Crescent Moon

Ingredients:

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Confectioners' sugar

How to make:

1. In nonstick skillet, lightly toast walnuts over medium heat, shaking skillet frequently, until nuts are fragrant, about 2 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. Transfer walnuts to food processor, and add 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Process until finely ground. In large bowl, with mixer on high, beat butter and remaining granulated sugar until fluffly, about 3 minutes. Gradually add flour, sour cream, vanilla, salt, and walnut mixture until well combined. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into disk. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 1 hour.
3. Heat oven to 350 degree F. Flour hands lightly. Working with  half of dough at a time, shape heaping teaspoonfuls into crescents. Place crescents on baking sheet, 2" apart. Bake 18 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool on baking sheet 3 minutes. While cookies are slightly warm, dredge in confectioners' sugar to coat. Cool completely on wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough and sugar. Store cookies in airtight container. Makes about 6 dozen.

Snowman Cake

Bring out the child in everyone with an enchanting snowman, made with chocolate-mint cake and melt-in-your-mouth icing. Candy eyes and a chocolate-cookie hat help bring him to life.

Prep time: 55 minutes
Bake time: 40 minutes
Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk 
• 1 teaspoon mint extract
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3 large eggs

      Frosting:

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 4 large egg whites
• 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

                                                           Gather all the sweet treats for decorating
      Decoration

• 1 Ring Ding or Ding Dong
• 1 old-fashioned chocolate cookie
• Mini blue M&M's
• 2 blue taffy rolls (Airheads)
• 2 Junior Mints
• 1 Jelly orange slice, trimmed
• 1 thin 2" lengthwise black-licorice string
• 3 blue candy melts or nonpareils
• Clear rock candy

How to make:

1. Heat oven to 375 degree F. Grease and flour two 4-cup and two 1 1/2-cup ovenproof bowls. In medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In measuring cup, combine milk and mint extract.
2. In large bowl, beat together sugar and butter on low speed until blended, about 1 minute. Increase speed to high and beat 2 minutes, or until light and creamy. Reduce speed to medium-low and add eggs. One at a time, beating well after each. Alternate flour mixture and milk mixture; beat until batter is smooth, occassionally scraping sides of bowl with rubber spatula.
3. Divide batter among prepared bowls. Bake 30 minutes. Remove 1 1/2-cup bowls, and let cool. Continue baking 4-cup cakes until center comes out clean when inserted with a cake tester, about 10 minutes longer. Cool in bowls for 5 minutes. Invert cakes onto wire racks, and let cool completely. 
4. Meanwhile, prepare frosting: In the top of a double broiler, oven simmering (not boiling) water, beat together sugar, water, egg whites, light corn syrup, and cream of tartar on low speed until combined. Increase speed to high, and beat constantly for 10 to 12 minutes, or until stiff peaks form, scrapping sides occasionally with rubber spatula. Makes about 4 cups.
5. To assemble cake: Trim the flat side of each cake layer. Spread a thin layer of frosting on trimmed sides of cakes. Place same-size layers together to form two round shapes. Stand cake upright, and place smaller cake on top of larger one to form the snowman shape. Secure cake layers together by inserting a trimmed wooden skewer.
6. To decorate cake: Spread a thin layer of frosting onto bottom of Ring Ding, and secure to cookie. Spoon remaining frosting into a piping bag fitted with a 1/2" star tip. Pipe border around Ring Ding and place blue M&M's onto border to create a decorative hat. Place taffies together and shape into a scarf. Set the hat and scarf aside to firm up.
7. Transfer cake to a serving platter. Working down from the top, pipe star shapes around the entire cake. (If shapes are too pointy, gently tap down with fingertips.) For the face, arrange Junior Mints for the eyes, trimmed orange slice for the nose, and licorice string for the mouth. Wrap scarf around the neck. Place candy melts down middle of body for buttons; top with hat. Scatter rock candy around cake and serve.

Rocky Road Ice Cream Cake

This ooey-gooey treat is like a big sundae in a springform pan. It's made with chocolate ice cream, our secret homemade Fudge Sauce (also delicious served hot over a bowl of plain ice cream), cookies, peanuts, and baby marshmallows. If you don't have time to make the sauce, a jar from the store will do just fine.

Prep time: 30 minutes plus chilling and freezing
Cook time: about 8 minutes
Makes: 14 servings

Ingredients:

-Fudge Sauce:

• 1 cup heavy or whipping cream
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

-Rocky Road Cake:

• 2 pints chocolate ice cream, softened
• 14 chocolate sandwich cookies
• 2 cups miniature marshmallows
• 1 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

How to make:

1. Prepare Fudge Sauce: In heavy 2 -quart saucepan, heat cream, sugar, chocolate, and corn syrup over medium heat until mixture boils, stirring occasionally. Cook 4 minutes longer or until sauce thickens slightly (mixture should be gently bubbling), stirring constantly. Remove saucepan from heat; stir in butter and vanilla until sauce is smooth and glossy. Cover surface of sauce with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours or until cool. Makes about 1 2/3 cups.
2. When sauce is cool, assemble Rocky Road Cake: Wrap bottom and side of 9" by 3" springform pan with foil. Spoon 1 pint chocolate ice cream into pan. Place plastic wrap on ice cream and press down to speard evenly and eliminate air pockets; remove plastic wrap. Insert cookies, standing upright, into ice cream to form a ring around side of pan, making sure to push cookie to pan bottom. Sprinkle 1 cup marshmallows and 1/2 cup peanuts over ice cream; press in gently with hand.
3. Spoon remaining ice cream over marshmallows and peanuts. Place plastic wrap on ice cream and spread evenly; remove plastic wrap. Spread 2/3 cup Fudge Sauce over ice cream (if sauce is too firm, microwave briefly to soften but not heat); reserve remaining sauce to serve later. Sprinkle remaining marshmallows and peanuts over sauce; press in gently with hand. Cover and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours.
4. To serve, uncover and remove foil from pan. Wrap towels dampened with warm water around side of pan for about 20 seconds to slightly soften ice cream, Remove side of pan and place cake on cake stand or plate. Let stand at room temperature about 10 minutes for easier slicing. Meanwhile, place remaining Fudge Sauce in microwave-safe bowl. Heat sauce in microwave oven, uncovered, on High 30 to 40 seconds or until hot, stirring once. Serve hot sauce to spoon over cake if you like.

Each serving: About 365 calories, 7 g protein, 36 g carbohydrate, 23 g total fat (11 g saturated), 2 g fiber, 77 mg cholesterol, 220 mg sodium.
Each tablespoon sauce: About 85 calories, 1 g protein, 8 g carbohydrate, 7 g total fat (4 g saturated), 0 g fiber, 15 mg cholesterol, 15 mg sodium.