There is so much goodness here to explore! Thank you so much for all the suggestions. I was inspired by this post to make the effort to bring back two pots of honey from a recent trip to France and the Colmar Christmas market. Such great presents! :-) <3
I love, love, LOVE Drinking French and My ParisKitchen - as for Claire Saffitz, saw her for the first time today doing a YouTube of her updated fruit cake recipe. She commented that the Golden Syrup might be hard to find, but if you live in the South Bay/SF, San Jose and environs, I buy the squeeze bottle and the iconic green can (which I first acquired at Cost Plus near Fisherman's Wharf in SF in the 60's - talk about iconic, the GoldenBrownies are absolutely the very best, the recipe part of the small fold-out pamphlet which used to be glued to the lid. ) I buy it at Lunardi's in San Jose, and have found at the Cost Plus World Markets in this area as well. And may you have the merriest, yummiest Christmases ever!!! LaVonne Bouchez
Those kouign amann are going to be a wonderful way to welcome my mother, who is flying in on Christmas morning. They are her favorite pastry and I was trying to think of a special treat with all the bakeries closed... thank you!
Thank you for the great list! I’ll add myself to the Burlap and Barrel fan group. The Royal Cinnamon is a game changer and I like to mix it with Cinnamon Verum in my baking to add more depth of flavor. I’ll definitely need to order the cardamom now.
I owe you a huge thank you, always for your incredible recipes and witty commentary, and for introducing me to Claire Saffitz. I had recently bought two baking cookbooks only to return them so I was wary of buying another. I made Claire Saffitz's oatmeal and pecan brittle cookies thanks to your blog post. They were so good that I immediately bought Dessert Person. I've made many of the recipes and loved them all. Some, but not all: blueberry/buckwheat/brown butter skillet pancakes, brown butter corn muffins, almond Bundt cake, Marcona almond cookies, kabocha/turmeric cake.
You are a culinary treasure. I so appreciate your blog, your cookbooks and you introducing me to other cookbook writers.
You're a bit of an (inadvertent) tease. I love chocolates so I clicked on the Recchuiti Chocolates sharing box only to find that they are sold out.
Another wonderful aspect of Claire’s books is that tutorials for a number of her recipes are available online because she does a number of YouTube videos of her recipes. Just search YouTube for her name and the name of each cookbook to see what’s available. She’s very easy to watch, and her step by step guides to croissants and sourdough on NYTimes are worthwhile as well. DL has never steered me wrong!
David: thanks for these great gift ideas for our US friends/family. However, I live in CA and have family who live in the UK. We are looking for holiday treats that can be shipped from France or elsewhere in Europe to the UK. Can you suggest anything? Cookies, caramels, any delectable sweet treats for the holidays that will deliver. Thanks!
There are a few things in this list that are made in France and are shipped abroad, such as the Panettone and Poilâne items but with the Brexit, and because there are so many countries with different rules, it's best to look at their websites to find where they ship to. You might also want to check the websites of Jacques Genin, Patrick Roger, Jean-Charles Rochoux, Fouquet, and La Maison du Chocolat since they perhaps ship to the UK - they are wonderful chocolate shops and I'm sure your friends would enjoy them as much as I do.
I am immediately descended from Irish, Scots and Newfoundlanders, and every division of that heritage was emphatic that "you never take a point for free." If someone gifted you a blade — knife, scissors, razor, anything that could cut — you HAD to give them a coin in exchange or risk all kids of havoc.
Thank you so much for including us and the wonderful Pallarès Profesional Cocina 8" kitchen scissors in your incredible list. It's our great pleasure to be able to partner with the Pallarès brothers to bring their amazing, high-quality, hand-assembled kitchen shears to North America (and fwiw we've spotted these shears in a storefront in Beaune, priced at €150...). Your scissors should be as good as your knives!
Love Diaspora spices! I love the fact that you mentioned the practice of giving a coin in exchange when giving scissors or knives. My mother always mentioned that custom. Apparently the exchange of a coin keeps the friendship from being cut or broken.
I’m sure you will like the cardamom extract from Burlap & Barrel. I got some in my Spice Club box recently and it’s delicious! I own waaaay too many B&B spices but I love them all.
David, I need a suggestion for a cookbook. My new son-in-law, who is a chef and has a restaurant, has started the Keto diet. Can you suggest any? He has found in a very short time that it is working for him and he is sticking to it. Thanks, Gail
There is so much goodness here to explore! Thank you so much for all the suggestions. I was inspired by this post to make the effort to bring back two pots of honey from a recent trip to France and the Colmar Christmas market. Such great presents! :-) <3
I love, love, LOVE Drinking French and My ParisKitchen - as for Claire Saffitz, saw her for the first time today doing a YouTube of her updated fruit cake recipe. She commented that the Golden Syrup might be hard to find, but if you live in the South Bay/SF, San Jose and environs, I buy the squeeze bottle and the iconic green can (which I first acquired at Cost Plus near Fisherman's Wharf in SF in the 60's - talk about iconic, the GoldenBrownies are absolutely the very best, the recipe part of the small fold-out pamphlet which used to be glued to the lid. ) I buy it at Lunardi's in San Jose, and have found at the Cost Plus World Markets in this area as well. And may you have the merriest, yummiest Christmases ever!!! LaVonne Bouchez
I bought those scissors from Heidi’s website back in the day, and they are amazing! One of the best kitchen purchases I’ve ever made.
Those kouign amann are going to be a wonderful way to welcome my mother, who is flying in on Christmas morning. They are her favorite pastry and I was trying to think of a special treat with all the bakeries closed... thank you!
Thank you for the great list! I’ll add myself to the Burlap and Barrel fan group. The Royal Cinnamon is a game changer and I like to mix it with Cinnamon Verum in my baking to add more depth of flavor. I’ll definitely need to order the cardamom now.
Mr. Lebovitz,
I owe you a huge thank you, always for your incredible recipes and witty commentary, and for introducing me to Claire Saffitz. I had recently bought two baking cookbooks only to return them so I was wary of buying another. I made Claire Saffitz's oatmeal and pecan brittle cookies thanks to your blog post. They were so good that I immediately bought Dessert Person. I've made many of the recipes and loved them all. Some, but not all: blueberry/buckwheat/brown butter skillet pancakes, brown butter corn muffins, almond Bundt cake, Marcona almond cookies, kabocha/turmeric cake.
You are a culinary treasure. I so appreciate your blog, your cookbooks and you introducing me to other cookbook writers.
You're a bit of an (inadvertent) tease. I love chocolates so I clicked on the Recchuiti Chocolates sharing box only to find that they are sold out.
Yours,
Ellen
Another wonderful aspect of Claire’s books is that tutorials for a number of her recipes are available online because she does a number of YouTube videos of her recipes. Just search YouTube for her name and the name of each cookbook to see what’s available. She’s very easy to watch, and her step by step guides to croissants and sourdough on NYTimes are worthwhile as well. DL has never steered me wrong!
David: thanks for these great gift ideas for our US friends/family. However, I live in CA and have family who live in the UK. We are looking for holiday treats that can be shipped from France or elsewhere in Europe to the UK. Can you suggest anything? Cookies, caramels, any delectable sweet treats for the holidays that will deliver. Thanks!
There are a few things in this list that are made in France and are shipped abroad, such as the Panettone and Poilâne items but with the Brexit, and because there are so many countries with different rules, it's best to look at their websites to find where they ship to. You might also want to check the websites of Jacques Genin, Patrick Roger, Jean-Charles Rochoux, Fouquet, and La Maison du Chocolat since they perhaps ship to the UK - they are wonderful chocolate shops and I'm sure your friends would enjoy them as much as I do.
These all look luscious. Thanks for helping me spoil my family!
I am immediately descended from Irish, Scots and Newfoundlanders, and every division of that heritage was emphatic that "you never take a point for free." If someone gifted you a blade — knife, scissors, razor, anything that could cut — you HAD to give them a coin in exchange or risk all kids of havoc.
Thank you so much for including us and the wonderful Pallarès Profesional Cocina 8" kitchen scissors in your incredible list. It's our great pleasure to be able to partner with the Pallarès brothers to bring their amazing, high-quality, hand-assembled kitchen shears to North America (and fwiw we've spotted these shears in a storefront in Beaune, priced at €150...). Your scissors should be as good as your knives!
Love Diaspora spices! I love the fact that you mentioned the practice of giving a coin in exchange when giving scissors or knives. My mother always mentioned that custom. Apparently the exchange of a coin keeps the friendship from being cut or broken.
I’m sure you will like the cardamom extract from Burlap & Barrel. I got some in my Spice Club box recently and it’s delicious! I own waaaay too many B&B spices but I love them all.
David, I need a suggestion for a cookbook. My new son-in-law, who is a chef and has a restaurant, has started the Keto diet. Can you suggest any? He has found in a very short time that it is working for him and he is sticking to it. Thanks, Gail
I don't know any keto cookbooks unfortunately .. sorry!
Hi, Flotsam and Fork https://www.flotsamandfork.com/challenge#stock-notification-form-static-product has sold the Pallares Solsona kitchen shears although they appear to be out of stock. I found them after Quitokeeto stopped selling kitchen things.
Thanks, I listed them as well - they do seem to carry the 9" size
Merci! I just ordered caramels from Le Bon Garçon for holiday gifts and two packs of the pretzel shortbread for me! 😄
Love your shortlist of edibles, giftables, readables. The WOL cookbook, in particular, is full of terrific recipes and family warmth.
Yes, I saw an advanced copy and was delighted then...but happy to have a hard copy in my hands, and in my kitchen!
another gift idea... https://www.seedandmill.com/pages/holiday-gifting
Tahini and Halva. Superb and made with many flavors with organic ingredients.