Halloween is but a distant memory, the Thanksgiving leftovers are either running low or gone, and that means but one thing: Christmas time is here. Time for office parties, cookie swaps, ugly sweater get togethers, and general merriment. It’s also a time for sweet treats. These absolutely adorable Christmas trees are actually made of strawberries dipped in white chocolate and placed upon a lemon cookie. They take mere minutes to make, which is good as they do not hold up well. You want to make these the same day you plan to serve them (if you live in a dry environment you can get away with two days) or else the moisture in the strawberries will make the chocolate melt. You might wonder why you can’t just dye the white chocolate green and skip the sanding sugar step, and you can, but ONLY if you have gel based food coloring paste. The traditional droplet style of food coloring will not blend with your chocolate and will create a curdled mess. Plus the sanding sugar gives the “trees” a lovely texture.

Strawberries, washed and with the stem end trimmed off

3/4 cup white chocolate, melted

1/2 cup Green sanding sugar

star sprinkles or dragées for topping for topping your tree

lemon, vanilla, chocolate, or pecan cookies, small and round, one per strawberry

1. Dip the tops of the cookies in the white chocolate and set aside.
2. Using a small fork or two tooth picks dip the strawberries in white chocolate, leaving the trimmed bottom uncovered. Tap off an excess chocolate, this is important or else the chocolate can melt off and ruin the appearance.
3. Roll the chocolate covered strawberries in the green sanding sugar. Place on top of the chocolate topped cookies.
4. Using a toothpick dipped in white chocolate add decorations to your “trees”
5. Dip the stars or dragées in a dot of melted chocolate and top your trees. Allow to set up for at least 15 minutes before moving or serving.