Candy Cane Cake Balls {Holiday Recipe}

Raise your hand if you are in love with Trader Joe's. Okay. Now raise your hand if you've ever had their seasonal Candy Cane Joe-Joe's. If you haven't had them, they are like Oreos (only better) and they have a peppermint cream filling. De-freaking-licious. So when thinking about a recipe to make for a holiday girl's night in I thought: I want chocolate, but I want festive. Enter Candy Cane Joe-Joe Cake balls. I followed this recipe, but used Candy Cane Joe Joe's instead of Oreos and I love how they turned out! (If you don't have a Trader Joe's near you, you can use Peppermint Oreos instead.) You can find my recipe below. I promise it's easy and the result is amazing.

Ingredients:
36 Candy Cane Joe Joe's (or Peppermint Oreos)
1 package (8oz.) Softened Cream Cheese
4 packages (4 oz.) semi-sweet Baking Chocolate (I used Bakers)
Festive Sprinkles

Instructions:
1.) Place cookies in a large ziplock bag and crush into crumb sized bits. (I used a rolling pin)
2.) Add cookie crumbs to a large bowl and mix in softened cream cheese.
3.) Form into 1 inch balls then place in the freezer for 10 minutes to allow to set up.
4.) While the cookies are firming up in the freezer, melt your chocolate in a microwave safe bowl.
5.) After 10 minutes, dip balls into melted chocolate.
6.) Place on wax paper in a single layer in a dish
7.) Add festive sprinkles
8.) Place in freezer for 30-40 minutes until hardened.
9.) Devour or share with friends. The choice is yours. ;)

*This recipe is best paired with your best girlfriend, The Holiday and wine. Just a suggestion. 

Tips for hosting the perfect Tacky Sweater party!

As our 5th annual Tacky Sweater party approaches I've been thinking about all that goes in to planning one. After 4 successful parties I finally feel I have a few useful things to share so today I'm going to be sharing 6 tips that will help you host a successful Tacky Sweater party!

Tip # 1: Instead of sending out a Facebook or email invitation go ahead and send out a personal invitation to help get people excited about your upcoming party! I ordered my holiday party invitations from Tiny Prints and they really did help create a fun feel for our upcoming party!

 Tiny Prints Holiday Party Invitation

Tip #2: Think about a party theme and have fun with it! Last year I had a Naughty and Nice theme and used a banner from my Etsy shop. I found adorable napkins to tie in from TJ Maxx.

Tip #3: If you are having a houseful of guests with amazing tacky sweaters it is always fun to have a place to take festive pictures. There are so many easy ways to create a photo booth. I used an old gold frame, left over fabric and some christmas lights to make a cute photo spot.

Tip #4:  Make a specialty drink for your guests to enjoy. My personal favorite comes from my sister in law. We decided to call it A Berry Merry Cocktail and it is perfect for any holiday party.
Ingredients-1 bottle of Green Apple Smirnoff Vodka (750 ml), Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice Cocktail (64 fl. oz), sliced Granny Smith apples and fresh whole cranberries. Serve cold and with cute striped straws of course.

Tip #5: Throwing a tacky sweater party can be all about the ugly sweaters, but to keep the party happening it is always a great idea to have something else planned to keep people entertained. My husband decided to start a holiday beer tasting last year and we always have an intense Boccer ball tournament.

Tip #6: Use adhesive gift tags as drink labels so everyone's cup is personalized and fun! This also helps make sure you don't accidentally swap drinks with any one at the party.

Tiny Prints Personalized Holiday gift tags

So there you have it...a few of my personal tips for hosting an amazing Tacky Sweater party! Now start planning and don't forget to find yourself the perfect sweater or vest!