Christmas

1. Allow the bars of Neufchatel cheese to warm for about 30 minutes. Blend them in a bowl with the pouch of Italian dressing mix, then split into thirds.

2. Take a long strip of plastic wrap and sprinkle a layer of fancy shredded cheese on it. Take one third of the Neufchatel mixture and, using a spatula, move it around a little in the bowl to help shape it into a ball. Place the ball on the shredded cheese and sprinkle some more on top. Roll the ball around on the cheese to pick up the shreds and shape a little more with your hands.

3. Take the corners of the plastic wrap and bring them together; twist and clip to keep it closed. Place in a curved bowl to help it keep the rounded shape and chill for 1 hour.

4. Combine the remaining two thirds of the Neufchatel mixture and repeat the process with the plastic wrap and shredded cheese. Chill for 1 hour.

5. Take the carrot and peel outer layer off to reveal clean orange. Cut about 1" off the pointed tip for the nose, and, using the peeler, create a few long, thin strands of carrot for the scarf.

6. Once chilled, remove each cheese ball from the plastic wrap and place the smaller ball on top of the larger one. Push the carrot tip into the smaller ball to create a nose. Take a strip of carrot and fold it in half across another strip, careful not to break it. Take the other strip and wrap it between the small and large ball, creating a scarf. Take some peppercorns and arrange them down the middle of the large ball to create buttons. Add two peppercorns to the top ball to create eyes, and push them into the ball above the nose.

7. Sprinkle any remaining shredded cheese around the snowman to resemble fallen snow.