It’s that time of year, where you want to show your neighbors and coworkers, mail carrier and hairstylist, teachers and  that you are grateful for them, but don’t have a ton of extra cash to get them all individualized gifts. We’ve got you covered. We’ve come up with a fun, handmade, unique gift to please all the acquaintances in your life for under $5 a piece!

Chocolate Covered Cinnamon Bears

It’s fun to be able to pass out a unique gift that has a handmade touch unlike a store-bought box of chocolates during the holidays, but it takes it up a notch than the traditional plate of homemade cookies (don’t get me wrong, I’ve had some AH-MAZING plates of cookies over the years, but I think it is fun to do something else with our neighbor gifts, something that stands out a bit.)

This is the easiest gift to make that still has a homemade touch. First, locate some cinnamon bears. You can get a huge 5lb bag on Amazon.

You’ll also need some dipping chocolate, look on amazon or most grocery stores around town will have it. I prefer dipping chocolate over chocolate chips, it seems to harden a little smoother, but sometimes chocolate chips have different flavors that could make fun combinations in your chocolate covered cinnamon bears.

I prefer dipping just half the cinnamon bear. It leaves a little more of the cinnamon flavor, more festive with the colors, and is easier when you are only dipping half.

(This year we chose to add in some chocolate covered gummy bears also–not all people are cinnamon fans, and the extra colors look great in the gift.)

Melt your chocolate, dip in the bears and place on waxed paper. Once they are all dipped, let them set in the fridge until the chocolate has hardened. Then the chocolate covered cinnamon bears can be stored in a ziplock bag or other airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to use them (another plus for this gift-you can make them ahead of time and they still taste fresh whenever you pull them out to give away)

One of the key ingredients to a successful gift is the wrapping. Each year I find some of the cutest containers at my local dollar store. I purchase about 20 of them, give them a good wash, and fill them with our bears. Once all our containers are filled, they can sit in the fridge until we’re ready to give them out individually.

This is one of the most laid back, prepare ahead of time gifts that will be unique to all your friends and neighbors this holiday season.