By Rowena Lindsay, deputy inside editor

In the constant holiday festivities throughout December, the expectation to provide dessert for some function or another is inescapable. This year, don’t settle for picking up a bag of cookies at the store. For all holiday culinary needs, here are three dessert recipes for cooks of all levels of ability and motivation.

Beginner: Belly Buttons

This recipe, featured on food.com, is sweet, salty and easy to make. As far as kitchenware, this recipe only requires a cookie sheet. Since there are no specific measurements, you can make as many or as few as you want. Make a few (or a lot) for a midnight snack during finals week or prepare them in bulk to bring to a holiday party.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 3 minutes

Ingredients:

72 pretzels

72 Hershey’s chocolate kisses

72 plain M&M’s  (red and green)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. On a cookie sheet, lay out your pretzels in a single layer. Then, unwrap and put a Hershey’s kiss in the center of each pretzel. Bake for 2-3 minutes. Once tray is removed from the oven, immediately press an M&M into the center of each chocolate kiss. Cool for 10 minutes and enjoy.

Intermediate: Peppermint Fudge

Simple fudge recipes are difficult to mess up but always enjoyable both to make and to eat. This one from aspicyperspective.com is perfect for the holidays. Try adding nuts or different kinds of crushed candy to mix up the flavor.

Prep time: 3 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

1 tablespoon butter + extra for buttering the dish

1 pound dark chocolate chips/chunks

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup Andes candy peppermint chunks

Directions:

Grease an 8 x 8 or 8 x 11 baking pan. Sprinkle half of the peppermint chunks in the bottom of the dish and set aside. Place a sauce pot over medium heat with 2 inches of water. Place a glass bowl over the top – making sure the glass doesn’t touch the water.

Pour the condensed milk and butter in the bowl and heat. Add the chocolate chips and salt. Stir the chocolate and watch as it melts and thickens for about five minutes. The mixture should thicken to a cake batter consistency. It should be almost too thick to pour. Add both extracts and mix well.

Pour the mixture into the dish. Gently tap the dish on the counter for at least a minute to allow air bubbles to rise to the surface and then smooth. Sprinkle the remaining peppermint chips over the top and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, to set. To cut, dip a sharp knife in hot tap water, wipe and cut quickly. Dip and wipe the knife between cuts. Cut into one-inch squares.

Advanced: Candy Cane Cookies

With a subtle flavor, these cookies are sophisticated. If you are looking for a bit of a challenge in the kitchen or want to make cookies other than the classic Christmas cut-outs or chocolate chip, this is a good choice. Switch out the almond extract for peppermint for an even more festive taste.

Prep time: 40 minutes

Cook time: 9-12 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup shortening (half butter, half Crisco)

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

2 1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon red food coloring

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the shortening, sugar, eggs and flavoring well, then stir in flour and salt. Divide the dough in half and color one half with red food coloring. Chill the dough in the freezer for three-five minutes.

Flour dough and then roll chunks of the dough between your hands to form six-inch tubes. Place one white and one red tube next to each other and twist together to create candy cane look and shape. Place on cookie sheet and cook for nine-12 minutes.

Photo courtesy Nomadic Lass, Creative Commons