Food gifts?

[beac]

Once again this year, my family will be making donatons to our various local food banks instead of giving one another Christmas gifts. Mr. beac and I started this "tradition" a few years ago and everyone hopped on board and it's mostly been a big success. We all have more than enough "stuff" and, even for an atheist like myself, helping those less fortunate than you seems like the true spirit of Christmas.

I say "mostly" b/c my in-laws are rebelling a bit this year and insist that they want to give us some "real presents" too. Blah. We just got rid of a ton acumulated knick-knacks as part of selling our house (Did I mention that we SOLD OUR HOUSE?!?! :bounce: ) and aren't anxious to receive more.

Since we're supposed to "tell (them) what (we) want" (uh, NOTHING... get it?), we've decided that food is something we could be happy to receive since at least we won't have to dust it or store it. :)

So, does anyone have any fun suggestions for food gifts that can be bought online and shipped? (We're both vegetarians, FYI, so no filet-mignon-by-mail. ;) )

[Tesha]

1. well, how about Chocolate???

http://frenchbroadchocolates.com/buddha-collection/?gclid=CLOU1pvmhaUCFQm87QodxU3TOQ

http://frenchbroadchocolates.com/shop/images/1272



fig & port
pomegranate ginger
strawberry balsamic
thai
theros, orange & fennel truffle

and they offer monthly subscriptions.... ooohhhh!

[beac]

3. Fig, fennel, balsamic AND chocolate???

Heaven, pure heaven.

I think that site is a MUST for the list! (Did I mention, they want to 'pick it out' after we tell them 'what (we) want' :crazy:)

[Denninmi]

2. What about asking them to send you a gift card to your favorite store.

Someplace that has locations both near you and near them, or online where they can easily purchase a gift card.

That way, you can pick out what you want, and they don't have to physically wrap and ship parcels, which can be expensive.

Maybe that isn't a "real" gift in their opinion, but personally I LOVE it when someone gives me a gift card -- I can get what I want or need, not end up with something else I can't use that I need to pretend to like so as not to hurt feelings.

[beac]

4. For me, this would be an A+ idea but

they want to 'pick something out' from our suggestions. Oy.

[NMDemDist2]

5. as vegheads this should be right up your alley

http://www.harryanddavid.com/gifts/store/gift__10455_10002_shop-gifts-by-type_fruit-of-the-month-club-gifts?cm_re=Homepage-_-promo-_-shopclub

Fruit of the Month Club :woohoo:

[beac]

10. Awww.... my favorite great uncle used to send out Harry & David dried fruit platters

every year. The apricots always went first and the prunes and dried banana chips hung around until after New Years.

He's been gone many years now. Thanks for reviving a nice memory. :hug:

[The empressof all]

6. If you like cheese...and international foods check out

igourmet.com

Get on their mailing list. When they have their free shipping sale you can really double down on the sale items and get the free shipping as well. They have fabulous cheese and their site is an amazing educational tool.

[beac]

9. I love igourmet and have ordered from them in the past.

It's definitely on our list too. Cheese would be an excellent present. :)

[yellerpup]

7. When my mom was alive she used to send me pecans.

I do a lot of baking for different charities, like the residential home for kids and the homeless outreach. Maybe someone you know would appreciate not having to shell out for premium ingredients since nuts, chocolates, etc., do add up. That was the first thing I though of.... Congratulations on selling your house. :party:

[beac]

11. It's true-- making cookies can be an expensive proposition if you want all the

goodies in them. I bought some premium organic chocolate chips yesterday and, yikes, it might have been cheaper to cover the cookies I intend to make with them in gold leaf.

[yellerpup]

13. What an idea!

Wouldn't gold leaf cookies be cool for 50th anniversary parties? I usually add in as many extras as the dough will hold for drop cookies, and I love nuts especially. Do get a little rich for my pocketbook at times, but worth it IMO. Nice to 'run into' you again! :hi:

[beac]

14. I was out of the country and then running ragged with the house sale, but

life should be calmer from here on out and I look forward to fully participating in C&B again. :hi:

[Phentex]

8. Spices! Penzey's is fun...

www.penzeys.com

What's not to love?

Congrats on selling the house! :toast:

[beac]

12. There are some interesting customer-submitted recipes on that site!

This one might even make me rethink by life-long shunning of Thanksgiving's traditional red sauce:

Jalapeno Cranberry Sauce

•1 16 oz. bag fresh or frozen cranberries, rinsed
•1/2 Cup sugar
•3 TB. lemon juice (or 1 tsp MINCED LEMON PEEL)
•1-2 jalapeño peppers, chopped (or 1/2-1 tsp. CRUSHED JALAPEÑO PEPPERS)
•2 tsp. ARROWROOT STARCH, dissolved in 2 TB. water

Place the cranberries in a sauce pan and add enough water to just cover the berries. Add the sugar and lemon juice or LEMON PEEL. Heat over medium until the berries pop and the sauce thickens a bit, 15-20 minutes. Reduce heat to low, add the jalapeños, stir. Drizzle in the ARROWROOT mixed with water, stirring. Let cook another minute to thicken up, then let cool a bit and serve.

Prep. time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6-8 as a side, 12-14 as a relish

Nutritional Information: Servings 6;
Serving Size 1/2 cup (103g); Calories 110; Calories from fat 0; Total fat 0g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 0mg; Carbohydrate 28g; Dietary Fiber 4g.

[GoCubsGo]

15. Beat me to it! The Spice House is also excellent.

http://www.thespicehouse.com/

The store was started by Bill Penzey's father, and is run by his sister and her husband. They have much of what Penzey's sells, along with several additional items such as their "Molecular Gastronomy" ingredients, like xanthan gum and lecithin. They also have nice books, pepper mills, and grinders. I like their Indian curry spices a tad better than Penzey's, especially their Garam Masala, but that's just me. And, don't get me wrong, Penzey's Indian curry spices are excellent.

They have some great recipes on their site,too.

[GoCubsGo]

16. I'd like to put in a word for the Nutty Guys

http://nuttyguys.com/

I discovered them via my sister, who gave me one of her groupons. Besides an excellent variety of fresh nuts and seeds, they also sell dried fruits, nut flours, nut butters, some delicious homemade granola, and limited batches of coffee. Also, chocolate-covered fruits and nuts, and other candies. Lots of nice gift trays, too. Their butter toffee mixed nuts are to die for!

[beac]

17. Just had a quick look around. The Wasabi Cashews sound tempting!

Thanks for the link! :hi:

[mtnester]

18. Do you drink wine or alcohol? Perhaps you have a small specialty

liquor/wine shop locally that you would love to shop for a few special occasion bottles. Also, there are some great Whiskey/Beer/Wine/Microbrew/Etc of the month clubs (you have to check your state to see if you can accept alcohol though through delivery)

Wood Prairie farms does a fantastic Potato of the Month gift that is awesome...plus they have other great things like heirloom seeds and other super organic products.

http://www.woodprairie.com/

Or how about a share into your local CSA for next year? You can find one at http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

Cowgirl Creamery also has a great monthly cheese program

all of the spice recommendations are great ideas as well as the chocolate!