A festive family blog for BowCo Hair Accessories
Christmas is the perfect time to get little hands busy in the kitchen! From decorating gingerbread biscuits to creating adorable reindeer treats, festive baking is a wonderful way to spend quality time together and make magical Christmas memories.
At BowCo Hair Accessories, we love everything that makes Christmas special for families. So we've put together five fun, easy Christmas recipes that children will love making (and eating!).
These recipes use simple ingredients available in UK supermarkets, with plenty of opportunities for younger children to help.
1. Rudolph's Chocolate Reindeer Biscuits
1. Rudolph's Chocolate Reindeer Biscuits š¦
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Setting Time: 20ā30 minutes
Makes: 12 biscuits
These adorable Rudolph biscuits are almost too cute to eat! They're perfect for younger children as there's no baking involved, just lots of decorating fun.
What You'll Need
12 round digestive biscuits
150g milk chocolate
24 mini pretzels
24 edible candy eyes
12 red Smarties or similar red chocolate sweets
Let's Get Making!
Step 1: Ask an adult to gently melt the chocolate in the microwave, stirring every 20 seconds until smooth.
Step 2: Spread a little melted chocolate over the top of each digestive biscuit.
Step 3: Place two mini pretzels at the top of each biscuit to create Rudolph's antlers.
Step 4: Add two edible eyes and finish with a bright red sweet for his famous nose!
Step 5: Leave the biscuits to set for approximately 20ā30 minutes before enjoying.
Our Festive Tip: Set up a little Rudolph decorating station and let the children create their own reindeer faces. The sillier, the better!
2. Christmas Tree Puff Pastry Twists
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 15ā20 minutes
Makes: 8 Christmas trees
These delicious chocolate-filled Christmas trees look impressive but are surprisingly easy to make. With golden, flaky pastry and a sweet chocolate centre, they're guaranteed to be a hit with the whole family.
What You'll Need
1 pack of ready-rolled puff pastry (approximately 320g)
3 tablespoons chocolate hazelnut spread
1 beaten egg
A little icing sugar for dusting
8 oven-safe wooden skewers (optional)
Let's Get Baking!
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 200Ā°C (180Ā°C fan) and line a baking tray with baking parchment.
Step 2: Unroll the puff pastry and spread chocolate hazelnut spread evenly over one half.
Step 3: Fold the other half of the pastry over the chocolate and gently press down.
Step 4: Cut the pastry into eight long strips.
Step 5: Fold each strip backwards and forwards to create a Christmas tree shape, making the folds wider at the bottom and smaller towards the top. Use oven-safe skewers to hold the shapes if needed.
Step 6: Place the trees onto your baking tray and brush lightly with beaten egg.
Step 7: Bake for approximately 15ā20 minutes until golden, puffed up and cooked through.
Step 8: Allow to cool slightly, remove any skewers and dust with icing sugar for a beautiful snowy finish.
Our Festive Tip: Children will love sprinkling the icing sugar over their Christmas trees. Serve them warm for an extra-special festive treat!
3. Melted Snowman Chocolate Bark
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Setting Time: Approximately 30ā60 minutes
Makes: 10ā12 pieces
This is one of the easiest Christmas treats to make with children, and the results are adorable! Each little snowman has its own personality, making this a lovely activity for a festive afternoon at home.
What You'll Need
300g white chocolate
10ā12 white marshmallows
A handful of mini chocolate chips
Orange writing icing
Pretzel sticks
Christmas sprinkles
Let's Get Making!
Step 1: Line a baking tray with baking parchment.
Step 2: Ask an adult to gently melt the white chocolate until completely smooth.
Step 3: Pour the chocolate onto the lined tray and spread into an even rectangle, approximately 5mm thick.
Step 4: Place marshmallows onto the chocolate to create your snowmen's heads.
Step 5: Use mini chocolate chips for their eyes and buttons, orange icing for their carrot noses and little pretzel pieces for their arms.
Step 6: Add a scattering of festive sprinkles for an extra touch of Christmas magic.
Step 7: Place the tray in the fridge until the chocolate is completely set.
Step 8: Break into pieces and enjoy your homemade snowman treats!
Our Festive Tip: These make lovely little homemade Christmas gifts. Pop a few pieces into a clear treat bag, tie with festive ribbon and give them to grandparents, teachers or friends.
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4. Easy Christmas Gingerbread Biscuits
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Chilling Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 10ā12 minutes
Makes: Approximately 20ā24 biscuits
Is it really Christmas without the smell of freshly baked gingerbread filling the kitchen?
These traditional Christmas biscuits are perfect for little bakers. Children can help roll out the dough, cut out their favourite festive shapes and, of course, decorate their creations!
What You'll Need
350g plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
125g unsalted butter
150g light soft brown sugar
4 tablespoons golden syrup
1 medium egg
Writing icing and festive sprinkles for decorating
Let's Get Baking!
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 180Ā°C (160Ā°C fan) and line two baking trays with baking parchment.
Step 2: Mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon together in a large bowl.
Step 3: Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture using your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Step 4: Stir in the brown sugar.
Step 5: Add the golden syrup and beaten egg, mixing everything together until a soft dough forms.
Step 6: Wrap the dough and place it in the fridge for approximately 30 minutes.
Step 7: Lightly flour your worktop and roll out the dough until it's approximately 5mm thick.
Step 8: Use Christmas cookie cutters to create gingerbread people, stars, Christmas trees or any other festive shapes you fancy.
Step 9: Place the biscuits onto the prepared baking trays and bake for 10ā12 minutes until lightly golden.
Step 10: Allow the biscuits to cool completely before decorating with icing and sprinkles.
Our Festive Tip: Why not turn gingerbread decorating into a little family competition? Award prizes for the funniest gingerbread person, the prettiest Christmas tree and the most colourful biscuit!
5. Strawberry Santa Hats
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: None
Makes: 12 Santa hats
If you're looking for a slightly lighter Christmas treat amongst all the chocolate and biscuits, these adorable strawberry Santa hats are perfect!
They're quick, simple and look lovely on a festive party table.
What You'll Need
12 large fresh strawberries
100ml double cream
1 teaspoon icing sugar
12 mini marshmallows (optional)
Let's Get Making!
Step 1: Wash the strawberries and gently pat them dry with kitchen paper.
Step 2: Carefully cut off the leafy tops so each strawberry has a flat base. An adult should help with this step.
Step 3: Whip the double cream and icing sugar together until the cream holds firm peaks.
Step 4: Place the strawberries point upwards on a serving plate.
Step 5: Pipe a little whipped cream around the bottom of each strawberry to create the fluffy white trim of Santa's hat.
Step 6: Add a tiny dot of cream to the top of each strawberry and finish with a mini marshmallow if you wish.
Step 7: Keep refrigerated until you're ready to serve.
Our Festive Tip: These are perfect for a cosy Christmas movie afternoon. Serve alongside a mug of warm hot chocolate and let the festive fun begin!
Making Magical Christmas Memories Together ā¤ļø
Christmas isn't about everything being perfect. It's about spending time together, making memories and enjoying those little moments that make the festive season so special.
Whether your gingerbread people turn out a little wonky, your Rudolph biscuits have funny faces or there's more chocolate on little fingers than on the biscuits, that's all part of the fun!
We hope these five easy Christmas recipes inspire you to get into the kitchen with your little ones and create some wonderful festive memories.
And if you're planning Christmas parties, Christmas Jumper Day or festive family photographs, don't forget to explore our beautiful collection of Christmas Hair Bows and Accessories to add the perfect finishing touch to your little one's Christmas outfits.
From all of us at BowCo Hair Accessories, happy Christmas baking! šš
Remember to supervise children when using ovens, handling hot ingredients or cutting food. Check ingredients for allergies and use age-appropriate decorations, particularly with younger children.
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