Delivering kisses and miracles

There are many ways chocolate makes people happy and one of the worthiest is a tour that has been described as the "chocolate lover's dream."

For 10 years, the Hershey's Kissmobile Cruisers have crisscrossed the country to raise awareness of and donations for the 170 nonprofit Children's Miracle Network hospitals.

The Kissmobile Cruisers visit more than 70 North American cities and drive more than 70,000 miles each year. The tour showcases new products (more than 230,000 Hershey's Kisses chocolates can fit into a refrigerated compartment) as well as staging fun events, such as sing-along contests and beanbag tosses and crafts. Last year the tour reached the fundraising goal of $1 million in donations to Children's Miracle Network.

While waiting for the tour to reach your hometown, you may want to make these delicious cookies:

Kissables Thumbprint Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened

11/3 cups granulated sugar

2 egg yolks

1/4 cup milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup Hershey's Cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

Powdered sugar

1 can (16 oz.) vanilla frosting

Additional powdered sugar

11/3 cups (10.5-oz. pkg.) Hershey's Kissables Brand Chocolate Candies

Directions:

1. Beat butter, granulated sugar, egg yolks, milk and vanilla until fluffy. Combine flour, cocoa and salt; gradually add to butter mixture, beating until well blended. Cover; refrigerate dough about 2 hours or until firm enough to handle.

2. Heat oven to 350° F. Lightly grease cookie sheet. Shape dough into 11/8-inch balls. Roll in powdered sugar; place on prepared cookie sheet. Press thumb in center of each cookie.

3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack; cool completely.

4. Spoon frosting into heavy-duty resealable plastic food storage bag. Cut off corner of bag about 1/4 inch from point; pipe frosting into thumbprint indentations. Sift additional powdered sugar over filled cookies, if desired. Gently press 3 to 4 candies into each filled cookie. Makes about 3 to 1/2 dozen cookies.

Vanilla Variation: Increase flour to 23/4 cups; omit cocoa.

Thrill friends and family with a make it yourself pizza party

If there is one thing kids love more than eating pizza, it's being able to make it themselves using all their favorite toppings. Creating a "make it yourself" pizza party is a great way to customize the meal while involving friends and family in a fun activity. Best of all, this crust recipe, which uses a surprise ingredient, is simple enough to make at home without making a mess of the kitchen.

The secret to this simple crust is the addition of potatoes. Idahoan brand flavored Mashed Potatoes were recently named the best-tasting instant mashed potato compared to major national competitors by the American Culinary ChefsBest.™ Incorporating these convenient, 100 percent authentic Idaho potatoes in the crust adds moisture and rich flavor to this homemade version of one of America's favorite foods.

The following recipe for Fresh Tomato and Zucchini Pizza uses fresh summer produce; however, when making pizza at home, each person can substitute his or her favorite toppings. With this versatile recipe, you can enjoy a delicious homemade meal that enables everyone to eat the pizza that they love.

Fresh Tomato

And Zucchini Pizza

Crust:

1/2 cup dry Idahoan Roasted Garlic flavored Mashed Potatoes

1 cup boiling water

1 cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

Topping:

3 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced and patted dry

1 small zucchini, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and ground pepper to taste

4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

2 tablespoons fresh shredded basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil

Combine dry Idahoan Roasted Garlic flavored Mashed Potatoes with boiling water in a bowl, using a fork to moisten all potatoes. Let stand for one minute. Add flour, olive oil and salt to potato mixture. With hands, knead mixture until dough forms a ball. Let rest 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400є F. Press dough into 12-inch by 8-inch baking pan. Arrange zucchini slices and tomato slices over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake about 15 minutes. Top with mozzarella; bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese melts. Sprinkle with basil.

Yield: 4 main-dish servings or 6 appetizer servings