Deck the halls on a dime with these affordable appetizers, dessert recipes
Create a festive spread this holiday season for less.
Kathryn Snearly is known on social media as the creator of Do It On A Dime, where she shares shopping tips and secrets like buying ingredients at dollar and discount stores to entertain on a small budget.
Just in time for the holidays, Snearly shared three simple ideas with "Good Morning America" for an impressive party spread that costs less than $25 to create using items from her local dollar store.
"The first place you want to come is the spice section. You can save so much," she said, before grabbing additional staples like noodle packets and pasta sauces. "I'm going to save about 70% by getting my cream cheese from the fridge section -- and for just $1.25, I'm going to get some cheddar cheese for my cheese ball."
Check out her recipes below for two simple, snackable appetizers and a hot chocolate-inspired dessert.
Holiday Cheese Ball
Ingredients
Two 8-ounce cream cheese packages (softened)
1 cup of shredded cheese (cheddar)
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup chopped green onion (optional)
1 bag (1/2 cup) cashew/almond mix (lightly crushed)
Pretzels for dipping
Directions
1. Combine softened cream cheese, shredded cheese, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder and green onion in a mixing bowl.
2. Form the mixture into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped ball into the fridge and let it set for several hours.
3. Remove the cheese ball from the fridge, unwrap, and place on a serving platter. Press the crushed nuts onto the outside of the cheese ball until it is completely covered.
4. Serve chilled with pretzels for dipping.
Pasta Chips
Ingredients
1 bag (8 ounces) pasta (farfalle used in the video)
1 tablespoon oil (olive oil or canola oil)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Salt to taste
Spaghetti sauce or marinara for dipping
Directions
1. Cook pasta until al dente (per package directions). Drain, do not rinse.
2. Add cooked pasta to a mixing bowl with oil, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and salt. Mix until well-coated.
3. Place pasta in a single layer in air fryer at 400 F for 7-8 minutes, shaking basket to toss once.
4. Remove from the air fryer and let cool. Serve with spaghetti sauce or marinara for dipping.
Whipped Topping with Cookies
Ingredients
4 ounces whipped topping (1/2 of standard 8-ounce container)
3.5 ounces marshmallow cream (1/2 of standard 7-ounce container)
1 packet hot cocoa mix
1 candy cane (crushed)
1/2 cup mini marshmallows
Cookies to dip (ginger snaps and chocolate mint cookies)
Directions
1. Mix whipped topping, marshmallow cream and hot cocoa in a bowl.
2. Crush candy cane and sprinkle on one half of mixture. Top other half with mini marshmallows.
3. Dip cookies and enjoy!
