Put your hands and handiwork into your gifts. Here are 15 homemade gifts from the kitchen—from easy cranberry-pistacho biscotti to candy cane bark—to flavored gins and vinegars!
These simple culinary creations are perfect to give as gifts during the holiday season, or to bring along to a holiday gathering.
Homemade Holiday Food Gifts
Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti
If you’ve never made biscotti, you’ll be surprised at how easy it is! Our Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti with its red and green colors is just perfect for the holiday season.
Credit: Irina Mos/Shutterstoc
Homemade Candy Cane Bark
Spread holiday cheer with this easy candy cane bark recipe. You can swap the white chocolate and dark chocolate amounts if you desire—it’s foolproof!
Credit: Sam Jones/Quinn Brein
Best Fruitcake Ever
A modern twist on the traditional holiday confection, this Fruitcake recipe uses a mixture of dried fruit instead of the standard candied and glacéed fruit. Not only are dried fruits more readily available at your local market, but they also have a deeper and more natural flavor (not as sweet).
Credit: Anna Shepulova/Shutterstock
Spicy Sinterklass Cookies (Speculaas)
Traditionally, the dough for these cookies is pressed into wooden molds shaped like St. Nicholas (Sinterklaas). The speculaas are served on the eve of St. Nicholas Day (December 5) or on the feast day itself (December 6), but we like to enjoy them through the holiday season.
Credit: T.W. van Urk/Shutterstock
Bûche de Nöel
Try this easier, lighter version of the traditional chocolate yule log.
Credit: David P. Smith/Shutterstock
Christmas Granola
The author of this recipe calls it “Christmas Granola” because she makes it to give away as Christmas gifts. Just add cranberries or red berries for a festive flair!
Gingerbread Boys
Smaller than gingerbread men, these Gingerbread Boys are tasty and fun to decorate!
Never-Fail Christmas Fudge
Even if you’ve never made candy before in your life, give this easy fudge recipe a try. True to its name (thanks to the presence of marshmallows), it won’t seize or crumble or make you tear your hair out. It’s a tasty treat perfect for the holidays!
Credit: kml/Shutterstock
Spiced Nuts
A box of spiced, candied nuts is a perfect gift or snack for Christmastime!
Shortbread Cookies
These shortbread cookies have that buttery, melt-in-your-mouth taste you expect!
Cranberry Chutney
Traditional recipes use lots of sugar to bring out the the cranberry’s great flavor. In this recipe, however, exotic spices take the place of all that sweetness, without overwhelming the rest of the meal. It’s heavenly on a sandwich of leftover sliced turkey!
Chocolate Truffles
Snag a few boxes from your local craft store, line with seasonal waxed paper, and fill with these delectable sweets.
Snowball Cookies
Always a favorite at Christmas time, and easy to pack in a pretty gift box.
Flavored Vinegars
Vinegars flavored with fruits, sprigs of herbs, or fiery peppers are so beautiful—and add great taste and interest to entrées and salads. Forget those overpriced (and often synthetic) flavored vinegars. It’s incredibly easy to make your own—plus they make great gifts for the kitchen! See how easy it is to make flavored vinegars.
Make Flavored Gins
Flavored gins using fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices make fantastic gifts for the holiday season, or any occasion for that matter. What better present than a tasty tipple you’ve made yourself!
In this short video, we’ll show you how to make two irresistible infused gins—Strawberry Gin and Cinnamon Bun Gin. Cheers!
More Food Gift Recipes
Want more food-related gift ideas? Check out cookbooks, aprons, mugs, and more in the Old Farmer’s Store!
Wishing you and yours joy (and a few treats!) this Christmas season.
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