50+ Homemade Food Gifts That Travel Well (and the Recipes to Make Them!)

This recipe for fudge is a classic one from my childhood. I like it because it requires no special equipment or ingredients — just sugar, cocoa powder, milk, salt, butter and vanilla. Even a candy thermometer is optional.

These are not nearly as spicy as Ginger People’s hot stuff; instead they’re warm and mild, perfect for Christmas candy giveaways.

This Holiday Nut & Fruit Brittle. It’s perfect for gifting and so versatile, using whatever nuts or dried fruit you have around.

Made of caramelized sugar and studded with green pistachios, this brittle is a sophisticated, modern twist on the classic peanut brittle.

While Passover gives us a reason to make this candy-like dessert, really there’s no need to wait.

If you can stand to share, a batch of skillet toffee makes a great gift for someone many zip codes away.

In homage to this delicious snack, here’s a holiday bark, fit for Elvis himself!

I can’t in good conscience call this a healthy snack, exactly. But neither is it a totally decadent chocolate dessert. It’s somewhere in the middle. An afternoon snack with a bit of a wink.

This sweet treat is quick and easy to whip up, and it makes a beautiful gift simply layered in a pretty container.

Dunked in cocoa, gifted to a good friend, or secretly eaten too close to dinner, homemade marshmallows are a treat above all others.

These eggnog marshmallows will guarantee you get an invite to the next holiday party.

Rainbow sprinkles turn anything into a party.

Tahini, ground sesame paste, is exceptionally versatile and can be used like any other nut or seed butter in your cupboard — it’s delicious in cakes, cookies, and even granola! Put your tahini to good use this fall and get baking. This delicious spiced granola is proof that tahini has a world of uses.

Consider this granola a much-needed savory break for you and anyone lucky enough to receive it from you as a gift. Savory curry granola?, you may be thinking. That’s right: salty, crunchy, curry-spiked granola studded with toasted pecans and browned coconut chips. You don’t need milk or yogurt to enjoy this granola — it’s good enough to eat plain by the handful, but if you’re nice you’ll make a double batch to give out as gifts as well.

A handful of this makes all other afternoon snacks look puny by comparison — and a whole bag of it makes the ultimate gift for everyone from the friends in your book group to the babysitter.

It’s a satisfying breakfast, especially with a dollop of yogurt. And if you’re feeling especially indulgent, try it with one extra drizzle of honey!

The recipe for Cracker Jack is similar to caramel corn but with the addition of molasses and Spanish red peanuts. To make it, all you have to do is whip up the simplest caramel sauce (butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and molasses) and pour it over plain popcorn and nuts. Toss, bake, then snack to your heart’s content. The only thing missing is the prize!

The aroma of lightly caramelized popcorn combined with the merry sound of popping is all the encouragement I need to buy myself a big bag for snacking. To imitate that rich flavor, make kettle corn on stovetop and let the sugar caramelize just a bit over direct heat as the popcorn pops. Here are some tips on how to make kettle corn at home.

You can resist the pumpkin spice craze this time of year, or you can lean right on into it. I say lean. This crunchy, lightly-spiced caramel corn is only for those of us who truly embrace the season. It will satisfy those random cravings that arise between this morning’s pumpkin spice latte and tonight’s spice-infused dessert

Maybe it’s the college football parties, the trick-or-treating, or the endless grazing before Thanksgiving dinner, but snacks and fall just seem to go together. Popcorn is one of the best fall snacks, and this take brings some sweet and salty deliciousness thanks to peanut butter and honey.

It’s just barely sweet, a touch bitter, and just salty enough to send me back to the bowl again and again. Salted caramel corn used to be my go-to fancy popcorn, but since this recipe is so much easier and less messy, I know I’ll be making it more often, especially as a quick party snack.

Puppy chow, also known as muddy buddies, is simple to make. In the original recipe, chocolate and peanut butter are melted together and used to coat Chex cereal, then tossed with powdered sugar.

It’s another crowd-pleasing, comfortable, yet elegant set of recipes and tips with Garten’s trademark style: Unfussy, gracious, and delicious.

In the past few years, pistachios have inched their way towards the top of my “favorite snacks” list. This is mostly due to their unique flavor paired with the “fun” aspect of cracking the nut easily out of the shell. These spicy curry pistachios have recently become my evening go-to snack with a glass of crisp white wine.

You get two recipes for the price of one today! First we have cashews tossed with brown butter and sage, and then there are cocoa-dusted cashews for those of us with a sweet tooth. Neither recipe takes more than a few minutes to bring together, making this our new favorite snack for holiday get-togethers.

A highly-requested fall recipe, these spicy maple pecans can be tossed with salads, served with an assorted cheese platter, or just eaten straight from the bowl.

It’s cake. Made with eggnog. Glazed with sweet boozy icing. An extra pinch of nutmeg and a special baking trick with a whisk are all you need to put this holiday treat right over the top.

This cake is also a little unusual in its construction, at least for bakers like myself who are most accustomed to cakes leavened with baking powder. This is an old-fashioned butter cake that is leavened instead by whipping the eggs and sugar together for some minutes, until they are lightened and increased in volume. This produces an outrageously moist and tender cake, with the richness of a classic fruitcake. (I like to say this is a fruitcake for those wary of that good old English treat.)

The bright colors and flavors of citrus are one of the saving graces of long winters. So let sunny lemon take a starring role in baked goods when there aren’t many other fruit options available. The classic combination of tart lemon and crunchy poppy seeds come together in this quick bread that requires just two bowls and some elbow grease. Fresh lemon juice and powdered sugar are turned into a pretty glaze to drizzle over the finished quick bread for an extra layer of sweet-sour magic.

For an average weeknight meal, or even a non-average dinner party, I really like this basic buttermilk loaf all on its own. It’s rich, a touch tangy, and not overly sweet, making it a good match for everything from a roast to a pot of chili. During the summer, I serve the leftovers topped with berries and whipped cream as a simple shortcake-like dessert.

All you need to make truly incredible limoncello are some good lemons, a bottle of stiff vodka, and just a little patience. So dive into what exactly goes in a glass: what alcohol and lemons you should use, how much sugar and how long should you infuse it.

I think you’ll be really surprised at how easy this is! Throw all of your ingredients into a mason jar and let everything get nice and cozy. Seal the jar tightly with a lid and stash it in a cool, dark place for a week or three. The flavors of the cinnamon and apples will infuse the bourbon, making it both sweet and spicy.

Making herb-infused honey has become one of my favorite ways to use leftover sprigs of thyme from cooking dinner, a handful of wild mint found while foraging, or the buds of an edible flower bouquet. It couldn’t be easier to do. And if you start now, there’s plenty of time to make them for holiday gifts, too.

It’s no pretty jar of jam or row of canned tomatoes, I know, but I suspect that making your own fruit-flavored vodkas might just be the most fun way to preserve. It’s very easy and simple; choose some ripe fruits, cover them with vodka, and wait for a few days until the vodka tastes good.

Homemade vanilla extract takes just two ingredients — vanilla beans and alcohol — and you can be as straightforward or creative as you like. Though it does take a bit of patience as you wait for the alcohol to extract the flavor from the beans, the delicious results are well worth it.

From the medicine cabinet to the bar, bitters have a long history of curing ailments and flavoring drinks. Though they may seem mysterious, at heart, bitters are simply bitter and aromatic herbs and spices infused or tinctured in spirits. Combining the various flavors is where the fun part comes in. Here’s a primer to making your own bitters at home, which you can use in cocktails, sodas, cooking, and even as digestive aids.

Stored in a pretty jar, it looks special, yet the two-ingredient recipe is a snap to make.

You may juice citrus regularly, but perhaps don’t realize what you’re missing: all the flavor from the peel. Citrus zest brightens so many recipes, but if you have citrus sugar in your pantry, you’ve got a wonderfully fragrant gift. Keep it tucked away for sprinkling on cookies, rimming the glass of a tart cocktail, or gifting to your favorite baker or mixologist who will delight in the flavors of preserved sunshine.