I’ll readily admit it – I’m a bit nutty about the Holiday Season. Ok, more than a BIT nutty – I’m like one big ball of Holiday Spirit! One of my favorite things to do is to host a Christmas Ornament Exchange party with my friends – we all draw names ahead of time and then we shop for the perfect ornament for that person, wrap it, then bring it to the party (alternately you can just bring an ornament meant for anyone and do a round-robin type game!). If you’re looking for the perfect ornament this year, you should definitely check out Walmart for some reasonably-priced options. If you are willing to shop online you can even buy a personalized ornament like some of the ones below! Cute, right? Even the personalized ornaments run about $10, so it’s very affordable!
Of course, the idea for the party is just the beginning! Everyone knows that you can’t host a party without FOOD! If you are the hostess and the party is just for close friends, consider asking everyone to bring their favorite holiday treat – which will save you some money (because we all know you’ll have to spend 2 days cleaning your house from top to bottom. Hey, time is money!) and also allow for a nice spread!
One of my favorite treats to bring is Oreo Balls. They are easy to make and taste AMAZING (my friends always fight over taking home the extras!). Usually I use regular chocolate almond bark drizzled on top, but for the Holidays I use only the traditional white almond bark with red and green food coloring for effect!
To make Holiday Oreo Balls, you need
- 1 package regular Oreo cookies, crushed
- 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
- 2 packages white almond bark
To make the Oreo Balls, follow these steps:
- Mix Oreos and cream cheese together using a blender or hand mixer.
- Take little scoops of the mixture and roll it into “walnut sized” balls.
- Refrigerate the balls for approximately an hour.
- Melt 3/4 package of white almond bark in a double boiler.
- Stick a toothpick in the refrigerated Oreo ball and dip it in the melted white almond bark.
- Place dipped Oreo balls on wax paper and allow them to harden for about 15 minutes.
- While waiting melt 1/4 package of almond bark and add red food coloring.
- Repeat with another 1/4 pacakge of almond bark with green food coloring.
- Cut off the corner of a sandwich bag and drizzle hardened Oreo Balls with red and green almond bark.
- Voila! Refrigerate until ready to eat – remove about an hour before your party!
I place them on a pretty Christmas platter and put them in the center of the table – they almost look like a centerpiece!
I also often make a cheese ball, baked brie (the easy way, with a wedge of brie wrapped in crescent roll dough with Bonne Maman preserves in-between the dough and the cheese!) served with Table Water Crackers, or my famous (but time-consuming) Bûche de Noël which is a French Christmas tradition.
Do you like to host Holiday parties? What kinds of traditions do you have? Share your ideas in the comments!
May your days be merry and bright! Happy Holidays!
Disclosure: Walmart sponsored this post and provided me with a gift card to host my own party. However, all opinions are, and always will be, 100% mine. Now, go make some Oreo Balls! :)
