All That Glitters: Red & Gold Themed Holiday Party

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‘Tis the season for glitter, the color red, and sweets galore! One of my favorite things about the season are the parties that we host and attend throughout the season. The JOY of getting family and friends together while you spend time together enjoying the flavors of the season makes the parties that much sweeter.

In preparation for a few we are planning ourselves, I put together a festive holiday soiree: an All That Glitters: Red & Gold Themed Holiday party complete with sweet eats, finishing touches, and favors for guests to enjoy. Your holiday party preparation might get a little easier if you snag a KitchenAid® Mixer in the #BakeintheFun sweepstakes – but more on that later!

The Eats

The best way to get a party started is to have some delicious sweets on hand.

My aim is to keep things simple and easy to put together, so my first stop was a Candy Bar where guests can fill little bags (I used pretzel rod favor bags) and fill to the brim with their favorite M&M’s® varieties. Using different sizes and shapes of glass jars, the candy is the perfect decor and treat for your table.

I also love to appeal to different tastes, so I included a few different holiday varieties (think reds, whites, and greens!) for guests to choose from.

M&M’s® White Peppermint

M&M’s® Hot Chocolate

M&M’s® Holiday Milk Chocolate (large bag)

M&M’s® Holiday Peanut (large bag)

M&M’s® Holiday Peanut Butter

I also created two separate recipes using Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix. Did you know that a box of cake could be so versatile (AND not be used for traditional cake?)

M&M’s® White Peppermint Mini Cheesecakes

The ingredients are pretty simple.

Crust:

1/2 box Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix

1/2 stick butter, melted

Combine until slightly crumbly and press into the bottom of cupcake liners in muffin tin.

Filling:

3/4 c. sugar

2 – 8 oz. blocks of cream cheese

3 eggs

1 tsp. of vanilla extra (I also used a splash of mint to complement my M&M’s® White Peppermint)

M&M’s® White Peppermint

I even busted out my KitchenAid® Mixer for part of my preparation. Enter the #BakeintheFun Sweepstakes for a chance to win your very own!

Holiday #BakeInTheFun

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle M&M’s® White Peppermint over cake crust (do not bake yet). Pour batter into each liner. Bake for 20 minutes. Serve topped with whipped cream and extra M&M’s® White Peppermint. Enjoy!

Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix Cookies

This recipe is SO simple to put together and a quick way to get moist cookies in a snap! You will need one box of Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix, 2 eggs, and a 1/2 cup of oil. Mix together and drop on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Serve with Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Frosting on the side with sprinkles. Your guests will love decorating them as a simple party activity. Extra sprinkles on mine, please!

Serve on gold chargers for the perfect table addition that coincides with your theme.

What sweet treat would be complete without a glass of ice cold milk? Great Value Milk is the perfect addition to your holiday festivities and makes a great refreshment for a Santa Clause visit.

Having milk at your holiday party is a great addition, but did you know that some families near you may not be receiving the 9 essential nutrients that milk provides? More than 46.5 million American rely on Feeding America food banks each year, but on average, food banks are not able to provide all of the milk that families need each year!

Luckily, the Great American Milk Drive, with a small donation, will deliver a gallon of milk to a family in need in your community. Even better, if you purchase 2 bags of M&M’s® at Walmart, up to a gallon of milk will be donated! Just by preparing for you own holiday gathering, you can make a difference.

The Decor

While every party has to have great eats, the decor is the next big step to giving your party that WOW factor! You can have a big impact without breaking the bank by utilizing basic items in beautiful displays!

For a beautiful backdrop, use holiday themed paper – inexpensive, festive, and easy to hang with a bit of tape.

Ornaments are also a beautiful addition to the table and look great in vases, dangling from the ceiling and table, and work well as tablescape. Plus, they really enhance your theme without requiring a ton of effort.

Make a splash with something that catches the eye. Rather than buying expensive decor, consider making your own.

I’m not super crafty (FOR REAL), but this wreath and complementary Christmas tree were simple to put together.

I used basic foam shapes (tree and wreath circle) and hot glued COFFEE FILTERS (how inexpensive can you get) and used about 100 on each. Then, I hot-glued ornaments in my color scheme, purchased a miniature tree star, and pre-made bow and voila! I have beautiful table pieces – both made for about $20 total.

Deciding on a theme doesn’t necessarily mean you are married to it. I incorporated different fabrics and textures as well, such as these burlap letters (Spread a little JOY!) and this glitter tablecloth. I also used festive flower sprays and garlands to add little pops of color and pizzazz.

You might also consider taking simple milk bottles for beverages and dressing them up. Using simple twine, a felt tree, scissors, and a glue gun, I added a little oomph to these and added a festive snowflake straw. Even better, by using hot glue, you can simply remove the decoration and change it up for the season and event. 

The Favor

No soiree would be complete without something for your guests to take home. I already have the Candy Bar set up for their M&M’s® Chocolate Candies fix, so they can take their own little sweets bag home.

As an extra little something, I put together 3-2-1 Mug Cake jars. To make these, you will need miniature mason jars, M&M’s® Chocolate Candies of your choice, Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix, and Pillsbury™ Angel Food Cake Mix (This is a necessity!)

Combine the two boxes of cake mix. Fill the bottom of your jars with M&M’s® chocolate candies (a flay layer will do) and top with 3 tablespoons of your cake mixtures. Since the top of your mason jar has two parts to the lid, use a round gift tag – the perfect fit for the lid and layer them together (see picture above) and close it up! Remind your guests that they add their mixture (3 tablespoons) to a mug, add 2 tablespoons of water, and heat in the microwave for 1 minute. A Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Mug Cake in 3-2-1!

Ready to get this party started? Find everything you need at Walmart and bring along this coupon which will save you $1.00 on ANY TWO (2) M&M’s® Chocolate Candies, 8 oz or larger.

What are your favorite ways to sweeten up the holidays?