Some folks are difficult to shop for. Not foodies. We are super-easy to please. Seriously. Just feed us. Or give us the coolest kitchen things, or adorable little packages of tasty stuff. And when shopping for your domestic god or goddess, you don’t have to spend a small fortune on that hammered copper roasting pan – although we wouldn’t complain if you did! – we’re just as grateful for a tin of homemade shortbread. Here are five perfect gifts that would make any cook’s day, month, or year!
The Gift that Keeps on Giving
It’s like a magazine subscription, if you could eat the pages, and the pages were delicious! Packed with five to eight artisanal Canadian treats, curated by a different chef each time, and built around a theme, the CHEF’S BOX™ Subscription delivers goodness to your loved one each month. They also stuff some recipes and cooking tips from a top Canadian tastemaker, as well as a hand-written gift card in there too. The boxes are shipped across Canada and even internationally. $55 – $300 for one to six month subscriptions, from www.foodiepages.ca
Cook This Book!
Remember what you were taught; never judge a book by its cover. Well, the rather ho-hum cover of this book belies the absolute gorgeousness that awaits on the pages of Modern Baking by Donna Hay. Then again, she is one smart cookie, perhaps that’s the plan…peel off the brown candy wrapper and – oh em gee! – such colour, such temptation, such inspiration. I’ll admit to having a real soft spot for Ms. Hay. She was a true pioneer back in the late 1990s when she made a splash here with – hmm, was it Flavours or The New Cook? – I can’t recall, but I bought both eventually, and many more. What I can remember, is how browsing in a book store, it leaped off the shelf at me. It was stark, it was clean, it was simple, it was bold, and I dare say it started a much-needed revolution in food styling and photography. From Harper Collins, 400 pages, $40
Shaken and Stirred
I know, I know, it’s totally precious and oh so over-the-top, but come on, it sure is pretty! From Anna by RabLabs, the Héritage line of bar accessories by Designer Anna Rabinowicz are informed by nature, meshing lovely natural materials – semi-precious gems, gold, silver – with cutting-edge design. Pictured; a sleek stainless steel cocktail shaker topped with a mighty chunk of genuine amethyst – $295. www.ahalife.com
A Moveable Feast
At first glance I was mystified. Mostly because I’m not big on camping. Or baked potatoes. But it looked so neat, I had to read on. Turns out, this multi-layered contraption is a teeny portable oven, and it goes way back, pioneer days back. It’s made for roasting food over a campfire or fireplace; stovetop or other burner, just load it up, layer it up, heat it up…then eat it up. The Old Fashioned Potato Baker was designed by Jacob Bromwell® of Richford, Vermont in 1819 and has been manufactured and put to good use in kitchens and campsites, ever since. $150 from www.kaufmann-mercantile.com
Spin Doctor
This little gadget isn’t the sexiest of the bunch, but if you’ve ever turned your back on a tray of nuts in the oven – oh, about $20 worth! – and had them burn to a bitter, blackened, tray of shame, then you will crush on this stove top, old timey nut roaster as hard as I have. The hand-cranked stirring paddle keeps nuts moving around in the non-stick, anodized aluminum pan. Just add your favourite nuts, a little oil, a sprinkle of spice, and a drop of maple syrup for healthy and delicious snacking lickety-split! From TSC Stores, $24.97 www.tscstores.com
From Hudson, Quebec, now living in Port Hope, Ontario, Signe is a restaurant chef-turned-writer who tells award-winning stories and creates delicious recipes for LCBO’s Food & Drink, Manna Pro Hearty Homestead, The Harvest Commission, and Today’s Parent; she published her first book – Happy Hens & Fresh Eggs; Keeping Chickens in the Kitchen Garden with 100 Recipes – in 2015.
