Recipes to Make an Elf Sparklejollyjingletwinkle

In anticipation of this arrival of Elf The Musical at Hershey Theatre from December 6 – 8 let’s start with a quiz. What are the four food groups according to an elf? Why candy, candy canes, candy corn and syrup, of course!

Elf is the hilarious tale of Buddy, a young orphan child who mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts and is transported back to the North Pole. Unaware that he is actually human, Buddy’s enormous size and poor toy-making ability cause him to face the truth. With Santa’s permission, Buddy embarks on a journey to New York City to find his birth father, discover his true identity and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas. This modern day Christmas classic is sure to make everyone embrace their inner Elf.

To prepare you for the show and to help get a jumpstart on your holiday baking, we’ve provided you with recipes that will make the elves in your life sparklejollyjingletwinkle. In addition to leveraging the four food groups, always remember, the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter-flavored shortening 1 ¼ cup brown sugar ¾ cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 whole eggs 2 ¼ cups unsifted flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 4 cups Hershey's chocolate chips

Directions:Cream together shortening, brown sugar, sugar and vanilla in large mixing bowl. Beat eggs in separate bowl and add to mixture. Mix together flour, baking soda and salt in separate bowl and gradually add to wet mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop batter by well-rounded teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake 8 minutes at 325 degrees or until barely brown.

Yield: 7 to 8 dozen cookies

Marbled Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Cake: 4 ounces Hershey's bittersweet chocolate, chopped small 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 2/3 cup Reese's smooth or chunky peanut butter 1 cup sugar 1 ¼ cup light brown sugar 5 whole eggs 2 cups all purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt ½ cup milk 1/3 cup Hershey's chocolate chips Chocolate Peanut Butter Glaze: 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons peanut butter, smooth 3 tablespoons, corn syrup 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped small 1 tablespoon water

Directions:Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour a ring pan. Melt chocolate. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, peanut butter and sugar till light and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift all dry ingredients. Add to the butter mixture, alternately with milk until just blended. Pour half of the batter into another bowl. Stir the melted chocolate into one bowl, until well blended, and the chocolate chips into the other bowl of batter. Using a large spoon, drop alternate spoonfuls of chocolate mixture and peanut butter mixture into the prepared pan. Using a knife, pull through the batter to create a swirled, marbled effect. Bake for 50-60 minutes, until the top springs back when touched. Cool cake in the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out onto a rack to cool completely. To make the glaze, combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan. Melt over low heat, stirring until well blended and smooth. Cool slightly. When slightly thickened, drizzle the glaze over the cake, letting it run down the sides.

Yield: 12-14 servings

Notes:  Use a creamy variety of peanut butter for a light, moist, well-textured cake. To jazz it up, try topping such as edible confetti, candy-coated peanut butter and chocolate candies, or peanut butter cup candies.

Red Velvet Peppermint Cake Pops

Cake Pop:

1 box red velvet cake baked and cooled to room temperature
Approximately 2 ounces of cream cheese icing (peppermint extract may be added according to preference of overall mint flavor)
½ pound white chocolate coating wafers

Directions:

Crumble the cooled cake into a course, mealy crumb. The smaller the crumb the easier to work with. Starting with a very small amount of icing, work it in to the crumb until dough is formed. The dough should have a firm, smooth consistency that resembles play-doh and should not be sticky upon a surface. Using an ice cream scoop the size of a ping pong ball or free-handing the same size, portion the dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Roll into individual balls and allow to rest in refrigeration for 10 to15 minutes.

While dough balls are resting, melt white chocolate coating wafers in 30-second intervals in a microwave on medium heat, stirring between intervals until smooth with no lumps. Do not overheat chocolate. Overheated chocolate results in lumpy, inconsistent coating. Remove dough balls from refrigeration. Dip the tip of a lollipop stick in to the melted chocolate and push the dipped end halfway in to a dough ball. Repeat with other dough balls and let the chocolate harden before proceeding.

Submerge the dough ball completely in to the melted chocolate by holding on to the stick. Allow excess to fall off, lightly shake to smooth the coating and rest the stick in Styrofoam until chocolate coated pops are hardened. While the coating is setting, crush peppermints in a food processor or wrap them in a towel and crush with a rolling pin to avoid projectiles. Mix crushed peppermints with the course sugar in a bowl.

Working with one at a time, double dip the pops in to the chocolate - the second coating prevents the red of the dough from showing through an almost transparent single white chocolate coating. Once one pop is dipped and coating is slightly firm but not solid, sprinkle with the crushed mint/course sugar mix and return stick to Styrofoam to allow the chocolate to completely harden. Place cake pops in to clear candy bags and tie off with ribbons of choice.

Yield: Approximately 24 pops

Sugar Cookies with Confectioners’ Sugar Cookie Frosting

Cookies:

¾ cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
Additional sugar, optional

Directions:In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Chill dough for 1 hour or until easy to handle. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with 2 ½ inch cookie cutters dipped in flour. Using a floured spatula, place cookies 1 inch apart on greased baking sheets. Sprinkle with sugar if desired.

Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool. Frost cookies if desired.

Yield: 6 to 7 dozen

Confectioners’ Sugar Cookie Frosting:

3 cups confectioners’ sugar
6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 to 4 tablespoons milk
Food coloring, optional

In a mixing bowl, beat sugar, butter, vanilla and milk until creamy. Add food coloring if desired. Frost cookies; decorate as desired.

Yield: 6 to 7 dozen, 2 ½ inch cookies

All recipes are provided by the Hershey Entertainment & Resorts culinary team. For more recipes, please visit HersheySweetRecipes.com