Welcome to the first instalment of this years holiday gift guides! As some of my older readers will know, each year I do them by themes, depending on what sort of person you're buying the gifts for. This year I am putting together this guide, for The Total Foodie, a guide for The Bookworm in your life, The Globetrotter, for people you know who love to travel, and for The Londoner as I know that is where the majority of my readers are from, and there are so many things like cute Oyster Card holders and gift certificates to places you can't find outside of London that are too great to just pass over. Over on The Glossy Guide, today I have also posted a roundup of what I think are the best beauty gift sets on the market this year in both the UK and the USA.
Hotel Chocolate Cocoa Powder: £5 / $10, Joe & Stephs Gingerbread Popcorn: £2.99, Emma Bridgewater Christmas Edition Biscuit Tin: £15, Larder Box Subscription: £55 (3 months), £99 (6 months) or £198 (12 months), Raisthorpe Manor Shoot Shots Sloe Gin: £22.95, The Joy The Baker Cookbook: £10.49 / $14.20, Tala Icing Bag Set: £8.99 / $24
I know Cocoa Powder from Hotel Chocolate might seem like a strange gift, but if the person you're shopping for is a total foodie who loves to bake I'll promise you that the gift will be really, really appreciated With some recipes you can't tell, but things you bake where cocoa powder really takes on a strong flavouring job, like brownies, a better quality cocoa is something you can really taste, but who actually wants to buy £5/ $10 bags of cocoa for themselves? it will give them something to bake with when they fill tis lovely Christmas themed Emma Bridgewater cookie tin. My mother has one of these with an all year around harvest apple print and it is an incredible cookie tin, it really seals and has a special lid that helps keep things fresh.
As far as other edible gifts are concerned, I know this Gingerbread Popcorn is from Joe & Steph's Easter Collection, but who has gingerbread at Easter instead of at Christmas anyway? Besides, anyone who loves a good hit of ginger will appreciate this at any time of year. Something for me that I do really associate with Christmas is homemade Sloe Gin. While I have not got any this year (though I do plan on making more next year, and posting the recipe and a guide) we used to bottle it up for gifts, so I know it is well received; so maybe if you're stuck for what to buy one of your guy friends, this bottle of Sloe Gin from Raisthorpe Manor will hit the spot while supporting British business at the same time? Both of these edible treats actually come from a site I have been browsing for a few months, and I can't wait to order from when I return to the UK, featuring some amazing great British and gourmet food choices: Love Your Larder. They also run a amazing looking subscription service called Larder Box, where you can get every month for £19.95 you can get a selection box of gourmet foods to try sent you your house (it is like a Glossybox for foodies). Rose reviewed it when it first launched if you want to hear more about it or see some more pictures, and they also offer gift subscriptions which I think would make a wonderful gift, options above.
Finally, I just needed to include The Joy The Baker Cookbook I reviewed a few weeks ago in this list, because now I have baked more out of it I have to say it is simply one of the best baking books I have had in a very long time, full of wonderfully sweet and easy to make treats that I think every keen baker would be amiss not to have on their shelf! Alternatively you could buy it for yourself and make food gifts from the book like Joy's Peppermint Chocolate Chip Marshmallows to give as food gifts. You could also make up some bottles of my Homemade Herb Infused Olive Oil to give as a gift to your foodie friends too.
What are you planning on buying for your foodie friends this season? Remember to look out for my next three instalments of my gift guides over the coming days!
