During the twelve days until Christmas break, the King Street Chronicle will again present staff favorites from the holiday season.  This tenth edition will not include ten lords-a-leaping, but beloved Christmas songs, memories, recipes, movies, and crafts.

Song: “Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!” performed by Dean Martin.

Recipe:  Christmas Tree Brownies

• Total Time

  

  • 50 minutes 
• Makes
  • 16 servings 
• Ingredients 
  • FOR THE BROWNIES: 
    • Cooking spray
    • One-half cup of butter
    • Eight ounces of semisweet chocolate chips
    • One and one-half cups of granulated sugar
    • Four eggs
    • One teaspoon of vanilla extract
    • One-half teaspoon of salt
    • Three-fourths cup of all purpose flour
  • FOR THE DECORATIONS: 
    • 16 small candy canes
    • 16 gold star sprinkles or candies
    • One-third cup of rainbow sprinkles
    • Two cups green frosting homemade or store bought, a basic homemade frosting recipe, provided in the notes section
• Steps
  • 1) Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Line a nine inches by 13 inches pan with foil and coat with cooking spray.
  • 2) Place the butter and chocolate chips into a large bowl.  Melt in microwave and heat for 30 second intervals then stir between each interval until butter and chocolate, melted, and thoroughly combined.
  • 3) Stir in the sugar, then stir in the eggs, one at a time, whisking until smooth after each addition. 
  • 4) Stir in the vanilla extract.  Gently fold in the salt and flour.
  • 5) Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the brownies comes out clean.
  • 6) Cool the brownies to room temperature, then chill for at least 30 minutes.
  • 7) Using the edges of the foil, remove the slab of brownie from the pan.  Using a sharp knife, cut the brownies into 16 triangles.
  • 8) Snap the curved parts off the candy canes and insert the straight parts of the candy canes into the bottom of the brownies.
  • 9) Place the frosting in a piping bag fitted with a plain or star tip, or resealable plastic bag with the tip snipped off.  Pipe approximately one and one-half tablespoons of frosting onto each brownie.
  • 10) Place a star sprinkle at the top of each brownie, then add rainbow sprinkles all over each brownie.
  • 11) Serve, or store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to one day.

Movie: Elf

“Even though this movie only came out in 2003, its tale of a human man raised as an elf making his way in New York City has quickly become a holiday classic,” courtesy of goodhousekeeping.com. 

Craft: Giant Craft Stick Snowflakes       

• Supplies

  

  • Craft sticks
  • Protractor
  • Hot glue gun and hot glue
  • Fishing line
  • Clear cellophane tape
  • Holiday ribbon
  • Red and white paint 
  • Rhinestones
  • Scissors
  • Double-stick foam tape
  • Small paintbrush
  • Drop cloth or newspaper
• Instructions
  • 1) Start by gluing six craft sticks in an asterisk shape at 30 degree angles.  Use a protractor to make sure your angles are accurate.
  • 2) Then add the points to the star. 
  • 3) Finally, depending on the pattern, add the final craft sticks to complete the snowflake.

Memory: Charlotte Fallon ‘22

“A couple 0f years ago, my family started a tradition of doing a Yankee Swap on Christmas with my cousins and I.  We all bring in one gift and throughout the game we trade gifts with each other, and by the end everyone ends up with a different gift than when they started.  It’s really fun to be able to spend time with my family around Christmastime!”

Featured Image by Caroline Baranello ’20