FoodMayhem

As soon as Thanksgiving dinner is inhaled, holiday shopping takes over. Some start at the stroke of midnight (sale at Woodbury Commons starts a midnight) while others were refining their wish lists at the dessert table. Some warm up their clicker finger for Cyber Monday and we’ve got our fingers crossed for a new apartment. You can guess what Ice wants.

If you need a little help with ideas for your food-obsessed loved ones, I put together a little list of my favorite things, one for each price bracket (shipping not included). Hope it helps!

Under $10
Kyocera Ceramic Peeler

I just love this ceramic peeler that you can probably find at most kitchen stores, and on-line. It’s cheap, light weight, and peels without dis-coloring. I already mentioned this last year as a stocking stuffer, and it’s still the best darn stocking stuffer. I’d even like a second one.

$10 to $20
Beater Blade Plus

Ahh…the beater blade that creams butter and sugar together in half the time, and you don’t need to scrape down the bowl as much. Wow, I’m getting lazy with modern technology, but hey, I don’t see you starting a fire with twigs to cook. You only want to buy this for those who have a compatible stand mixer but they make them for most common ones.

$20 to $30
King Arthur Rolling Mat

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this rolling mat before and that’s just selfish of me. It’s awesome because it has circular and linear measurements, for rolling pie dough or rectangular pastry. It’s a silpat which means less sticking, and you can bake on it. So multi-functional and easy to clean, rolls up for storage. Yay!

$30 to $40
Vinturi Wine Aerator

When Edgar first brought the Vinturi Wine Aerator over to our apartment, our little dinner party tested it out and no doubt, there is a stark difference between aerated and not, noticeable to everyone present. This nifty portable aerator decants by the glass almost instantly, and comes with a stand and carry case. It’ll become a permanent attachment to that friend that loves to bring the wine.

$40 to $50
Philz Coffee

I fell in love Philz one-cup-at-a-time coffee after running the marathon in San Francisco, in 2007. I was back in SF this year, two years later, and remembered to go back to Philz. It was better than I even remembered. Since I can’t just go to Philz each morning, I buy their beans on-line and you can buy a couple of different blends to make a nice gift for any coffee-lover, or a gift card, if you want them to choose. My favorite is their Ambrosia blend.

$50 to $60
L.A. Burdick Assortment of Chocolates

If you read FoodMayhem regularly, you know I love L. A. Burdick and Chef Michael Klug. It totally makes my holiday that they recently opened a retail cafe in NYC, but you can also order on-line. The 1lb assortment has 76 pieces, plus two of their famously cute chocolate mice. I think it’s a great present for any age, which makes it great for gifting a whole family.

$60 to $70
Bormioli Sonix XXL Wine Glasses

When we were in California, we looked through Napa Style (Michael Chiarello’s store) for the first time and fell in love with these XXL wine glasses. An entire 750 ml bottle fits in each glass! I know it’s a little excessive, and I’m not promoting perpetual drunkeness here (we’ll probably use it for water), but size does matter when you’re saying, I love you “this” much.

$70 to $80
Placemats by Modern Twist

These placemats are a little bit expensive at $18 per piece and you’ll need at least 4, but we bought ours over a year ago and have never regretted it once. My cousins baby drew on them with markers and it came right off with the gentle wipe of a damp towel. This kind of durability and usability doesn’t usually look this good, so I say live a little and buy that friend with toddlers some nice placemats.

$80 to $90
Michael Arami Serving Pieces

Ok, this is the only thing I don’t actually have yet, but let me cheat on just this one. I have been stalking the Michael Arami store and want every single piece in it! They have beautiful cheese platters, coasters, vases, tea sets, cake plates, and I want it all. Everything is actually very reasonably priced for such well made pieces that serve as art, while most are fully functional. Lon are you reading this? I want everything in this store!

$90 to $100
Oxo Pop Containers

We first bought some of these Oxo pop containers in June of 2008. I remember because we used some of our wedding present money to buy our first assortment. Since then we’ve bought additional pieces twice. Yup. We just keep getting more and more of them, but we absolutely love these great looking, airtight, BPA free containers, that help us look organized. A 10-piece starter set should make any cook with a well-stocked kitchen, very happy.

Happy Holiday Shopping!

posted by jessica at 12:05 PM Filed under Holidays, Products. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.