December 23, 2014

Last Minute Holiday Gift

Thank you Yahoo! for sponsoring this post. While this was a sponsored opportunity from Yahoo!, all content and opinions expressed here are my own.

I am a huge fan of handmade holiday gifts, both to give and receive. Many times, life with four boys gets in the way, and I am left scrambling to figure out an affordable and thoughtful gift for our friends and family. I love to tinker in the kitchen and create and bake. I am also really trying to be more aware of what we are putting into our bodies, and while some of the treats may not be the most healthy option for us, I like knowing exactly what I am putting into those treats. I recently found this recipe for homemade mint extract, and I KNEW I needed to make it! I have made vanilla extract for years, and the friends that received it all love it! After I put the 2(!) ingredients together, and saw how beautiful it was, I decided it would be a fabulous last minute holiday gift! It takes just a few minutes to make, although it does take a couple of weeks to be completely ready, it will still make a beautiful gift!

But, really, you don’t have to stop there…and you don’t have to give it all away either!

I added a splash of the mint extract to my homemade chocolate syrup recipe in place of the vanilla extract to make mint hot cocoa. It was AMAZING!! You could just add a little extract to store bought hot cocoa too! I added crushed candy canes to the rim with the cold chocolate syrup for a little extra yum. The mug is a Dollar Tree mug with Elmer’s Paint Marker dots added to it.

I also substituted the homemade mint extract for the vanilla extract when I made my homemade marshmallows! Just a little goes a long way.

We gave my husband’s clients a small bottle of mint extract, a small jar of chocolate syrup, and some homemade marshmallows packaged in a cute felt bag from the Target Dollar Spot this year, and they all loved it so much!