since moving into our house in june, our neighbors have been so sweet, helpful and welcoming- we couldn’t ask for more! so i decided to put together a little homemade christmas basket for each neighbor. you can’t really beat the combo of homemade, sweet treats and a little Christmas touch.

homemade granola

candied citrus peel– something different yet so pretty!

shortbread toffee bars (there are a bunch of different recipes out there for this but this is my family’s recipe which is the BEST.)

for the shortbread:
2 c flour
1 c (2 sticks) butter
2/3 c powdered sugar
cream together butter and sugar. add flour. (dough will be very stiff) pat into a 15.5″ x 10.5″ jelly roll pan. you can use a rolling pin to help smooth it out in the pan. bake at 350 for approximately 19 minutes until lightly browned.
for the toffee:
1 c butter
2 T white corn syrup
1/2 c granulated sugar
1 can ‘eagle’ brand sweetened condensed milk
melt butter in heavy saucepan. add rest of ingredients. stir over medium high heat for approximately 7-10 minutes. toffee will thicken and become creamy. (butter will incorporate.) pour toffee over hot shortbread. cool completely.
for the topping:
2 giant hershey chocolate bars (approximately 14 oz)
3 T butter cut in small pieces
put in a glass bowl and cover with wax paper. melt in microwave on high for 2 minutes. it won’t be completely melted but stir until smooth. spread over cooled toffee and shortbread. cool until firm but not really hard. cut into 1″ squares.
should make about 8 dozen (obviously great for gifts + extra for you!) keep refrigerated or frozen- i prefer this. pieces thaw rapidly when taken out of the freezer and separated. hide from your dad 24/7. (obviously my aunt wrote these very helpful instructions hahaha! but really, hide them!)

some other ideas- gingerbread, christmas cinnamon rolls, caramel nougat swirls, the best chocolate chip cookies.