Easy Thanksgiving Treats

Hey all,

I thought I'd move away from my normal style and share a handful of my favorite really easy Thanksgiving treats with you. Some of us have big dinners coming up, and may not always know what to bring for things like this. So, try one of these to make things quick and easy, and hopefully let you make a good showing at the family table.

First off, let's make Haystacks. These have got to be one of the easiest treats ever.

• A bag of dried, crispy Chow Mein noodles
• A bag of butterscotch chips (like chocolate chips, just the butterscotch kind)

Melt the butterscotch chips in the microwave, mix in the chow mein noodles, spoon into little piles and let them harden. When I say "little" piles, take that seriously. I made these way too big the first time I tried this. Also, you might feel like you need to add something like shortening or butter, but that just separates and leaves the haystacks in little puddles.

The next best one I know goes over really well is Muddy Buddies. This is a copyrighted recipe, as far as I know, so I'll just link to Chex's official website here. The big thing is to decide what you want to call them. Some people say Muddy Buddies, some say Puppy Chow, and some just call it Crack.

Another couple that anyone can make, but that, for legal reasons, I should probably just link to are, Dream Pie, and Rice Krispie Treats.

With Dream Pies in particular a few small details can really make you look like you really know what you're doing. When filling the crust, you can fill it halfway before putting in a layer of extra ingredient: like banana slices or oreos, before finishing filling the crust.

If you decide to go for a cookies'n cream, it's my experience that cheesecake flavored pudding with crushed oreo makes that flavor come through best.

You can also layer different puddings, like making one package's worth of chocolate pudding, and another of banana and layering them into the crust with that layer of banana in between.

So, hopefully something in here gives you an idea that might shake off the hectic "What do I bring" moments of wanting to contribute to a family get together.

Happy dining, all.