Ungift Guide 2007: Last Minute Homemade Food Gifts

It may be too late to make liqueurs, vinegars, and preserved lemons - all great food gifts that need a little time to mature. But there is still plenty of time to make special treats for friends and gifts for hosts and hostesses. You can even gather some friends and family and do these together.

Here are a few last minute food gifts that don't take long to make and will be ready (and appreciated!) immediately.

Click for granola, jam, spicy things, sweet things, and a few favorite cookies...

Each of these would be great as wrapped gifts or as a hostess present. Or, of course, for eating yourself...

Homemade Granola - Delicious, healthy, and nourishing. Add pistachios, almonds, cranberries or dried peaches to make it really unique and special.
Dulce de Leche - All you need is milk and sugar to make this gooey rich treat. It's great to spread on cakes or even toast! Give a jar to your hostes, with a ribbon around the top.
Dido's Hot and Piquant Spread - Spicy!! Great with chicken and meat and can be given in a little jar.
Dried Fruit Warmed with Red Wine and Spices - Deconstructed, this makes a wonderful gift! Give a bottle of red wine, a mix of dried fruit, and the mulling spices all together.

Cookies - Each of these cookies have a proven track record with mailing well!

Ultra-Chewy Lemon Coconut Cookies
Earl Grey Tea Cookies
Lemon Melting Moments
Brandied Prune and Chocolate Chunk Cookies

What food gifts did you end up making this year?

Comments (7)

Peppermint Bark made with milk & white chocolate. Truffles, rolled in cocoa powder, pistachios & coconut. And my favorites were chocolate covered caramels with a little sea salt sprinkled on the top! Yum!

So far, I've made up a batch of tomato chutney, some pecan brittle and a few ginger cookies. I really want to make some of that Dulce de Leche, though... yum.

I made a soda bread with dark chocolate and candied orange peel. It was a big hit!

Homemade peanut butter is quick, easy, and tasty.

I made the sugar cookies from "In the Sweet Kitchen", orange-chocolate chip cookies (just use orange oil in place of the vanilla), and Pure Fruit Diabetic Cookies. I'd never made those sugar cookies or the diabetic cookies before, but I got lots of requests for the recipes, so I think all three were successes.

That soda bread sounds great, too, bundino.

I made a bunch of standard cookies and a couple kinds of biscotti and these "no ingredient left behind cookies" http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/food/chi-mxa1128eatingcentercontestnov28,0,1496364,full.story?coll=chi_mezzYesterday I also made some last minute super easy things: coconut drop cookies, chocolate peanut butter bars, and one-bowl gingerbread (recipes on my blog if anyone is interested).

I made some sweet and spicy snack mix and packaged it in pint Ball jars, and am going to make granola (my new favorite recipe: http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/journal/2007/6/9/the-lip-ladys-secret-granola.html), marshmallows, and dark chocolate buttercrunch. Oh boy, and that recipe for rum balls. And those brandied prune and chocolate chunk cookies look mighty good. Such decisions!