It always helps to get a few more gift ideas as the holidays approach. Inspiration just might help you to pick out that perfect gift for the cook or baker or foodie in your lift – and might even inspire you to add something to your wish list, too.
Kitchen Gifts for Bakers and Cooks
- A stand mixer is and will always be one of the best gifts that you can get the baker in your life for the holidays. KitchenAids are always a top pick, but I don’t know a baker that would turn down a Breville, a Viking or any other brand. If your giftee already has one, you might consider getting accessories for it, like the Whisk a Bowl or a Flex Edge Beater.
- Pies are a big baking trend right now, so pie making tools are great gifts. The Chicago Metallic Individual Pie Pan allows you to easily make single serving pies. The Breville Pie Maker is a great appliance that makes the pie making process even easier, if you bake a lot of them and have a little extra room in your kitchen.
Unless you want to spring for express shipping, it’s getting a little close to Christmas to do any more online shopping for the holidays. You’re going to have to look a little closer to home for gift ideas for your favorite foodies. Fortunately, there are lots of great gifts that you don’t need to order way in advance.
A gift card to a favorite cooking store, like Williams Sonoma, is easy to pick up and easy to give – and it is something that allows your giftee to pick up something that they can really use in their kitchen.
Along similar lines, you can also give the gift of a cooking class to your favorite foodie. You don’t need to book this in advance, just make up a nice card with a “certificate” promising the class. Look up a couple of schools in your area – Sur La Table has excellent classes nationwide, but you’ll really have to look and see what’s available near where you live – to pick out a class. Alternatively, you can contact a private chef for an in-home cooking class for you, friends and family that can be a very affordable option and get you exactly the kind of class you want.
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The holidays are a time of good spirits, great food and wonderful gifts. The gifts aren’t a requirement, of course, but there is a lot of satisfaction in seeing the look on the face of a loved one when they open up that package and smile with joy. And the shopping itself can be fun, too. Since we’re baking oriented at Baking Bites, here are some great gift suggestions for the baker in your life.
Bakers tend to like to share their creations, so a new cupcake carrier can actually be the perfect gift. They enable you to store baked goods in an airtight container, keeping them fresh, and they make it easy to transport goodies from place to place. A Collapsible Cupcake Carrier is not only a great carrier, but it doesn’t take up much storage space when it is not in use.
The Cooknook Cookbook Holder is something both bakers and cooks can appreciate. This holder mounts under a counter so that you can have your recipes at eye level. It also has a magnetic board to which you can attach recipe cards, notes or printouts from your favorite blogs. Like the cupcake carrier, it also collapses when not in use so it doesn’t take up much space.
If your baker is also a food blogger, then they probably have an eye for photography as well as for baking. The Food Stylist’s Handbook is a great resource, as well as an interesting read in general. It is sure to inspire bloggers to get their cameras out. And The Camera Lens Mug is just as good of a gift for the foodie photographer. The mug looks and feels like a real dSLR camera lens!
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It’s not always fun to stand in lines and debate over which sweater your great aunt, who never fails to send you a lovely gift, would prefer to get, but it is fun to exchange gifts with friends and family and enjoy the looks on their faces when they open something you know they’ll love. And if your loved ones are into cooking and baking, The Baking Bites Cookbook is the perfect present.
I published the cookbook last year and it is full of beautiful color photos and more than 50 delicious recipes that are easy to make – recipes that aren’t available on the blog! – and that make use of ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. It’s a great gift for anyone who loves to cook, whether you’re already a Baking Bites reader or not – although readers, you might want to put the book on your wish list if you’re not planning to order a copy yourself! Of course, if you don’t mind treating yourself to an early holiday present, you will find all kinds of desserts in the cookbook that will be well-received at any holiday event, and you’ll certainly get a lot of use out of the book this time of year.
The Baking Bites Cookbook is just $16.95 with free shipping (US only) if you order it directly from this site. If you order 2 or more copies, you can get them for just $15.95 each, also including US shipping! On Amazon, the book is $19,95 but qualifies for free Super Saver shipping if you’re already ordering gifts from that site. International shipping and priority shipping are also available.
If you take the time to your orders in before the holiday rush hits the post office, you should be browsing through your very own copy of the cookbook in no time flat and able to add a few of the recipes to your holiday table!
When you’re traveling, whether it’s international or to a distant family member’s home over the holidays, you never know what you’re going to find food-wise. Sometimes it will be great but other times… let’s just say that the food might be less than perfect, with problems like to little seasoning, too much seasoning or really strange seasoning. A few spices of your own can go a long way in making any eating experience a good one and the Foodie Survival Kit is designed to help. The kit comes with 17 organic herbs and spices, as well as small packets of hot sauce and soy sauce. The spices include dill, mustard, clove, garlic, nutmeg, paprika, wasabi, basil, onion, ginger, thyme, cinnamon, curry, oregano, cayenne, salt and pepper. All are packed in individual tins inside of the 4″ x 6″ carrying case – that’s small enough to fit into a purse or glove compartment!
Now, I don’t really recommend offending Aunt Ida by breaking this out at the dinner table, but if you happen to have a pinch of salt and garlic within easy (and subtle) reach, I say go for it. Another time this will come in handy is if you’re cooking at a friend’s home where they don’t stock the same spices that you do, and you’re trying to season a favorite dish. When you run out of the spices that come with the kit, replace them with your own favorites, or more of the original spices.
I can honestly say that salt, pepper, soy sauce and hot sauce would be my must-haves in the kit. I would add some ketchup, too, if it would fit in the box. What would you put in yours?
