Winter Wednesday: Snowmen Snacks

It's weird that I don't feel like making anything weird.  Or maybe it's normal, which would be weird for me.  I don't know, it's probably the winter blues.  Let's just make it a Winter Wednesday for this week, okay?  It's been a little too chilly for real snowmen, so let's bring the fun inside where it's warm.

I was smitten with these super cute snowman pretzels over at Hungry Happenings the second I saw them.  Hers look even better than mine with scarves and full bodies, such a cute idea.

I was also reminded of some snowman mints I made with a friend many years ago.  We loved the crafts, recipes and ideas in the American Girl magazines and spent many a sleepover bringing the ideas to life.  I found the recipe again and decided to make some just for fun.

They're a little time consuming to be sure, but if you only make them once every 10 years or so you can't complain. Those little round ball sprinkles would have been ideal, but I only had the oblong ones.  I ended up breaking them into even smaller pieces as the bodies are the size of marbles.  A toothpick is quite a useful tool both here and with the pretzels.  As well as patience. 

Snowman Pretzels

Check out the great step-by-step picture tutorial here at Hungry Happenings. I used mini orange M&M's for the noses and broken mini chocolate chips for the mouth pieces.

Snowman Mints
recipe barely adapted from American Girl, November/December 2000

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp butter, softened (no substitutes)
1 Tbsp light corn syrup
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 cup powdered sugar
1 drop blue food coloring
1 drop red food coloring
2 drops yellow food coloring
black candy sprinkles

Instructions:
* In a small bowl combine butter, corn syrup, salt and mint extract. Stir in as much powdered sugar as possible, kneading in the rest with hands to form a stiff dough. Set aside 1/4 of dough for hats and carrot noses.  With the remaining 3/4 of dough form marble-size balls for 12 snowman.
* Take remaining 1/4 portion of dough and divide in half again.  To one half knead in 1 drop blue food coloring; wash hands immediately.  Divide remaining dough in half once more.  Leave one portion white for hat pompoms and trim.  To the remaining dough knead in 1 drop red and 2 drops yellow food coloring;  wash hands immediately.
* Form hats, earmuffs, scarves and noses from colored dough.  Press sprinkles into snowmen to form eyes, mouth and buttons.  Press on noses, scarves and hats.

Food for Thought: "Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face." -Victor Hugo