Holiday desserts need not be complicated

Between decorating your home and preparing the year’s most important meal, you may lose steam by the time you get to the sweet stuff.

But creating holiday desserts that stand out doesn’t have to be a daunting prospect. There are simple things you can do to give treats flair, without spending hours slaving away.

Whipped topping makes a perfect fuss-free topping on special occasion pies, cakes and cookies, as well as your everyday favorites like fruit, coffee and ice cream.

Your family and guests will taste the difference, so be sure to use natural ingredients. For example, Reddi-wip is made from real dairy cream, unlike other leading brands which have hydrogenated oils as their top ingredient.

To deliciously top off your holiday meal, try this recipe for Apple Crumble Pie, where warm apple pie filling is topped with a brown sugar and oat crumble and served in a flaky pie crust. Want to save even more time? Consider picking up a frozen dessert pie, such as one from Marie Callender’s and top it off with Reddi-wip for a quicker, but still super tasty, dessert option.

• 1 frozen pie crust (9-inch), thawed

• 1 can (21 oz each) apple pie filling

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats

• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon

• 1/4 tsp. salt

• 1/2 cup cold Parkay Original-stick (1/2 cup = 1 stick)

Reddi-wip Original Dairy Whipped Topping

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Pierce bottom and side of pie crust lightly with fork. Bake 5 to 7 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees F.

• Pour pie filling into baked pie crust; set aside. Mix flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl. Cut in Parkay with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over pie filling.

• Bake 25 minutes or until juices are bubbly and topping is golden brown. Cool slightly. Cut into 8 slices to serve.

• Top with Reddi-wip, if desired.

More delicious recipes and holiday inspiration can be found at www.Reddiwip.com.

Don’t let your desserts take a back seat to the rest of your holiday food. With a quick rosette of real whipped topping, you can pack a big taste punch that’s fuss-free, leaving more time for making memories.