Foodie Gift Guide

Black Friday is not really a big thing in our house, but we sure do like us some Cyber Monday. I have purchased my food processor and Instant Pot during Cyber Monday deals. This year, I splurged big time and got my very own KitchenAid mixer. I cannot wait for it to come! I also splurged on some chef-quality knives.

Between all of my bargain shopping and decorating the house for Christmas, I have not had a chance to whip up many goodies, so I thought instead I might share a shopping guide with you for all of the foodies on your Christmas list.

Before I begin, I need to let you know up front that any links to Amazon do earn me a small fee, but I really and truly only give you links to things I love and really use or hope to use. I hope you will find any links I provide to be useful or that they at least provide you with some great ideas for this Christmas season.

Big Ticket Items:

I don’t usually buy really big ticket items for Christmas, but I have always dreamed of a brightly colored mixer standing at the ready for any baking needs, so this lead me to a search on Cyber Monday. To my delight, many resellers had KitchenAid mixers on sale in many varieties. If you, too, have always dreamed of a mixer and haven’t gotten one yet, KitchenAid.com is still running a sale on countertop appliances and other items. From now until December 9th, you can get 30-40% off. I got a stand mixer and an accessory and saved $131. Not too shabby.

I purchased my knives from another site called Food52.com. What I like about this site is that you can find professional quality kitchen tools and accessories as well as household items and great gift ideas. You could find almost anything a foodie would love at Food52. You can buy a master chef quality knife for someone, or something more whimsical and less expensive, like a tea advent calendar or food themed socks. They often run sales and you can sign up to receive updates and recipes from them as well.

Cookbooks:

If you have a chef in your life who is looking for more inspiration, you can’t go wrong with a cookbook. But this can be muddy waters, as there are a million to choose from online. Here are some of my favorites.

Milk Bar Life: Recipes & Stories: A Cookbook by Christina Tosi

I have mentioned this book more than once, but it has a great collection of dessert recipes as well as some good old fashioned comfort food from Christina Tosi’s upbringing. Her recipes are very easy to follow and replicate in your own kitchen and you likely have all of the ingredients on hand or can get them easily.

Siriously Delicious: 100 Nutritious (and Not So Nutritious) Simple Recipes for the Real Home Cook by Siri Daly

I do not own this cookbook yet, but checked it out at the library and I now want to get my own copy. Siri offers a huge variety of recipes, including entrees, snacks, desserts and drinks, which husband Carson Daly helped create. The book is beautiful and also very easy to follow. Her recipes are very family-friendly and she helps you sneak in veggies if you need to pull one over on your kids.

Tasty Ultimate: How to Cook Basically Anything (An Official Tasty Cookbook)

This cookbook is designed to help you master cooking basics, and learn all the handy tricks you’ve probably seen on Facebook. I do not own this book, but I have a ton of Tasty videos in my Facebook Saved file and would love to have them all in a hard copy book. I am sure any budding chef in your life would love this book, too.

Fun Gadgets:

I am a sucker for a fun kitchen gadget with a purpose. They make great stocking stuffers or creative hostess gifts.

The Nessie Family makes a fun gift, with a colander, ladle and tea infuser. Each piece is adorable, useful and can stand on its own or together, making a statement on your countertop.

This handy dandy Bamboo Book Stand would make a lovely gift as well. It is adjustable to suit your needs and has arms to hold pages in place. It can also hold a tablet, if that’s where you prefer to find your recipes, or you want to watch your favorite TV chef in action while you cook.

This Salad Dressing Mixing Bottle is one of my very favorite things. I bought mine a couple of years ago and I have used it many times. It helps you makes healthier salad dressings from scratch. Simply fill the ingredients to the marked lines, then shake. It’s marvelous.

Local Goodies:

Another fun option that just came to my attention this week is a Carolina Cheer Box from Lowe’s Foods grocery stores. They are selling packaged boxes of locally made products that would make wonderful last-minute gifts, gifts for people new to the area, or you can even order them online at Lowesfoods.com and have them shipped to someone. They come in 3 options – North Carolina, South Carolina or a large box combining the two state’s specialties.

Of course, these ideas are just a drop in the bucket of all the wonderful things out there, but hopefully I’ve kick-started your imagination and I would love to hear about some of your creative gift ideas.

Happy gift-giving!