Homemade food gifts

[shygirl]

Is anyone making homemade food gifts to give to people?

I've always like spiced nuts (spicy kinds), and I just found a recipe for pumpkin pie spiced nuts which sounds really good to me!

I've always wanted to make toffee, but I'm scared of the whole needing a candy thermometer thing, so I've avoided that so far.

Candied fruit peels looked pretty, so I might make that this year.  Do people really eat it though? 

What are other people making?

[Redneck Gravy]

I am thinking about homemade foods also for this year, joining your quest for ideas.

I used to make buttermints and fudge.  I have given crocheted blankets or Christmas ornament earrings.  A couple of years ago I learned how to make knot/tie blankets, but have given all those I can.

I would like to find a dry cappuccino mix or bean soup mix.   Spiced nuts sound wonderful. 

 

[CrochetFanatic]

I'll probably make a caramel apple cheesecake for Thanksgiving, and special Christmas cookies...as long as my dad doesn't hog the kitchen this year like he likes to do. 

Using a candy thermometer can be a bit intimidating if you haven't done it before, but the anticipation is worse than the actual thing itself.  The one we have clamps on the edge of the pot, and it's easy to clean.  You just have to keep an eye on it so that the sugar doesn't burn. 

[Perfect Circle]

I make a lot of fudge, biscuits, cookies and truffles. The sugar thermometer isn't scary to use, you get the hang of them very quickly. I don't own a microwave so I boil my fudge and love the process.

Anything you do though should not be something that goes off in a day or two because you don't know how long the recipient might want to wait before indulging.

[CakeBeret]

Last year I made truffles as stocking stuffers for my extended family. They were a HUGE hit. They were great fun, but so much time and money and effort (I went all-out on them) that I don't think I'll do them again this year. I'm going to do candied nuts instead. I have to be conscious of what I make because my mom is gluten-free and I want to give the same treat to everyone.

[Lynnv]

I make jams and jellies for holiday gifts of all sorts.  This year I ended up with 8 dozen jars.  And they will all be gone (or at least spoken for) before the new year.  :>

[Shopaholic]

I have made:

Chocolate truffles - once I placed them in cute decorative boxes and everyone got one on their plate before dinner.
Macarons
Jam
Cakes
Cookies in pretty jars/bowls

I think half of the effect is how nicely you wrap them - I usually use coloured cellophane, ribbons and stickers.

[Bijou]

My husband makes his own granola to give to certain people at Christmas.  I get a kick out of him because he doesn't do the usual quart jar filled with granola and a fancy decorated lid.  He fills one of those great big freezer bags with the zip top.  People love it.

[littlelauraj]

This year I'll be making cheesecakes to give away.  It's a nice gift that everyone loves and as a bonus, I'm testing recipes for starting my own business.

[Sophia]

Go ahead and make toffee.  I make it all the time.  With the clamping thermometer, it is easy.  There is also a temp. range rather than exact temperature.  I add toffee pieces to chocolate chip cookies and buying the bags of toffee was very expensive. 

[siamesecat2965]

I've made, in different years - cookies, pumpkin bread, english muffin bread, and fudge.  People love homemade gifts, at least the ones I've gifted to!

[hobish]

Gish and i (mostly Gish, i am a dunce in the kitchen) made batches and batches of spaghetti sauce and salsa. I also selflessly drank several bottles of Grey Goose so we can use them to make flavored oils with dried veggies from his garden.
The last batch of sauce unfortunately burned so we're going to have to do a bit of scrambling. It is truly inedibly awful.

My wonderful SIL last year made jerky, and marshmallow treats. That was really great. I hope she makes more this year.

I really like food gifts.

[jmarvellous]

I made spice mixes -- Italian, curry, baked potato topping and a generic (good) seasoning salt. Huge hit with cooks in my life.

I would like to make gifts again this year, but I would prefer not to do sweets -- too many dieters or people without a sweet tooth.


What lasts a good while without refrigeration and isn't candy?

To the OP, I've seen candied peel given, but never eaten (except maybe within a recipe that calls for it).

[siamesecat2965]

I made spice mixes -- Italian, curry, baked potato topping and a generic (good) seasoning salt. Huge hit with cooks in my life.

I would like to make gifts again this year, but I would prefer not to do sweets -- too many dieters or people without a sweet tooth.


What lasts a good while without refrigeration and isn't candy?

To the OP, I've seen candied peel given, but never eaten (except maybe within a recipe that calls for it).

I've had candied orange peel, dipped in dark chocolate. YUMMY!  if i can find a recipe, i want to make some this year.

[jayhawk]

I make mini quick breads. In the past, I made jar gifts; soups, cookies, etc. Those got to be too time-consuming and expensive,  tho.