I love bringing a big dessert platter with me to any holiday party or get together! To me, it’s not just about shoving a bunch of sweets on a plate! It’s about sharing the flavours that make me think of love and holidays. It’s about adding a bit of pizazz that can wow the crowd!

It doesn’t mean that I need to bake thousands of different recipes or that I need to be baking non-stop through these next few weeks. It simply means picking recipes strategically!

Pick the filler!

To make things quick and easy for yourself, find a recipe that is a big batch recipe. Make sure that the recipe itself is not overly complicated and that it can make between 30-50 treats each time you make the recipe. This will be your filler for a platter. I love starting by doing two batches of one of my filler recipes because they act as great teacher gift add-ons and easy treats to pull out if company surprises you with a visit! You know there’s so many made that you will definitely have enough for whatever you need them for!

Pick for colour!

Next, I think about colour! I love making sure that I have at least one treat that is colourful! Try making a sugar cookie recipe but take half the dough and make it red, then twist the two colours together in the shape of a candy cane! Try decorating some sugar cookies with colourful icing or sprinkles! Make some colourful Rice Krispy squares! If you’re really pressed for time, try adding mini muffin liners (with a Christmas theme, of course!) filled with some red and green M&M’s or Smarties! It’s amazing what a pop of colour can do!

Pick for the chocolate!

Pick something very chocolatey! Something like easy fudge or even check out some easy truffle like recipes. You could even make a good old double chocolate chip cookie! An easy chocolate treat to make is to melt some chocolate then add some fillers – my favs are puffed rice cereal, golden grahams, chunks of ritz crackers, mini marshmallows, even peanuts or almonds (so long as the people you are sharing with have no allergies!) It’s super easy – after you mix whatever combo or single ingredients you want, just scoop them onto a tray with parchment paper and let them cool in the fridge! If you love a sweet-salty mix, make some of the Christmas crack using the saltine crackers – it’s so tasty, looks fantastic, and is the perfect misshaped treat for a platter!

Pick for spice!

I love fall. It makes me think of cozy sweaters and warm apple cider. It also makes me think of cinnamon or ginger flavoured treats! I love to add something to my platter that is in that flavour wheelhouse as well! Good old ginger snaps are great – and could double as your pop of colour if you ice them! Big soft molasses cookies are a favourite in my house. Or you could go lighter on the flavour and make some snickerdoodle type of cookie.

Pick for the wow!

This does not have to be a super tricky recipe! I always try to find ‘easy to make’ treats, but that doesn’t mean they still can’t look amazing or like it was a lot of hard work to do, right? Pick something like a crackle cookie – they always look beautiful. Try making some meringue drops – they’re easier than you think! Try making some chocolate salami! (it’s on my “try to make” list this year!) Try to find something fun that you wouldn’t normally make. I love leaving this category for last because it’s the one that I am most looking forward to making. If the recipe works out, great! I can add it happily to my platters. If it doesn’t work, we can eat it anyway, AND I still have lots of other options to add to my platters! It’s a win-win. Who knows? You may even stumble on a new favourite recipe!

Think of how great your home will smell while baking all these treats!

Thanks for coming home!