cane and Marzipan Delights

Holiday Christmas Candy Cane Brownies

Candy canes seem to be everywhere this time of year. Whether you truly love these peppermint sweets or just need to use up leftover candy canes before you find them stuck in the carpet, here are five fun recipes using crushed candy canes. And after you peruse the peppermint desserts, read on for five sweets made from marvelous marzipan.

Candy Cane Fudge Christmas Holiday Treats Recipes

Chocolate Chip Candy Cane Fudge

This twist on traditional chocolate fudge makes use of leftover candy canes to create beautiful white, red and pink swirled candy. This confection, from inside BruCrew Life, is cooked in a saucepan on the stove and flavored with instant candy cane pudding and crushed candy canes. Mini chocolate chips are stirred in at the end for a bit of chocolate to offset the sweetness of the white fudge.

Candy Cane Cocktail Holiday Recipes Leftovers

Candy Cane Cranberry Cocktail

This holiday cocktail is almost too gorgeous to drink! Made from equal parts vodka, cranberry juice and Sierra Mist — then served in a glass rimmed with crushed candy canes — this will be a hit at your next party. Jenny of the Everyday Occasions blog, where this recipe can be found, recommends garnishing the red beverage with fresh cranberries on a cocktail sword or by hanging a mini candy cane on the rim of the glass.

Candy Cane Pudding Cute Holiday Treats Using Leftovers Desserts

Candy Cane Pudding Parfaits

Here’s another fabulous holiday recipe from Jocelyn of the Inside BruCrewLife blog. These pudding parfaits will delight children and adults alike. The layers are made from crushed Oreo cookies, candy cane pudding and sweetened cream cheese. Each glass is topped with vanilla flavored Cool Whip and — you guessed it — crushed candy canes.

Candy Cane Brownies

Peppermint and chocolate are paired beautifully in this from-scratch brownie recipe from the She Knows blog. Melted dark chocolate and mini chocolate chips give this brownie its intense chocolate flavor, and crushed candy canes add both texture and a hint of mint. A sprinkling of candy cane pieces on top are a festive touch. The recipe’s author recommends serving these with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a mini candy cane.

Reindeer Food

Need a quick recipe for finger food to bring to a Christmas party? How about this three-ingredient recipe for Reindeer Food? Made from Rice Chex cereal, white chocolate chips and crushed candy canes, it’s as simple as melting the white chips in the microwave and then mixing the three ingredients together. Check out this post from the Butter with a Slice of Bread blog for complete instructions.

Homemade Marzipan

What is marzipan? Besides a character in the ballet The Nutcracker, marzipan is a confection made from almonds and sugar. Some recipes add egg white. Marzipan candy is as common in Europe during Christmastime as candy canes are here in the US. It has a Playdough-like consistency and is most commonly molded into animals, fruits and vegetables. These are used to decorate cakes or eaten as candy. Marzipan is also used in cookies, as pastry filling and for covering cakes in place of icing. You can buy marzipan at the store, or you can use this easy marzipan recipe from The Graceful Kitchen blog to make your own.

Marzipan Christmas Bites

These Marzipan Christmas Bites will make you look like a professional candy maker, that is as long as you don’t tell anyone how easy it was! To make these delicious candies, simply roll marzipan into bite-sized balls and dip in chocolate that you’ve melted in a double boiler. Place the chocolate coated bites in paper candy cups and top with colorful Christmas sprinkles. Check out the detailed tutorial by Louise at the Cake Journal blog.

Marzipan Cake

L-Jay from the My Little Norway blog offers this recipe and detailed tutorial for Marzipan Cake. In Norway, cakes made of vanilla sponge cake layered with cream and berries are often baked for celebrations. She made this cake with red berries, giving it a festive pink and red color. The entire cake is covered with a layer of marzipan, similar to the way a cake would be covered in fondant. A cross is cut into the center on top and the triangles formed from the cuts are folded back to create a star shape. The best part is that she recommends using store bought sponge cake instead of homemade because it will be less fresh and therefore soak up the juices better!

Marzipan Fruit and Veggie Shapes Holiday Treats fun for Kids gluten free

Marzipan Fruit and Veggie Treats

Deanna at The Old Red Hen blog gives an easy-to-follow tutorial on making these delectable marzipan fruits and veggie treats. To color the marzipan, work in food color by kneading it into the dough. She made tiny potatoes by rolling marzipan balls in cocoa powder and creating eyes with a toothpick. She even sliced the potato and added a pat of marzipan butter! The stems on the fruit are cloves and the specks on the strawberries are white bead candies. Use your mini fruits and veggies to top a cake or give them as gifts in pretty boxes. You can bet that your kids will eat these vegetables!

Mom's Marzipan Cookies

Angie at the God’s Growing Garden blog shares a printable recipe and detailed tutorial for Mom’s Marzipan Cookies. These are time consuming to create, but so worth it! She first baked cookies which were cut out with Linzer cookie cutters (a fluted round cookie cutter with interchangeable center shapes) and allowed them to cool. Marzipan was then sliced and cut out into shapes with the same cookie cutters. Some cookies were covered in apricot jam, then the marzipan slices with the cut out shape in the middle were placed on top, allowing the jam to peek through. She covered the remaining cookies in chocolate and used the center shapes she removed as toppers. Use raspberry or strawberry jam for a beautiful red Christmas color. Linzer cookie cutters available on Wilton.com