Some people need a little motivation getting into the Christmas spirit while others just fall naturally into the holiday spirit. For those who need that extra little push after the Christmas shopping and gift wrapping buzz, consider these fun, easy-to-make recipes to impress your guests and dress up your table escape. The first idea came from those hard-to-resist Tasty videos you see on your Facebook feed. Because I just keep watching them and saving them, they show me more and more. And this video of the making the Christmas Tree Pull Apart Bread was one that I couldn’t resist bookmarking. It’s a short one minute clip that guides you through making this beautiful display in just about 30 minutes. Plus, after watching this video, you’ll find most ingredients are easy to grab at the grocery store: Pillsbury ready-made dough, pesto sauce, tomato sauce, Mozzarella, pecans and a pinch of seasoning.

On top of making a number of side dishes, this was one I could easily do right before all the guests came. It’s as easy as pulling out all the store bought ingredients and just begin working down the line. Grab a slice of ready made dough, slather the inside with red or green sauce, put a slice of Mozzarella in the center and wrap it up. Shape the balls of dough into a tree and decorate the outside as you’d like. I chose to sprinkle both pesto and marinara sauce across and dress it up with pecans. No, I did not use the sprinkles and icing, but I did top it off with a snowflake cookie.

While your guests are arriving and your prime rib is waiting for its debut on the Christmas table, it’s always good to have an activity — especially one that brings out your ‘inner kid’. Decorating Christmas cookies is a fun activity for all ages. It just takes your favorite sugar cookie recipe, holiday cookie cutters and a bit of prep work in advance, meaning you’ll need to bake and cool a few tray of these before the sprinkles and icing hit the table. When they do, the cookies will go fast!

Enjoy your holiday. From my family to yours, Merry Christmas!