Baking Spirits Bright
Make Sure the Pillsbury Doughboy Pops By This Holiday Season!
Decemberber 2023 Issue
by Lindsay Gifford
Recipes, Photography and Information
provided by Pillsbury
The iconic “Hoo Hoo!” giggle of the Pillsbury Doughboy has been stirring up kitchens across America since 1965. Poppin’ Fresh—yes, the doughboy has a name—was created to help advertise Pillsbury and grew to be the adored brand mascot with lasting star power. He’s been in more than 600 ads for 50 Pillsbury products. From buttery biscuits to flaky pie crusts, this mega-brand has been bringing families to the table for unforgettable fare for nearly 150 years.
Pillsbury “popped” up when Charles Pillsbury began the company in 1869 from a few flour mills situated in Minneapolis on the banks of the Mississippi River. With high quality products, delicious recipes, and vast appeal, Pillsbury’s portfolio has grown to more than 125 products. Around four-million Pillsbury fluffy, golden biscuits are enjoyed every day in America. And, we bake more than 17,000 batches of Pillsbury cookies per hour during the Christmas season.
Pillsbury’s mission is simple, “We believe in helping families make memories through food, from spending time together around the kitchen table to creating new baking traditions.” They strive to help homemade moments become extra special—and delicious!
Pillsbury’s dedication to its mission goes beyond stocking grocery shelves. Taking their customers into great consideration, the Pillsbury website, www.pillsbury.com, is a valuable resource and one of the Top-5 food content websites in the world. Pillsbury.com features 15,000 easy, delicious recipes for every meal, a large collection of how-to videos, holiday specialties and so much more. In fact, we dove right in and pulled some of our favorite holiday recipes just for you. Fun, festive, and always on the guest list, these flavorful family favorites will add yummy comfort and a lot of “mmmmm’s.” Pillsbury never fails to inspire your palette at breakfast, lunch, dinner and any time in between. Now, it’s time to flip the page to turn everyday food moments into cherished lifelong memories. Hoo Hoo!
Maple-Cinnamon Pecan Pull-Aparts
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 60 mins | Servings: 12
1/2 cup chopped Pecans 
1/3 cup packed Brown sugar
2 Tbsps Butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup Sour cream
1 can (17.5 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Grands!™ Flaky Cinnamon Rolls with Original Icing (5 Count)
1 tsp Maple flavor or vanilla
Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 8x4-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. In large bowl, mix all ingredients except cinnamon rolls with icing. Separate dough into 5 rolls; set icing aside. Cut each roll into quarters; add to pecan mixture, tossing gently to coat. Spoon roll mixture into pan. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until deep golden brown. Cool 10 minutes. Turn upside down onto serving plate or platter. Spread with icing. Serve warm.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tip:
Use clean kitchen scissors to easily cut the cinnamon rolls into quarters.
Christmas Tree Cinnamon Rolls
Prep 5 min | Total 25 mins | Servings 8
1 can (12.4 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Cinnamon Rolls with Original Icing (8 Count)
Red decorator sugar crystals
Green decorator sugar crystals
Heat oven to 375°F. Grease cookie sheet. Remove cinnamon rolls from can. Arrange 3 whole cinnamon rolls in triangle in center of greased cookie sheet.
Cut remaining rolls in half. Arrange as shown in photo to look like tree (3 halves on each side of triangle and 1 for trunk). Loosely place 30x1-inch strip of foil around outside edges to prevent excessive browning.
Bake for 13 to 19 minutes or until deep golden brown. Loosen tree carefully with pancake turner. Carefully slide onto serving platter. Frost warm rolls. Decorate as desired with decorator sugar.
Pull-Apart Crescent Christmas Tree
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 45 mins | Servings: 32
2 cans (8 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Original Crescent Rolls (8 Count)
2 pkgs (5.5 oz each) garlic & herbs Boursin® cheese
1 Tbsp Butter, melted
2 Tbsps fresh Parsley leaves, chopped
Heat oven to 375°F. Line large cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper. Separate dough into 16 triangles. Use kitchen scissors or knife to cut each triangle in half lengthwise. Spoon about 2 teaspoons cheese on shortest side of each triangle. Roll up each, starting at shortest side of triangle and rolling to opposite point. Using photo as a guide, place crescents next to each other in tree-shaped pattern on cookie sheet, starting with trunk and working up to top. Bake 20 to 24 minutes or until deep golden brown. Brush with melted butter; sprinkle with parsley.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tips:
1) To transfer Christmas tree pull-apart bread to a platter, lift it up while still attached to the parchment paper, and place it on your platter. Run a large, flat spatula underneath the tree on all sides, then lift parchment paper on one side and slide the pull-apart Christmas tree onto the platter.
2) We tested this cheesy pull-apart Christmas tree with garlic & herbs Boursin™ cheese, but feel free to use your favorite flavor.
Cheesy Sausage Breakfast Bubble-Up Bake
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 50 mins | Servings: 8
1/3 cup Onion, chopped 
1 pkg (12 oz) bulk Pork sausage
1/3 cup Red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup (4 oz) shredded Cheddar cheese
10 Eggs
1/3 cup Green bell pepper, chopped
1 can (16.3 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Grands!™ Flaky
Layers Original Biscuits (8 Count)
Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In 10-inch skillet, brown sausage, onion and bell peppers; drain well. In large bowl, beat eggs. Stir in cheese and sausage mixture. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Press biscuits into bottom of baking dish. Pour sausage mixture over biscuit crust. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until egg mixture is set and crust is deep golden brown. Cool 5 minutes before serving.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tip:
A platter of mixed fresh fruits of the season is the perfect go-with for this hearty breakfast dish.
Sausage Crescent Cheese Balls
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 40 mins | Servings: 42 balls
1 lb bulk Spicy sausage 
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (8 oz)
1/2 tsp dried Rosemary leaves, crushed
1 can (8 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Original Crescent Rolls (8 Count)
2 Tbsps All-purpose flour
Heat oven to 375°F. Line large sheet pan with foil; spray with cooking spray. In large bowl, mix sausage, cheese and rosemary; mix well using hands or spoon. Unroll crescent dough on work surface; coat each side of dough with 1 tablespoon flour. Using pizza cutter or knife, cut dough into about 1/4-inch pieces. Mix crescent dough pieces into bowl of sausage mixture in small amounts until well blended. Shape mixture into 42 (11/4-inch) balls and place on pan. Bake 15 to 17 minutes or until golden brown.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tips:
1) To add a little kick (especially if you’re using sausage that’s not spicy), add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or 1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce to your crescent sausage balls.
2) You can make these sausage cheese balls ahead. Just place on pan, cover with foil and reheat in the oven at 350°F until heated through.
3) Use a cookie scoop to make portioning mixture even faster and more consistent.
Raspberry-Cream Cheese Candy Cane
Crescent Danish
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 45 mins | Servings: 6
Coffee Cake:
1 can (8 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Original
Crescent Rolls (8 Count)
4 oz Cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsps plus 1 tsp Sugar, divided
3/4 cup fresh Raspberries
2 Tbsps Raspberry preserves
1 Tbsp Butter, melted
Glaze:
1/4 cup Powdered sugar
1/2 to 1 tsp Milk
Heat oven to 375°F. Line large cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper; spray generously with cooking spray. Unroll dough; separate into 8 triangles. Cut each triangle in half lengthwise. On cookie sheet, place crescent triangles lengthwise in long row, pointing same direction, with edges overlapping slightly on cookie sheet. Press overlapping edges together to help seal, but leave triangle points free.
In small bowl, beat cream cheese and 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar with spoon until well blended. Spread cream cheese mixture in 21/2-inch wide strip lengthwise on widest part of dough, leaving 1/2-inch edge. In small bowl, toss raspberries and preserves; place on top of cream cheese layer. Fold over tips of dough to enclose filling; pinch ends of dough on edge to attach. Gently picking up top end of dough, curve one end of strip to form top of cane. Brush dough with melted butter; sprinkle remaining teaspoon of granulated sugar over top.
Bake 16 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 5 minutes on cookie sheet. Use spatula to carefully help slide Danish from parchment to serving platter, loosening edges with spatula first, if needed. In small bowl, mix powdered sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of the milk until well blended. If too thick to drizzle, add additional drops of milk. Drizzle with fork over top. Serve warm.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tips:
1) Preserves differ from jam in that the chunks of fruit are medium to large rather than the texture of thick puree.
2) To quickly soften cream cheese, remove from wrapper, and place on microwavable plate; microwave uncovered on High about 15 seconds or just until softened.
Christmas Cookie Trees
Prep Time: 1 hr | Total Time: 1 hr | Servings: 5
1 roll (16.5 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ 
Sugar Cookie Dough
1/4 cup All-purpose flour
2 containers Fluffy white whipped ready-to-spread frosting
Yellow paste food color
Green paste food color
Decorations, if desired:
Yellow sanding sugar
Red and white candy sprinkles
Coarse sugar
Heat oven to 350°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with cooking parchment paper. In medium bowl, knead cookie dough and flour until combined. (DO NOT EAT RAW COOKIE DOUGH AFTER COMBINING WITH FLOUR.) On floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness. With 11/4-inch star-shaped cookie cutter, cut out 5 stars. With circle or flower-shaped cookie cutters in 5 different sizes (31/2, 31/4, 23/4, 21/4 and 11/2 inch), cut 25 cookies, 5 of each size.
Place stars and smaller flowers 1 inch apart on one cookie sheet. Place larger flowers 2 inches apart on second cookie sheet. Bake smaller cookies 6 to 8 minutes, larger cookies 8 to 10 minutes, or until light golden brown. Remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 10 minutes.
In small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of the frosting with yellow food color. Frost star cookies with yellow frosting; sprinkle with yellow sugar. Set aside. In medium bowl, mix remaining frosting with green food color. Spoon frosting into resealable food-storage plastic bag; cut off one corner of bag. To assemble each tree, pipe green frosting on one large flower cookie; stack with 4 cookies, largest to smallest, piping frosting on each cookie. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. Decorate with candy sprinkles. Top each tree with star cookie.
Baked Ham with Balsamic-Brown Sugar Glaze
Prep Time: 10 mins | Total Time: 1 hr 55 mins | Servings: 10
1 cup packed Brown sugar 
1 fully-cooked smoked bone-in Ham (6 lb)
1/2 tsp Ground mustard
2 Tbsps Balsamic or cider vinegar
Heat oven to 325°F. Place ham on rack in shallow roasting pan. Insert ovenproof meat thermometer so tip is in center of thickest part of ham and does not touch bone or rest in fat. Bake uncovered 1 hour 30 minutes. In small bowl, mix brown sugar, vinegar and mustard. Brush mixture over ham during last 45 minutes of baking. When thermometer reads 140°F, remove ham from oven. Cover loosely with foil; let stand 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tips:
1) For a beautiful presentation score the fat side of the ham diagonally at 1-inch intervals, cutting 1/4 inch deep; score in opposite direction to form diamond shapes.
2) Apricot-Bourbon Glaze: Omit brown sugar, vinegar and mustard. In small bowl, mix 1/2 cup apricot preserves, 2 teaspoons ground ginger and 1/4 cup bourbon or pineapple juice. Brush over ham as directed in step 2.
3) Sweet-Spicy Glaze: Omit brown sugar, vinegar and mustard. In small bowl, mix 1/2 cup honey, 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar, 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce and 1 clove garlic, finely chopped. Brush over ham as directed in step 2.
Chocolate-Caramel Nut Candies
Prep Time: 30 mins | Total Time: 50 mins | Servings: 24
7 oz Milk chocolate chips 
10 Caramels, unwrapped
2 tsps Milk
12 Pecan halves
7 oz Chocolate-flavored candy coating, cut into pieces
12 dried Papaya or pineapple pieces or apricots
Using a pencil, draw twenty-four 11/2-inch circles on waxed paper-lined cookie sheets, 2 inches apart. In medium microwavable bowl, mix chocolate chips and candy coating. Microwave uncovered on medium 3 to 4 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Stir until smooth. Spoon and spread 1 tablespoon chocolate mixture onto each circle. Refrigerate about 10 minutes or until chocolate is set. Place 12-inch piece of waxed paper on work surface. Dip fruit pieces and pecan halves into chocolate; place on waxed paper.
In small microwavable bowl, microwave caramels and milk uncovered on medium 21/2 to 3 minutes, stirring once every minute, until melted. Stir until smooth. Spoon about 1/2 teaspoon caramel mixture onto each chocolate circle, leaving 1/2 inch chocolate showing around edge. Decorate each with dried fruit or nut; press down lightly. Refrigerate just until set. Gently remove candies from waxed paper. Store in single layer in airtight container.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tip:
Milk chocolate can be replaced with white, semisweet, bittersweet or dark chocolate.
3-Ingredient Peppermint Bark
Prep Time: 25 mins | Total Time: 2 hr 25 mins | Servings: 16
2 1/2 cups dark Chocolate baking chips (from 20-oz pkg), divided 
1 pkg (16 oz) Vanilla-flavored candy coating (almond bark), chopped
24 red and white hard peppermint candies, crushed
Line cookie sheet with waxed paper, foil or cooking parchment paper. Place 21/4 cups of the dark chocolate chips in 2-quart microwavable bowl. Microwave uncovered on high 2 to 3 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds, until almost melted. Stir until smooth. Evenly spread on cookie sheet to 1/4-inch thickness. Set aside. In another 2-quart microwavable bowl, microwave candy coating uncovered on high 2 to 3 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds, until almost melted. Stir until smooth. Carefully pour and spread over dark chocolate to 1/4-inch thickness. Sprinkle evenly with crushed peppermint candy.
In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave remaining 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips uncovered on high 50 to 60 seconds or until almost melted. Stir until smooth; drizzle on bark. Let stand at least 2 hours until hardened. Break into pieces. Store tightly covered at room temperature.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tips:
1) To crush hard peppermint candies, place in resealable plastic freezer bag; crush with rolling pin or meat mallet.
2) Substitute red, green and white hard peppermint candies or candy canes for the red and white hard peppermint candies.
Eggnog Cheesecake Cookie Bites
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins | Servings: 24
1 Tbsp Butter, softened 
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups Powdered sugar
3 Tbsps Heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp Rum extract
3/4 tsp Ground nutmeg
1 pkg (16 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Ready to Bake!™
Sugar Cookie Dough (24 Count)
Heat oven to 350°F. Generously spray 24 miniature muffin cups with cooking spray. Place 1 cookie dough round in each muffin cup. Bake 15 to 18 minutes or until golden brown. With back of round metal measuring teaspoon, make a 11/4-inch-wide indentation in each cookie cup. Cool completely in pan about 30 minutes. Carefully, run knife or metal spatula around edges of cookie cups to loosen. Remove from pan to serving plate.
In large bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, whipping cream, rum extract and 1/2 teaspoon of the nutmeg with electric mixer on medium speed 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Pipe or spoon cream cheese mixture into center of each cup. Sprinkle cups with remaining 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg. Store in covered airtight container in refrigerator up to 4 days.
Cranberry-Cream Cheese Skillet Dip
Prep Time: 20 mins | Total Time: 55 mins | Servings: 16
1 can (16.3 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Grands!™ Flaky Layers Buttermilk Biscuits (8 Count) 
1 Tbsp Butter
1 tsp Sugar
1 pkg (8 oz) Cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup Powdered sugar
1 Tbsp Milk
1/2 cup whole berry Cranberry sauce
Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 10-inch ovenproof nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Separate each biscuit into 2 layers, to make 16 biscuit rounds. Gather ends of each biscuit round, and gently pinch to seal; roll into ball. Place around edge of skillet with pinched end facing down. In small microwavable bowl, microwave butter uncovered on High 20 to 30 seconds or until melted. Brush biscuits with butter; sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until biscuits are light golden brown.
Meanwhile, in medium bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar and milk with electric mixer on medium speed until well combined. Spoon mixture into center of partially baked biscuit-lined skillet. Bake 5 to 7 minutes or until biscuits are deep golden brown on top and cream cheese mixture is heated through. Gently spoon and spread cranberry sauce over cream cheese mixture. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Pillsbury Kitchen Tips:
1) Instead of topping your cranberry cheese dip with cranberry sauce, try raspberry jam.
2) For a pretty presentation, sprinkle biscuits with powdered sugar just before serving.