Inspired by the engine that fuels Santa’s sled on Christmas Eve in the movie Elf. Red Snapper hot dogs, bright green relish, sport peppers and yellow mustard.
Cooking Crafts
Deli Bento Box Lunches
3 Mixed Up Deli Bento Box Lunches using scallion ranch cream cheese spread; Deli Cold Cut Tacos, DIY Macaroni Salad, and Deli Stuffed Mini Peppers.
Sonoran Mexican Chocolate Popcorn Treats
Sonoran-style no-bake Mexican chocolate popcorn treats made with pretzels, cashews, Sriracha sesame seeds, cinnamon and red chile spiced chocolate marshmallow cream Chile powder and cinnamon add some kick to these sweet and spicy no-bake Mexican chocolate popcorn and pretzel treats. Recipe developed for The Silicone Kitchen.
Roast Goose
Recipe for how to defrost and roast a whole goose, and shred the meat for tacos or sandwiches with step-by-step instructions.
Sonoran Goose Tacos
Recipe for Sonoran-style goose tacos inspired by Peking Duck. These goose tacos are served on flour tortillas with hoisin sauce, salsa macha, cabbage, carrots and scallions. Food photography for this recipe is shortlisted for the 2025 World Food Photography Awards in the Food Influencer category.
Mr. Narwhal Ice Cream Float Inspired by the Movie Elf
A frosty, blue ice cream float resembling Mr. Narwhal in the classic Christmas movie, Elf. This recipe is from The Unofficial Elf Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.
Sonoran Tortilla Stars with Guacamole and Pomegranate Seeds
Topped with chunky guacamole and jewel-like pomegranate seeds, these crispy tortilla bites from The Unofficial Elf Cookbook by Jackie Alpers exude holiday joy. Use Jackie Alpers’ Sonoran-Style Chunky Guacamole Recipe or your favorite store-bought version.
Homemade Chile Powder
How to dehydrate and grind chile peppers, with recipes for chili powder and custom spice blends using fresh homegrown and/or exotic store bought chiles. Preserve expensive and/or hard to find chiles.
Buddy The Elf Spaghetti Recipe
After extensive research, I now know what Buddy The Elf really puts on his breakfast spaghetti in one of the memorable food scenes in the movie,”ELF.” This recipe is from The Unofficial “Elf” Cookbook by Jackie Alpers.
Mixed Nut Brittle
Inspired by ingredients local to the Northwestern U.S. this crunchy, spicy, sweet mixed nut brittle is perfect for holiday gifting. Walnuts, hickory nuts, and hazelnuts are grown in Montana where the television series Yellowstone is set
Tortilla Snowflakes
Sweet and sparkly tortilla snowflakes – an edible version of the popular Mexican folk art, papel picado which will brighten any winter holiday table.
Sunny Parmesan Pepperoni Crisps
Bake a little sunshine into your life with these bright and happy two-ingredient pizza flavored cheese crisps.
Homemade Sprinkles
Learn how to make homemade sprinkles in custom colors using the royal icing method. From the author of the Sprinkles cookbook.
The Moist Maker Thanksgiving Leftovers Sandwich
The Moist Maker Thanksgiving leftovers sandwich inspired by the classic episode of Friends, “The One Where Ross Loses it Over a Sandwich,” is made with a dinner roll soaked in gravy in the center, leftover turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce, proving that Monica is a culinary genius.
Boxed Brownie Dessert Pan Pizzas
These individual brownie pan pizzas are baked and served in Lodge 3.5-inch cast iron skillets. The options for different toppings are endless. Have fun experimenting with different combinations or set up a topping bar and let everyone pick their own.
Frozen Watermelon Wedges
Learn how to make frozen Watermelon Wedges: the all natural ice pops.
White Chocolate Oreo Bark
Three ingredient white chocolate bark with Oreos that can be made in 30 minutes or less for a quick dessert or snack.
Mini Brownie Stack Cakes
A beautiful looking stacked dessert that’s easy to make using boxed brownie mix, berries and whipped cream.
Frozen Yogurt Bark With Berries and Granola
Kid friendly frozen yogurt bark with granola and frozen berries. I first developed and photographed this recipe for the Refinery29 article, Frozen Fruit Hacks Every 20-Something Should Know.
Rainbow Sprinkles Cream Cheese
Rainbow sprinkles for breakfast? Yes! A crunchy and slightly sweet sprinkles cream cheese recipe for everyone who needs more rainbow sprinkles in their lives.
Sriracha Lime Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
This super easy salad dressing recipe is especially good on a Greek salad, cucumber salad or Asian Chicken salad and you can make it right in the bottle if you only have a little bit of Sriracha left.
Chocolate Caramel Apple Pops
A cute, kid friendly recipe for slices of apples dipped in chocolate and decorated with sprinkles candy or nuts. This recipe was originally developed fro Refinery29.
Baguette Breakfast Casserole
Canadian bacon, eggs, herbs, and cheese baked inside slices of crusty baguettes. From the Unofficial Elf Cookbook by Jackie Alpers. A visually stunning breakfast casserole that is elegant, yet quick and easy to prepare.
Sprinkles Black & White Cookies
Look to the cookie! Black and white cookies inspired by the famous Seinfeld quote with sprinkles added so we remember to sparkle too.
Brigadeiro: Brazilian Chocolate Truffles With Sprinkles!
How do you say “delicious” in Portuguese? Brigadeiro, that’s how! These easy-to-make balls are fun to roll in chocolate jimmies. Box them up for the perfect gift.
Fleur De Sel Caramels
Fleur de sel (flower of salt) is a hand-harvested sea salt with distinctive flavor. Look for variations that have a pink or gray tone.
Chocolate Coffee Pudding Pops
Looking to kick start a hot summer day? These chocolate and coffee frozen pudding pops are just the ticket.
Sprinkles Fairy Bread Sandwiches
Make any day a celebration! Just barely sweet, these sparkly sandwiches make a fun breakfast surprise, after-school snack, or party food.
Inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem “Fairy Bread” from A Child’s Garden of Verses, fairy bread is a popular treat at children’s parties in Australia, New Zealand, and other little pockets of the world.
This recipe is from my book Sprinkles!: Recipes and Ideas for Rainbowlicious Desserts. The photograph is previously unpublished
Hand Painted Flower Cookies
Celebrate spring with hand-painted watercolor flower cookies. Herbs, fruit juice and plant dyes can all be used as food coloring.
Sparkling Cranberry and Brie Crostini
Visually stunning sugared cranberries are a study in contrast. The tart, dark berries which appear to have been encrusted in tiny jewels, add a magical quality to these brie crostini.
Rainbow Sprinkles Compound Butter
Learn how to fold crunchy rainbow sprinkles into lightly sweetened butter, and turn any breakfast into a celebration.
Postmodern Art Popsicles
What is the nature of art? Can it exist in popsicle form? Is it still art after the popsicle has been eaten? How does the process of melting affect the piece? These are some of the questions that I pondered while creating, and then ingesting this popsicle. made it from diamond shaped sprinkles in primary colors and Sno-Caps candies.
Haunted Halloween Gingerbread Houses
Haunted Halloween gingerbread houses including a Dia de los Muertos house inspired by the sugar skulls that typically signify the holiday.
Mini Candy Apples
These easy candied apples are a healthy, sweet treat that are fun for kids to make. I used Lady Apples, which are stunning, tiny, sweet apples that resemble crab apples. Also called Christmas Apples, they are generally available in stores starting in mid-October. The candy melts are small discs that come in a variety of colors and are available at Michael’s and other craft stores as well as some supermarkets. I chose pink because I thought it looked nice with the red apples, but it’s fun to play around and find the colors you like best.
Mini Peppers Stuffed with Cheese
Miniature sweet peppers are adorable and perfect for little snacks and appetizers.
