Have some holiday fun by crafting these RITZ Crackers Christmas Snacks: a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cracker Rudolph, a cool Cheese and Olive Cracker Snowman, and a savory Pesto Chicken Salad Cracker Wreath. This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HolidayRITZ #CollectiveBias
Are you looking for some fun ways to dress up your appetizers and desserts this Christmas? Well, I have some crazy cute, and simple ideas for you today.
I was inspired by a little beaded key chain that a friend's daughter gave to me for Christmas.
Using inspiration from some bead patterns I found online, I designed some edible snacks in the shape of Rudolph, a Snowman, and a Wreath all using RITZ Crackers as the foundation.
Each of these RITZ Crackers Christmas Snacks was so fun to make. The Rudolph is made with peanut butter-filled cracker sandwiches. Some are dipped in chocolate to make the reindeer's head. The antlers are left plain.
The snowman is topped with a Roasted Garlic Parmesan Spread that I absolutely love. I used it years ago when I made some Cheese Ball Wedding Cakes and knew it would be a perfect topping for a RITZ Crackers. To make the hat I whipped up some black olive spread. Both dips are simple to create but you can skip the step and buy something in the deli if you don't have a lot of time.
The pesto chicken salad-topped wreath is the simplest of the designs and the recipe is super easy too. Just mix chicken with pesto and mayo and you've got yourself a tasty cracker topping that's green enough to make a pretty wreath.
Video
Check out this video tutorial to see how you can make each of these fun Christmas snacks yourself.
Display
When I set up my party spread the main focus was on these festive snacks.
The cracker displays are quite large, so I used some 15-inch by 18-inch sheets of Lucite that I had on hand to hold the snowman snack and Rudolph.
I simply slipped some poster board under each to make the design pop. You can arrange your cracker displays on a cutting board or a large platter.
The individual crackers are not attached to the board in any way so that your party guests can simply pull one or more pieces to place on their plates. This is wonderful for your guests but can make moving your creations a bit tricky.
The video above offers a great step-by-step tutorial for all three of the Christmas recipes. Below, I've shared some pictures of Rudolph and Snowman. I think the Chicken Pesto Wreath is pretty easy, so I just shared the recipe with you.
Be sure to check out all my fun Christmas Recipes!
Recipe
- ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter
- 72 RITZ Crackers
- 16 ounces melted and tempered pure milk chocolate or melted candy melts*
- 2 ounces homemade red candy clay*
- 1 ounce homemade white candy clay*
- ½ ounce black candy clay*
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Spread a thin layer of creamy peanut butter on half of the RITZ Crackers.
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Sandwich two crackers together.
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Set aside 10 of the cracker sandwiches to use for Rudolph's antlers.
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Dip the remaining cracker sandwiches in chocolate and chill until set. Use the refrigerator if using pure chocolate and the freezer if using candy melts.
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Create a column of 6 chocolate dipped RITZ Crackers down the center of your serving platter.
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Arrange 1 column of 6 chocolate dipped crackers on either side of the middle column.
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Then arrange one column of 4 chocolate dipped crackers on either side of those so that the top and bottom rows have three chocolate dipped crackers in them.
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Arrange three of the plain peanut butter crackers above column number 2 and again above column number 4 then arrange two crackers on either side to finish the antlers.
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Roll out the three colors of candy clay to about 1/16th inch thickness.
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Cut two white circles using a 2 ¼ inch round cookie cutter or knife.
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Cut two black circles using a 1 ¼ inch round cookie cutter or knife.
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Cut one red circle using a 3 inch round cookie cutter or knife.
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Brush a bit of water on the back side of a black circle and press it onto a white circle creating one eye. Repeat.
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Set the red nose and two eyes on the chocolate dipped crackers creating Rudolph's eyes and nose.
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 cloves roasted garlic
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
- ¼ cup roasted almond slivers
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup black olives
- 2 cloves roasted garlic
- 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ teaspoon dried Oregano
- pinch salt
- 32 RITZ Crackers
- 1 carrot
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Combine cream cheese, garlic, Parmesan cheese, almonds, and salt in the bowl of a food processor.
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Pulse until smooth.
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If you don't have a food processor, finely chop the nuts and mince the garlic then stir all the ingredients together.
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Combine black olives, garlic, and olive oil in a bowl of a food processor and pulse until the olives are well chopped.
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Add the cheese and pulse until somewhat smooth.
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Season with salt to taste.
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Top 19 of the crackers with the cheese spread and the remaining crackers with the olive spread.
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Arrange 1 row of three cheese topped crackers at the bottom edge of your serving platter.
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Arrange a row of 4 on top of the first row placing the middle two crackers in between the bottom three.
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Then add a row of 5, then a row of 4, then a row of 3.
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Add a row of 5 olive topped crackers in a straight row above the row of 3 cheese topped crackers forming the brim of the snowman's hat.
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Arrange two more rows of three olive topped crackers above the brim forming the hat.
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Use the remaining two olive topped crackers for the snowman's eyes then add a carrot nose.
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Serve any remaining cheese or olive spread with more RITZ Crackers.
- 1 ½ cups diced chicken breast
- 3 tablespoons basil pesto
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- salt and pepper to taste
- 13 RITZ Crackers
- 1 small red pepper
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Mix together the chicken, pesto, and mayo.
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If desired, season with salt and pepper.
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Spoon some chicken salad on each cracker.
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Arrange in a big circle.
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Cut one pepper into two ovals and two strips.
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Arrange to look like a bow on the top of the wreath.
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Serve any remaining chicken salad with more crackers or make the wreath bigger.
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Pamela
Hi Beth,
Thanks for these fun and simple appetizers! Question: What would you suggest as a substitute for mayo in the pesto chicken salad? Crème fraiche, perhaps?
Beth
You are welcome! You could use Crème fraiche, Greek yogurt, sour cream, or plain hummus. Or, you could just leave out the mayo and add more pesto.
Karen @ Sugartown Sweets
How much fun are these Christmas cracker snacks?! Of course the reindeer is my favorite..chocolate! But that garlic parm sounds yummy too. The best part is no cutting or even a serving spoon is needed! LOVE these. 🙂
Beth
Oh, Karen, the garlic parm cheese spread is amazing. It's my favorite spread to use on crackers or as a cheese ball. Of course, I love chocolate too and think Rudolph turned out so cute. I'm glad you like him!
The Patiologist
It's totally about the presentation and your presentation is completely adorable! Not to mention tasty as well.
Beth
I totally agree! I love to make a fun presentation. 🙂