I remember once reading an article about a young woman who baked a mini birthday cake for each of her friends and family members on their birthdays. I wanted to be that person, baking little tiny cakes and helping people celebrate their special day with a surprise treat.
Well, that never happened, but that doesn’t change how much I love food gifts! As a gifter, they’re a great, low-pressure choice, and as a recipient, I love that they are, quite literally, consumable and don’t add to any clutter.
I have a soft spot for homemade food gifts, for environmental reasons and that added personal touch, but I’ve also been the happy recipient and proud sender of store-bought items as well. There are zillions of ideas on food gifts anywhere you look, but here are just a handful that have worked well for me:
-Chocolate Chip Cookies or Oatmeal Choc. Chip Cookies
-Homemade Vanilla Extract
-Bread (homemade or from a local bakery)
-Local delivery (It’s sometimes easier than I realize to set up a local delivery from long-distance. I once came home to a cooler of local mini cheesecakes on our doorstep for my birthday, sent from my sister’s family a state away.)
-Food baskets! (My personal favorite. I love a collection of fun, snacky foods, whether homemade or local treats or store-bought favorites. There’s something about seeing them all together, collected by someone who knows what you like that is truly special.)
-A collection of favorite snack foods (Somewhat redundant, I know, but food collections are so rad I had to give them two entries.) (After giving birth to my first baby, my sister sent me a whole package of baby-sized/mini-sized snack foods. I still remember how wonderful they all tasted (New mamas are HUNGRY!). So, I definitely don’t discount the awesomeness of well-chosen store-bought foods, especially favorites or unique items)
Sometimes the toughest part for me is figuring out how to package items, since I am an environmental over-thinker. If I’m mailing a food item and sending it Priority where the weight doesn’t matter, I love reusing cleaned-out glass jars for items. But a well-cleaned plastic container could definitely work too. In fact, I try to keep a stash of empty jars and containers on hand for just such an occasion.
If I’m sending cookies or granola in the mail, I like to make them ahead of time and freeze for a few days to give them a bit more time, just in case. (It’s always good to have cookies in the freezer anyway for last-minute food gifts or for rainy days.) And then, of course, there are definitely items that won’t send well in the mail but that are great for local deliveries or gift giving.
Food gifts shine for pretty much any occasion–birthdays, new babies, break-ups, illness, graduations, anniversaries, loss, apologies, and my favorite–just because.