Have you saved your holiday shopping for the last minute? Not to worry. Here you’ll find gift ideas for the food lover in your life, for any budget.
On the Cheap
• Anything homemade. From soup mixes to desserts, you can get creative with the help of a Mason jar. Infused oils or even liquors also make a great gift with the purchase of glass air-tight bottles which run less than $5 a pop.
• Family Recipe Collection. From Aunt Sue’s zucchini bread to Nana’s meatballs, gift a wonderful family keepsake for the chef-to-be.
• For the latte-lover, you can buy a handheld milk frother for under $25. Combine this with a container of homemade tea, hot chocolate (everyone deserves a little something sweet this holiday season), or Fair Trade coffee for a cozy gift this winter.
• Unique whole grains. A true foodie knows the goodness whole grains can bring, but they are more expensive than your average grain and can be harder to find. Quinoa salad, anyone?
• Flavor extracts. A pure almond or even vanilla extract may seem like a luxury item to the average home cook. Take them to the next level with this relatively inexpensive gift of goodness.
• A microplane. Because there is little better than freshly grated parmesan.
Middle of the Road
• Organic boxed wine. No, not Franzia. The good stuff from West Coast wineries is making a serious comeback…in an environmentally-friendly box.
• Hat and Gloves. As in a chef’s hat and oven mitts…and don’t forget the apron to complete the outfit. Match the set with your chef’s personality to help them feel at home in the kitchen.
• For the coffee lover, a French press is the way to go to provide the most full-bodied coffee flavor money can buy.
• Homemade sushi kit. Oh so much fun to make yourself, not to mention sushi rolls can be jam- packed with good nutrition.
• Choppers, slicers, and dicers, oh my! Most home chefs do not have enough time to cook as much as they would like in their own kitchens. Give the gift of time buy purchasing gadgets to cut down food prep of fruits, veggies, and other kitchen staples.
• Glass storage containers. When you like to cook, one thing is for sure- you love to make enough for leftovers. Beat the risk of BPA-ridden plastics with glassware to store and reheat leftovers.
• Reuseable grocery and produce bags to help greenify your foodie’s shopping habits.
• Give a little spice. Herbs and spices are a wonderful way to decrease salt and amp up flavor in cooking. The combinations are endless and such a joy to experiment with. Better than individual spices, create custom blends — perhaps your favorite rub or a spice blend from your favorite cuisine.
Something Extra Special
• Food processor or immersion hand-held blender opens possibilities of soups, sauces, and purees.
• A stand mixer…they last forever and once you have one, you never look back.
• Cutlery. You don’t know chopping until you have good knives. Any foodie will tell you they are totally worth the investment.
• Composter. Sure the garbage disposal is convenient, but composting is better for the environment and great for their garden.
Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD is a nutritionist and founder of www.SkinnyintheCity.com. She is also the creator of The F-Factor Diet™, an innovative nutritional program she has used for more than ten years to provide hundreds of her clients with all the tools they need to achieve easy weight loss and maintenance, improved health and well-being. For more information log onto www.FFactorDiet.com.
Stay up-to-date on the biggest health and wellness news with our weekly recap.