3 cups all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons baking powder 4 teaspoons cinnamon 1 1/4 teaspoons salt Combine all ingredients and put in a quart jar, shake down if necessary. Jar Instructions: In a medium bowl, combine 3/4 cup milk, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of oil with a wire whisk. Add 1-1/3 cups pancake mix and stir just until moist, and still a bit lumpy . Cook on lightly greased griddle or in a waffle iron. Makes about a dozen medium pancakes. Recipe from the St. Johns Salem Ward Jar Recipe Book.

3 cups powdered milk 1/2 cup cocoa 3/4 cup sugar Dash of salt Mix ingredients together in bowl. Spoon into a quart jar. Jar Instructions: 4 Tbs. Hot Cocoa Mix 8 oz. boiling water Marshmallows or whipped cream optional Place Hot Cocoa Mix in bottom of a mug. Pour in boiling w+water. Mix well. For some flavor variety try adding a package of raspberry or cherry flavored unsweetened drink mix, like Kool-Aid to the cocoa mix. Serves 1. Recipe from the St. Johns Salem Ward Jar Recipe Book.

1/2 cup powdered orange flavored drink mix, such as Tang 3/4 cup white sugar 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 1/2 cups vanilla chips Combine the flour with the baking soda and baking powder. Layer the ingredients in a clean glass wide mouth quart sized in the order given. Jar Instructions: 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F . 2. Empty contents into a large mixing bowl. 3. Add 1/2 cup softened butter, 1 egg slightly beaten and teaspoon vanilla extract, optional. Mix until completely blended. 4. Roll heaping tablespoonfuls into balls. Place 2 inches apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. 5. Bake at 375°F for 12 to 14 minutes or until tops are very lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes on the sheet then remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely. Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies Recipe from the St. Johns Salem Ward Jar Recipe Book.

1/2 cup firmly packed flaked coconut 3/4 cup chopped pecans 2 cups firmly packed brown sugar 2 cups flour mixed with 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt Layer ingredients in order given in a 1 quart wide mouth canning jar. Press each layer firmly in place before adding next ingredient. Jar Instructions: Empty jar of brownie mix into large mixing bowl. Use your hands to thoroughly blend mix. Add: 3/4 cup butter or margarine, not diet, softened; 2 eggs, slightly beaten; and 2 teaspoons vanilla; Mix until completely blended. Spread batter into a sprayed 9 x 13 metal pan. Bake at 375F for 25 minutes. Cool 15 minutes in baking pan. Cut brownies into 1 1/2 inch squares. Makes 2 dozen brownies Recipe from the St. Johns Salem Ward Jar Recipe Book.

Layer in one quart jar as follows- 1/2 cup dried kidney beans 1/2 cup dried black-eyed peas 1/2 cup split green peas 1/2 cup Great Northern beans 1/2 cup black beans 1/2 cup lima beans 1/2 cup kidney beans 1/2 cup green split peas In a zipper seal plastic bag add the following- 3 Tablespoons chicken bouillon 1 teaspoon onion powder 1 teaspoon garlic powder 2 Tablespoons dried parsley flakes 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper 1 teaspoon celery seeds 1/4 cup packed brown sugar Mix in bag, seal and place on top of beans. For a better fit, squeeze air out of bag first. Place lid on jar tightly. Jar Instructions - Add beans to a large pot; cover with hot water to soak overnight. Drain water from pot. Add 2 quarts of water to the beans. Bring this to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered until beans are almost tender. This will take one to 2 hours. Add two 14-1/2 ounce cans of stewed tomatoes and the seasoning mix. Simmer, uncovered until beans are tender, one to 1-1/2 hours. Enjoy! Recipe from the Lisa, St. Johns Salem Ward.

The next two jar gift recipes are very easy and would be ideal for children to make as gifts for friends, family or their teachers.

2 small packages of instant chocolate pudding 25 crushed chocolate sandwich cookies, like Oreo's In a one quart jar, empty both packages of pudding. Crush the sandwich cookies between a sheet of wax paper. They don't have to be finely crushed, bigger chunks are yummy too. Pour the crushed cookies on top of the pudding. tap down as needed. Seal the jar and decorate as desired. Jar Instructions: 3 cups milk 1 container of cool whip Scoop out most of the cookie crumbs and set aside. In a large bowl combine pudding mix and milk. Fold in cookie crumbs and cool whip. Store any extra pudding in the refrigerator. Recipe from the Lisa, St. Johns Salem Ward.

This is the easiest gift you will ever give. All you need is one box of cake mix. The flavor is up to you. Pour the whole cake mix into a quart jar. Seal the jar and you are done! The title on the instruction card will vary with the flavor of cake mix you choose. An example for spice cake would be, World's Easiest Spice Cookies; chocolate cake mix - World's Easiest Chocolate Cookies. Now that you have a name, here are the Jar Instructions: 2 eggs 1/2 cup oil Empty cookie mix into a large bowl. Mix together 2 eggs, 1/2 cup of oil and cookie mix. Form dough into 1/2 inch balls and set on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 5 - 10 minutes. To add even more fun to these cookies try adding 1 cup of chocolate chips to yellow, white or chocolate cake mixes. This tastes great and adds an extra layer to your jar. Recipe from the Lisa, St. Johns Salem Ward.

These next two recipes are better suited to baby food jars or small jam jars. They could also be placed in small ziploc baggies and taped inside a decorative card.

QUART JAR MIX
INSTRUCTION CARDS

Each quart jar mix recipe has "Jar Instructions." Jar Instructions tell the receiver how to complete the recipe and make the contents of the jar. The Jar Instructions can be as simple or complex as you'd like. Here are a few ideas to jump-start your creative juices:

• Write out the instructions on an extra recipe card
• Create your own "recipe card" on your computer. Embellish with fun fonts, clip art and boarders.
• Write or Print the instructions on brown craft paper or on the plain side of a brown paper bag. This creates a fun rustic look.
• Layer 2-3 different colors of paper, in varying sizes to create a colorful frame around the jar instructions
• Use decorative scissors to provide a fun edge to the jar instruction card.
• Create your own folk art drawings and boarders to add a personal artistic touch.
• Embellish with coordinating stickers.
• Instead of tying your tag around the mouth of the jar with ribbon or raffia, glue or tape it to the side of the jar.

LAYERING
TIPS AND TRICKS

• Don't layer flour, sugar or any other thin ingredient on top of something like chocolate chips, nuts or candy. The thinner ingredient will seep right through the holes of the chips, nuts or candy.
• Use a hard flat object with a long handle, like the top a wooden kitchen mallet to tamp down the ingredients in your mixes. This is particularly important with any brown sugar you are using. You don't need to tamp down on flour or any powdery items. This will only cause a big mess!
• When adding flour, powered milk or powdered sugar, gently tap the bottom of the jar on the counter to help settle the ingredient to create more room.
• After adding cocoa powder to the jar, take a cloth and wipe down the sides to remove any residue left behind.

JAR DECORATING

• Cover your metal jar lid with a 6-1/2 inch square of fabric. Attach with a rubber band and decorate as you wish.
• Use what you have around the house. Bells threaded onto sparkly pipe cleaners or a handmade bow look nice. Try using paper twist for a bow or even tulle. Attach your favorite ornament, either store bought or handmade.
• A lot of the layered ingredient jars look good enough to stand on their on. A few simple strands of raffia tied around the jar will be just the small added touch needed.
• Make a simple cloth sack to put your jar gift in. Cut out two pieces of fabric 12 x 7 inches. With right sides together sew across the bottom (7 inches) and down the sides (12 inches). Turn right side out and with pinking shears, pink the top edges. Put your jar in the sack and gather the sack opening and tie it closed with a ribbon. Add the instructions to the ribbon if you wish.

Fabric Gift Bag

GIFT BASKETS

By putting a few little extras in a basket with your quart jar mix, you will have a great gift for a loved one or dear friend.

• Pair the Pizza Dough Mix with a pizza cutter, your favorite pizza or tomato sauce, a jar of Parmesan cheese, and a few containers of basil and oregano for your special pizza lover.

Pizza Dough Mix Basket

• Create a wonderful breakfast basket filled with a jar of Cinnamon Pancake Mix, Hot Cocoa mix. Add a pancake turner, syrup, a small baggy of marshmallows and an orange or two for color and you are ready to add the bow.

Breakfast Basket

• Place the Hot Cocoa Mix in a basket or pail with a few mugs, marshmallows and some chocolate dipped spoons for a warm holiday basket. Add a potholder for some extra cheer.

MORE FUN
FOOD GIFTS

• We Whisk You a Merry Kiss-mas! Use an inexpensive whisk and fill it full of Holiday Hershey Kisses. Add a bow and the gift card. This is cheap and very easy. Great for Visiting Teaching!
• A fun gift for a teacher would be a bowl of apples with a jar of Hershey Hugs in the center. "Teachers cannot live by apples alone. They need Hugs too!"
• A cute container filled with Jolly Ranchers could say- Have a Holly "Jolly" Christmas!
• A homemade loaf of bread with a jar of jam - You are a 'slice' above the rest! Hope your holidays are 'jam' packed with love!
• Any plate of candy, cookies or sugar treats can carry the label - Wishing you a season filled with 'sweetness'!

CHOCOLATE
COVERED SPOONS

Heavy Duty plastic spoons
Chocolate chips
Vanilla chips
Sprinkles
Wax paper

Melt a 1/2 cup of chocolate chips in the microwave for 30 sec. Stir and continue for 30 sec, continue until chips are melted. Do the same for the vanilla chips.

Dip each spoon in the chocolate, you may need to use another spoon to scoop the chocolate up to the top of the spoon bowl. Shake off any extra chocolate into the bowl. For a half and half spoon, dip the side of the spoon in one type of chocolate and the other side in the other type.

Place on waxed paper, and while chocolate is still warm

Put finished chocolate spoons in the fridge to set up. Once chocolate has harden, wrap in plain or colored plastic wrap and tie with a bow.

*These make a great addition to the Hot Cocoa Mix.

CHOCOLATE
DIPPED PRETZELS

Package of large Rod pretzels
Package of chocolate chips
assorted sprinkles
wax paper
spoon

Place wax paper on a cookie sheet. Microwave 1 cup of chocolate chips for 30 seconds in a microwavable bowl. Stir and cook again for 30 more seconds, stir. Continue, until chips are melted.

Dip pretzel into bowl of chocolate. Using a spoon, scoop melted chocolate onto pretzel, about half way up. Tap pretzel, lightly on side of bowl to knock off any extra chocolate.

Place on wax paper and sprinkle on the sprinkles. For a striped effect, pour out three different types of sprinkles in a 6 to 8 inch line across the waxed paper. Each line of sprinkles should be about an inch wide. Make sure the different sprinkle lines touch each other. Dip your pretzel in the chocolate and then roll in the lines of sprinkles. This creates a fun design, easily.

More Great Recipes
in a Jar

www.frugalhomemaker.com
www.cookieinajar.com
www.allrecipes.com - search for cookies in a jar
www.nikibone.com
www.christmas-cookies.com