Sweet & Spicy Holiday Ornaments

’Tis the season for delicious decorations! These Sweet & Spicy Holiday Ornaments are not only fun to make, but they’ll also sweeten up your home with the cozy scents of cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove. Even though these festive ornaments look like Christmas cookies, they are not meant for eating. We’ve left out some key ingredients that you would normally use in baking (like sugar and eggs!) and added others you normally wouldn’t (like glue!) to make sure the ornaments will last through the holidays — and beyond. Use them to decorate your tree, or hang them around the house to get in the spirit of the season. Enjoy!

Makes:

About 20 ornaments

Hands-on time:

15 minutes

Start-to-eat time:

2 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup cinnamon
2 tablespoons nutmeg
1 tablespoon ground cloves (optional)
¾ cup applesauce
½ cup all-purpose glue

Kids kitchen skills:

whisking
rolling
cutting out shapes

Tools:

measuring cups & spoons
medium bowl & whisk
rolling pin
straw or toothpick
baking sheet & parchment
tempera paint & glitter glue (optional)
twine or ribbon

Step-by-step

Grown-up steps: Please note that this recipe is NOT edible. Use these sweet-smelling ornaments to decorate your home and add some festive cheer to the holiday season.

Heat the oven to 200° F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove.
Stir in the applesauce until everything is well combined. Then stir in the glue, and mix with your hands until you have a smooth dough.
Let the dough rest a few minutes, then flatten it with a rolling pin until it’s about ¼-inch thick, and use your favorite cookie cutters to cut the dough into shapes.
Use a straw or toothpick to make a small hole at the top of each ornament.
Place the ornaments on the baking sheet, and bake for about 2-3 hours until the dough is hard and set. Let them cool completely.
If you like, you can paint the ornaments, and even add some glitter glue to make them shine!
Use some twine or a thin ribbon to tie a loop through the hole of each ornament, and hang your lovely crafts on your Christmas tree, or anywhere you’d like to add some festive cheer. Happy holidays!