Who's game for this challenging treat? Cut gingerbread while it's warm; after it cools, decorate with royal icing. Wrap pieces with a note: "Don't cheat: Solve the puzzle before you eat!"
Recycle holiday cards as labels for presents.
With a pencil, kids can draw (or stencil) the recipient's initial onto a card, and cut it out. Punch a hole in the letter, and tie to gift with yarn or ribbon.
What could be sweeter than a village of bite-size houses built from bricks of chocolate-gingerbread cake? To make these party favors, cut a sheet cake into 75 one-inch squares. Cut 25 of the squares in half diagonally, creating 50 triangles. Place a triangle, cut side down, on top of each remaining square, using a dab of frosting to adhere. Tuck in small pieces of red licorice for chimneys, and dust with confectioners' sugar before arranging on place cards.
Here's a potion kids are sure to love. Among the ingredients are cinnamon candies that give it zing. Stir 1 quart apple cider and 1/4 cup hard cinnamon candies in a medium saucepan over low heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly, until heated through and candies have melted completely, about 8 minutes. Serve warm.
The whole red-hearts-and-doilies thing may not speak to the guy in your life, but he will surely appreciate a gift wrapped with classic menswear details. These look like fabric but are fashioned from paper and notions.
To make a "cuff," cut card stock to fit, and adorn it with buttons affixed with glue. Give plain white office paper the tuxedo treatment with a series of symmetrical accordion folds from the center out. Wrap colored waxed linen thread around dark paper to create pinstripes, or thread it through a row of buttons on a narrow band of paper for a natty shirtfront look.
Instead of writing new tags every year, keep a file of names on your computer. Print our gift tag templates. Type personalized inscriptions, print onto card stock, and cut out.
