What was in your stocking?

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas – or other holiday break – with your families. I got quite a few very thoughtful gifts, including a lovely Le Creuset Canister (in Cobalt) that I plan to use as a flour container in the kitchen, a huge bunch of fresh, fragrant vanilla beans, a popover pan and a number of specialty baking stocking stuffers, from Guittard chocolate to a bag of demerara sugar. There are a couple of other things that I’ll have to mention later as I test them out.

One of my most interesting gifts was a set of vintage spice canisters. One – the ground ginger pictured above – still had some spice in it, while the other were mostly empty. I wouldn’t try using the remaining spice for any reason, but primarily because it smelled dusty and the metal tins are not exactly the most secure little containers I’ve ever seen (and ground spices lose potency over time). I love the look of the tins, however, and am planning to put them up on a little display shelf in the kitchen – just to spice up the look of the place.

What was in your stocking? Any favorite gifts for the kitchen or new treats to try out?