anyone have some good ideas for what to include in a "baked goods" care package for X-mas?

Question

I love to bake and for friends and family, I prefer to send care packages of goodies at Christmas.

If you were to get one, what would you want in it?
If you've made some in the past, what did you include that got rave reviews?

Recipes would be great if you have them.

OMG Chez... I was thinking the EXACT SAME THING!!! perhaps we should post that as a seperate question!

Answer 1

I do the star cookies, cut out sugar cookies, shortbread, a chocolate cookie with peppermint candy chopped on top, candy cane cookies, snickerdoodles and thumbprints. Also these great peanut butter cup cookies that actually are baked in a mini muffin tin and have a mini peanut butter cup in the center.

For candy I do both chocolate and white chocolate covered pretzels(drizzle white chocolate on the chocolate and vice versus, use sprinkles on others), chocolate and white covered roasted peanuts, Ritz crackers with peanut butter in between dipped in chocolate and peppermint fudge and my famous chocolate fudge. Peanut butter balls and homemade truffles rolled in things like cocoa, powdered sugar or crushed nuts.

OF course I use lots of sprinkles and such, for the filling on my thumbprints I use sugar cookie frosting dyed in festive colors instead of jam.

I also do a big marshmallow dipped in a mix of melted carmel and evaporated milk rolled in Rice Krispies and I also do Scotcharoos.

All of the above makes for a very pretty Christmas tray. And remember you can use Christmas cupcake paper to put pieces of fudge in or the covered candies, they add a lot of color to the trays.

Answer 2

There are lots of recipes on the web for the things I make at Christmas to send but here are the names of what I make and they all ship nicely. My son is on his third tour in Iraq and I send him goodies every 2-3 weeks and they arrive nice for him.

Banana Bread
Applesauce Cake
Pumpkin Bread
Chocolate cake with frosting *
Chocolate chip cake *
Lemon Poppyseed Cake
Gingerbread
Peanut Butter Fudge
Rice Crispie Treats

My mother (84) sends him all kinds of cookies, as well as makes them for all her neighbors. If you wrap your cookies (4 to a group) in saran, then place the package in a sandwich zip lock bag and seal it, they keep nice and don't break if you pack your box correctly. My mother makes date bars, chocolate chip cookies, some of the cakes I make, and her favorite (besides the date bars - my mother must make 4 batches date bars and she and my dad eat 3 - LOL), is Persimmon cookies. They are very very addictive.

* In shipping to Iraq, I have to watch the temperature over there because too hot will melt any chocolate. Will also melt the Peanut Butter Fudge.

I use the mini loaf pans for all my cakes. It makes an amount equal to two biscuits.

Answer 3

I would do like a variety of cookies, and then maybe possibly include a loaf of homemade bread? that is the best...not sure if you are shipping the pacakges or not, so i'm not sure how well the bread would hold up...but if you did ship it, it would make sure its completly wrapped in plastic and in a siploc bag so that no air could get to it...

otherwise just do some bars...I love carmel Rice Krispy bars...oh i could eat a whole pan of those....
I personally am not a big fan of fruit like cookies...ones that have like jelly stuff in the center...not sure what they are called...

ummm i know you said you like to bake, but what about doing candy like stuff?....you can buy wilton candy melts, add some flavoring to them, and then pour it into molds (those are realativly cheap) and then just pop em out of the molds and throw the flavors candies into the packages...

Answer 4

My grandma used to make the best sugar cookies in the world! These are soft sugar cookies, not hard ones. Try this recipe once, you'll be hooked! And it's fun to make with kids, because when you mix the baking soda into the sour cream, the sour cream starts to rise instantly!

Grandma's sugar cookies

3/4 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream with 1 tsp baking soda dissolved into it
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp baking powder
3 cups flour

Cream together shortening and sugar. Sift dry ingredients together. Mix eggs and sour cream into the shortening mixture. Add dry ingredients. Roll out on floured surface, cut out with cookie cutters. May be sprinkled with colored sugar before baking or frosted afterward. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes or until done. Will be white/cream colored when done.

I like them plain with no frosting and fresh, but they keep well.
I also love rum balls that my best friend makes, but I don't have the recipe. Once, I suggested that she substitute the rum for other flavored liquors. She did and it was awesome!
I found this one online, it seems similar, except my friends doesn't have nuts in hers

1 1/2 cups vanilla wafers, ground
1 cup sifted icing sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa
1 1/2 cups finely chopped walnuts
3 tablespoons corn syrup
1/4 cup rum
chocolate, shots (or additional icing sugar)

Combine all ingredients except the chocolate shots/additional icing sugar and shape into one inch balls.
Roll in chocolate shots (or additional icing sugar).

Answer 5

I like candy, because it keeps better...However, if you can bake something that uses honey as a sweetener, it will retain and actually gain moistness. So things like quick breads, oatmeal cookies, and soft chewy molasses or gingerbread cookies would be well served by using honey. Honey is 'hydroscopic', which means that it draws moisture into your recipe. So the longer it sits, the better it gets.

I like baklava because it is a very labor intensive, special treat and tastes even better the day after you make it.

Answer 6

to me a baked goods care package would have an assortment of cookies and probably brownies....

I have never received one before so I have no experience to fall on as to what would go in one...

if I was to get one I would personally love an assortment of cookies kind of like those butter cookies that you can find everywhere for the holidays. There are different shapes and even though they are made from butter, it seems each shape has a different taste to it which I like....

cupcakes would be good too.....a lot of people like cupcakes or homemade muffins or cinnamon rolls or sticky buns....things like that

I have some recipes for come different cookies if you would like.....I have one for pumpkin cookies which are really good and Texas Lizzies. I have not tried the Lizzies but have it on good authority they are very yummy!

Texas Lizzies:

3 t. baking soda
1 t. ground nutmeg
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. whiskey
3/4 lb pecans, chopped
1 box golden raisins
8 oz red candied cherries, chopped
8 oz green candied cherries, chopped
3/4 lb walnuts, chopped
1 1/4 c. dark raisins


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease several baking sheets. In large bowl, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Beat in sugar until light and fluffy. Beat eggs one at a time. On low speed, beat flour, baking soda, nutmeg and cinnamon in butter mixture. Add whiskey. Stir in the nuts, raisins, and candied cherries. Drop dough by rounded tablespoons, placing 2 inches apart. Bake 10 to 12 minutes

Pumpkin Cookies:

1 c. oil
1 egg
1 c. sugar
1 c. pumpkin
2 c. all purpose flour
1 t. soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon

icing:
3 T. butter
4 T. milk
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 c. confectioner's sugar
3/4 t. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, mix cookie ingredients together. Drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.

While cookies are bakin, in a saucepan, melt butter. Once butter is melted, added brown sugar and let cool. Be careful not to let it cool completely or it will harden up and will have to be reheated. Add confectioner's sugar, milk, and vanilla. Icing should be at spreadable consistency. Spread over cookies

I ran across this recipe too....I have not tried these either but they sound yummy: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

2 squares (2 0z) unsweet chocolate, chopped
6 squares (6 0z) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 T. butter
1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/4 t. baking powder
1/8 t. salt
2 eggs
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 t. vanilla
1 1/2 c. peanut butter chips
1 1/2 c. unsalted peanuts, chopped

Preheat over to 350 degrees. In top of a double broiler over barely simmering water, melt the unsweet and semisweet chocolate with butter. Stir until blended and smooth. Remove the pan from above water and let mixture cool to room temp about 20 min. In small bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, with a mixer on med-high spped, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla for 1 minute to blend. On low speed, beat in chocolate mixture until blended. Beat in dry ingredients just until blended. With rubber spatula, fold in peanut butter chips and peanuts. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 min until cookies are set.

Answer 7

I like those original highly decorated sugar cookies (made by a friend of course - not bought). Or you could send a box with purchased Christmas cookies and a handmade Christmas ornament in it.

Answer 8

this bread is my very favorite, and anyone who has tried it has said they loved it...

orange glazed cranberry pumpkin bread

3 1/2 c. flour 1 2/3 c. sugar
2 tsp. each baking soda pumpkin pie spice
3/4 tsp. salt 1 tsp. baking powder
1 (16oz) can whole berry cranberry sauce
1 (16oz) can solid pack pumpkin
2/3 c. veg. oil 4 eggs
3/4 c. pecans (optional)
glaze
1 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. undiluted orange juice concentrate
1/8 tsp. allspice

in large bowl mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder. in second bowl stir together remaining ingredients until well mixed. add to flour mixture stir until well moistened. pour into greased 9x5 loaf pans. bake at 350 for about 65 min. drizzle glaze over cooled loaves.

glaze mix sugar, juice, and spice until smooth

i usually add orange zest and dried cranberries.


enjoy...

Answer 9

I've always wanted to do this sort of thing but what i've got in my mind, is finding recipes with easy dry ingredients and layer them in a jar....people usually have eggs, oil, butter or margerine and water (duh:) ) so they can make it easy..put the lid on and decorate the lid with like fabric and tie a ribbon around the lid and attach a recipe card (instructions) to the ribbon! :)

Answer 10

try this...
food for the gods
chocolate revel bars
oatmeal crisp
chocolate chip cookies