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"Edible Gift"

post #1 of 26
11/30/09 at 6:41am
Thread Starter 
I was driving into work this morning and was listening to an interview with Nigella who was speaking about her new Christmas Cookbook.


She said that alot of people get intimidated with “status meals” and therefore lose the idea that cooking is all about deciding on what “YOU” would like to cook , and then to just cook it well.


She mentioned CHILI with chocolate chips..... and other interesting things. Of course many put cocoa in their chili to enhance different flavors.....(I assume the actual chocolate will make it more velvety)


Then she spoke about bringing back the idea of making “Edible Gifts” which I am all game for.

In the past I have made pecan clusters, preserves, cakes, cinnamon buns...fudge....


Is there anyone out there who has a great idea for some “edible gifts” or ever made some ? I think its an art all on its own...


Do you have a thought ?

Petals
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post #2 of 26
11/30/09 at 6:48am
Helen Witty has written a couple of books on making pantry goods. The best one is probably The Good Stuff. You'd find many choices in there that would make good gifts.

Grissini, cheese straws, potted cheese shrimp or ham, flavored vinegars and oils, nesselrode sauce and much much more.

Her book Better than Storebought is also good, but probably not as filled with giftable items.
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
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post #3 of 26
11/30/09 at 6:56am
I make rounds of shortbread, Christmas Cakes and Christmas puddings, marzipan fruit fruits. Gingerbread men and other shapes. biscuit tree ornaments.
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post #4 of 26
11/30/09 at 7:23am
Make small loaves of pumpkin bread, zucchini bread, pound cake, fruit cake, chocolate chip cherry bread, etc, and put them in a basket and give them as a potporri of goodies.

Of course I always stick a jar of dilly beans, homemade hotdog relish, cranberry sauce, and hot fudge sauce in just for good measure. hehe:peace:
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post #5 of 26
11/30/09 at 7:44am
Forgot to say, I also give home made jams, chutneys and picallili.
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post #6 of 26
11/30/09 at 8:44am
All of the above are great ideas. We do many of the same.

Two others:

Do it yourself baked-goods. Basically, you combine all of the dry ingrededients needed to make a cake, bread, whatever, pack it in a canning jar, and include a recipe.

Similarly, do it yourself soup kits. Here, again, you combine all the dry ingredients for making a soup (many of which we make ourselves, in the dehydrator) and the recipe.

These actually seem to be more appreciated than finished goods.
They have taken the oath of the brother in blood, in leavened bread and salt. Rudyard Kipling
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post #7 of 26
11/30/09 at 9:45am
For years I have given gifts of beef jerky, smoked ribs, smoked pork etc. Always fought over in the gift exchange game we play :lol:
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post #8 of 26
11/30/09 at 9:46am
I was just thinking jerkey would be good too!
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post #9 of 26
11/30/09 at 10:33am
I make my own "summer sausage" that I give as gifts, as well as a plethora of canned items. Last year it was homemade chocolates.
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post #10 of 26
11/30/09 at 11:24am
Thread Starter 
Pete,

Great idea...I did chocolates one year, 30 boxes, it was quite the adventure. Your site looks great by the way.

Ishbel and Just JP, I enjoy those gifts as well. When fruits and things come in season I try to stay ahead of the game with my preserves. A great little jam I like to make is plum/orange. It is wonderful and another is yellow tomato jam with thin lemon slices cooked with the tomato and sugar.

KY, I agree, more and more gifts presented that way are enjoyed ....I saw them once attached with a little recipe card.

Phatch, I went through her books on amazon and she has some pretty smart ideas.

Mary, Beef jerky is something i have never made. Would like to try it. Try anything once is my logo.


Thanks for you comments, .....

Petals
Réalisé avec un soupçon d'amour.

Baby Cake
(4 photos)
Fruitcake - decorated
(5 photos)
Victorian cupcakes
(10 photos)
Reply
post #11 of 26
11/30/09 at 11:40am
We make a spread of smoked fish, cream cheese, herbs and spices. I think this year we'll use loupe de mer.

We make a spiced, herbed, cheese using cream cheese, (sometimes) chevre, butter, herbs and spices.

Breads and rolls: Our neighbors make cookies and spice cakes. For their gifts I bake them three loaves each: A batard of sour-pumpernickel; a loaf-pan whole wheat with orange and walnut; and another loaf-pan bread, "Celtic Harvest." The three of them make for a nice range of colors and textures.

Linda makes fruit cakes. She'll give last year's this year.

We buy a few pretty and/or cute, inexpensive, glass bottles over the course of the year and use them along with herbs from our garden to make flavored vinegars and oils.

Lemoncello.

BDL
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post #12 of 26
11/30/09 at 11:52am
I bake rugelah, 'one inch brownies' and shortbread (this year, honey shortbread), and make small chocolate truffles. These gifts are for three of my physicians, who have kept me going! I'll also make a cake of some kind for my primary care physician- possibly a Reine de Saba. She LOVES chocolate. Best of all, she doesn't scold me for bringing "nutritional no-no's" into her office.
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post #13 of 26
11/30/09 at 1:00pm
Preserved spiced lemons - they keep for a long time, and just get better and better.
For the Christmas tree - cloved oranges. They fill the house with a lovely aroma. Plus they look great :D
 Don't handicap your children by making their lives easy.
Robert A. Heinlein
 
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post #14 of 26
11/30/09 at 1:13pm
Nearby friends and neighbours get either homemade truffles, peaches in brandy, or satsumas in cointreau. I got 3 bottles in the supermarket last week at 75%off. Something had spilt on the labels and they looked a mess. They cleaned up fine tho, so I guess its satsumas this year
I'm not normally a cheapskate, but I cant resist a bargain.

I'd better get on with it... Blimey, its the 1st tomorrow
"If we're not supposed to eat animals, why are they made of meat?" Jo Brand
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post #15 of 26
11/30/09 at 1:28pm
I posted about it here, but my wifes best friend flew in from MOntana for our 'wedding' (aka small dinner)....she gave us a basket of all stuff grown/from the farm she works at....best wedding gift ever.

we made her a dinner using all the ingredients!
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post #16 of 26
11/30/09 at 1:40pm
Thread Starter 
In line with that, some of the best gifts I received and gave were made. If we were to look back in History, there were no Ipods, Blackberry's etc (nothing wrong with them have em) , and whatever gadget you can think of.
When I was a little girl my grandfather built us doll houses and and all the miniature furniture...grandmother baked and sewed. Her fruit cakes and breads and preserves were all the talk, and God forbid my family's homemade wine. All these food stuffs were all shared by everyone.
Yes , we want that special thing we would not normally buy ourserlves but taking the time to create a wonderful dish no matter what it is, from the heart, is priceless.

just thinking......

Petals
Réalisé avec un soupçon d'amour.

Baby Cake
(4 photos)
Fruitcake - decorated
(5 photos)
Victorian cupcakes
(10 photos)
Reply
post #17 of 26
11/30/09 at 2:11pm
I also make lots of butterscotch - a hard sweetie (which Werther's Originals try to emulate!)
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post #18 of 26
11/30/09 at 2:58pm
i think that the cookie in a jar gift is perfect for friends or family who don't have a lot of time to bake for themselves. it is also a nice way to share your favorite cookie recipes with people who don't live close to you.
Good cooks never lack friends.
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post #19 of 26
11/30/09 at 3:26pm
Just a thought. I dont get any homemade gifts. I dont know any of my friends and family that would even attempt make something themselves. I know they appreciate what I give them, but I think thats put down to me being a chef. The tradition seems to have died a death in my circle. The theme now seems to be buying is best
"If we're not supposed to eat animals, why are they made of meat?" Jo Brand
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post #20 of 26
11/30/09 at 3:56pm
English toffee, chocolate with almonds, crunchy thick toffee
Fantasy Fudge, yep the shtuff right from the recipe off the marshmallow jar. My late Uncle Dick used to cater in Hollywood and made them each year.....

A few years ago I was making marshmallows....Mexican chocolate was a hit, orange, orange chocolate, mocha....etc.
put them in baskets with good hot chocolate

This year maybe slightly rolled oats from Three Sister's Garden outside of Chicago with bowls, spoons, dried fruits, granulated maple....you get the jist.
Always assorted baked goods.....
One year it was Julia Child's English Pudding, oh my gosh what a PIA.....not only to make but to age in the fridge dosing ever so often with booze.....

At 15, my best friend and I made Chocolate Cover long stem cherries with fondant.....we put too much parafin in the chocolate...little candles we gave our teachers. They raved about them....
cooking with all your senses.....
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post #21 of 26
11/30/09 at 4:36pm
Ish - we have Werther's here too...I can't get enough of them when the urge takes me there. Bet yours are better though :smiles:

Home made treats beat others hands down. Great ideas in the thread.
Sure you can go buy someone something from the shop - but if you have the time and resources - it's lovely.

I organised bath towels one year for all the nieces and nephews with their first names on them. No, I didn't make them, and I didn't embroider them myself. (Time was very short that year). But they were personal enough and as far as I could tell, they were appreciated :)
 Don't handicap your children by making their lives easy.
Robert A. Heinlein
 
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post #22 of 26
11/30/09 at 9:34pm
Some of my friends who can take the heat are getting some of my homemade chili powder blend along with a recipe I have used for years to make chili.
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post #23 of 26
12/1/09 at 4:40pm

great idea

Do you make all the jerky yourself? I suppose dryed fish would work also. Great idea!
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post #24 of 26
12/2/09 at 6:46am
I do alot of baking and I give it to friends and neighbours. This year I've added a new neighbour to my list. Our oldest is a brain tumor survivor and he had his surgery in January of 2008, and when Christmas came around, the sweet little Italian lady he would shovel snow for came to the door with a plate of her own homemade cookies for us and to ask about him and how he is doing. So this year I will be giving her a plate of cookies too.
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post #25 of 26
12/2/09 at 6:48am
I used to get homemade gifts as a kid for Christmas and I loved it. The best gift I had ever gotten was a bright orange sweater that my grandma knitted for me. I wore that until it fell apart! She knitted two beautiful sweaters for my kids when theywere small and they loved them I think as much as I loved my orange sweater growing up. My mother in law has knitted sweaters for my kids, as well as sewn things for them and they love the stuff Oma makes.
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post #26 of 26
12/2/09 at 10:50am
I make jerky quite often. This time of year makes it easier to cold smoke then I transfer the jerky to the dehydrator to dry it down. Make sure you use a cure when making jerky!
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