Ho-ho-holy cow! That's a lot of ranch dressing

If you really love ranch dressing and have been especially good this year, Santa might have the perfect surprise for you this holiday.

Hidden Valley, owned by bleachmaker Clorox, is selling astocking loaded with 52 ounces of ranch dressingthat fans can preorderfrom its websitefor $35. It also comes with a silver mantel holder and a "functional pour spout" that a hungry Santa — or any ranch enthusiast — can use to access the creamy condiment inside. The 15-by-7-inch stocking is adorned with bottles of the brand's "HVR" dressing, as well as pictures of pizza and hamburgers — two other foods beyond the traditional salad where ranch-loving consumers are known to use the condiment.

But be ready to use it fast at your holiday parties, or make sure there's plenty of room in the fridge, because the stocking’s contents need to be refrigerated after it’s opened. The dressing is part of Hidden Valley Ranch’s "12 days of ranch-mas."

Hidden Valley Ranch is no stranger to the holidays, having offered clothing and other must-have seasonal fare in the past. This year,Hidden Valley Ranch is sellingsweaters for $50, a holiday adult onesie for $75, a holiday throw pillow for $30 and gift cards for $25 a piece that all, naturally, enable fans to proudly tout their love for the creamy product.

Other food companies have gotten into the holiday spirit with their own products.

Last year,KFC teamed up with Enviro-Logto create a limited-edition firelog that smells like the brand's fried chicken. In another holiday-themed product launch in 2018, AB InBev’s Busch beerunveiled the Busch buttonto cancel out awkward or uncomfortable holiday conversations. And Oreo, in addition to its limited-edition peppermint bark cookies and a gingerbread-like house made from the popular cookie, is sellinga milk dunk ugly sweaterfor $70.

— Christopher Doering

Going nuts for pickles

If consumers are looking to add an unusual twist to their nut mix, then these spicy dill pickle-flavored almonds could do the trick.

In honor of National Pickle Day, Blue Diamondannounced the launchof its latest product innovation under their Bold Snack Almonds: Spicy Dill Pickle. The nuts will be available in stores starting March 2020.

Pickle flavored products have beenin the spotlightin recent years. From potato chips to pork rinds, food and beverage products have been using pickle as a featured flavor in many new innovations.

“Through rigorous research, we found a growing demand for dill and pickle flavors across food categories,” Michael Burdeny, global head of marketing at Blue Diamond, said in the release.

According to Mordor Intelligence, the pickle and pickle products market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 3.41% from 2019 to 2024. Since the growth in pickle flavor products is set to continue, this flavor could be a smart choice.

But Blue Diamond isn’t the only nut company taking advantage of pickle’s popularity. Whole Foods'365 brand makesdill pickle almonds and The Carolina Nut Co.makes peanutswith the same flavor.

The spicy, savory and sour pickle nuts are just one of the many unique flavors that Blue Diamond offers. The company has more than 20 flavors of almonds, ranging from Sriracha and Salt ‘n Vinegar to Dark Chocolate and Toasted Coconut.

Nuts have grownmore popular than everin the last few years due to their relative health halo, increased interest in snacking and consumer demand for convenient protein sources. Since these nuts are advertised as having 6 grams of protein per serving and take advantage of the trendiness of pickles, spiciness and nuts, they could be a big dill for consumers.

— Lillianna Byington

Christmas coquito (almost)

While eggnog is a good holiday beverage, anyone who has experienced Caribbean festivities has likely wished it were as easy to find coquito on the U.S. mainland.

This holiday season, Goya is making those wishes come true. Well, almost. The company synonymous with Latin American CPGshas built a website dedicated tothe traditional Puerto Rican alcoholic Christmas beverage, complete with a recipe to make the drink at home in a blender and to extend its sweet flavor to cookies and cake.

For the uninitiated, coquito tastes like a lighter version of eggnog, using coconut cream and condensed milk for its flavor and texture. Some recipes contain eggs, though Goya’s does not. The drink also has a heavy glug of white rum, adding a dimension of sweetness and intoxication.

"We want to introduce Coquito as a new holiday tradition to those who are looking to give a Caribbean twist to their seasonal beverages and to celebrate with those who know and love our Coquito recipe and products,"Joe Perez, senior vice president of Goya Foods, said in a written statement.

This new move from Goya is helping to present coquito — which is often praised by its fans asbetter than eggnog— to the masses. It’s a smart holiday move for the family-owned company. As Goya presents itself as the mostauthentic maker of Hispanic favoritesand staples, touting a unique holiday tradition to a stateside audience will get more people interested in its products.

While some might wish that Goya had gone the next step and actually produced ready-to-drink coquito, if they had done that, they would have faced regulatory and production challenges. Goya makes a wide range of beverages, but they are all shelf stable. Coquito, which is sometimes nonperishable, is made to drink chilled, and would require a different marketing and packaging strategy. Additionally, coquito is always alcoholic — unlike eggnog, which is often sold in grocery stores sans alcohol.

But most importantly: Coquito isknown as a homemade drink. It gets some of its cachet from the fact that every Puerto Rican household seems to have a bottle of a unique concoction in the refrigerator. Even though Goya’s recipe is fairly basic, blending your own coquito is part of the holiday experience. What may be lost in convenience is gained in authenticity.And that will pay off. According to Technomic’s 2018 Ethnic Food & Beverage Consumer Trend Report, 44% of people who want ethnic food prefer it to be 100% authentic.

— Megan Poinski