Sloe Gin.. Need I say more?
Some fancy pastry cutters perhaps?
The truth is that your foodie friend is the easiest person on the planet to buy for. A few thoughtful gifts will cheer them more than the most expensive item from the big department stores.
With that in mind I’ve thrown together a few ideas for your personal foodie friend; once you get the hang of it, you’ll be in danger of not knowing where to stop!
May I say at once – without wishing to appear ungracious or overly demanding – that garden-centre jam doesn’t really cut it for me. A jar of jam or marmalade with a hand-written label made by an elderly lady from your local church fair is far more appealing to me than a Mrs Bridges special. Ok, that sounds both ungracious AND overly demanding, but hey, that’s how I roll 😉 And remember, not everyone is like me!
And of course if you made it yourself well, then my appreciation would know no bounds!
Home-cured Bacon! I don’t mind if I do!
What could be better than a home-made Plum Pudding?
Of course, it’s not all about edibles, but includes utensils for preparing or serving food, home-made sloe gin https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/sloesall-you-need-to-know/ and old or vintage plates, bowls or spoons.
Measuring spoons – beautiful AND practical!
These lovely little wooden implements came from a National Trust shop..
The possibilities are endless!
Have fun, happy in the knowledge that your foodie will be thrilled and motivated by your thoughtfulness. 
I’m putting a list of suggestions below for you:
Foodie gifts:
- Unusual spices – try saffron (it’s expensive!), or nicely packaged versions of old favourites. Newly popular spices are good too – check out a cookery magazine to see what’s up and coming.
- A bottle of Marsala or Madeira
- Virtually anything home-made. Especially something that they don’t make themselves – if they’re cooks, give them something baked; if they’re bakers, try chutneys, terrines, savoury sauces.
- Vintage serving plates and dishes – try local Craft and Vintage fairs
- Kitchen equipment – the National Trust does a nice range of chopping boards and vegetable brushes which are always welcome.
- Napkins – paper or linen.
- Decorative sprinkles – I hardly ever buy these for myself, but love to play with them when someone gives me some! In fact, if you look at the picture below, you’ll note that I have trouble restraining myself!
Woman goes mad with sprinkles!
- Good quality cake tins or cooking bowls – the really nice thing about these is that the lucky recipient will always think kindly of you every time they use it – I love my red Mason Cash bowl that my friend Barbara gave me ages ago, and the pink dish from Anne too…
Thanks Barbara!
- Cookery books – especially hard-to-find or brand-new ones.
The incomparable Delia’s older books!
And then there are the Big Hitters: for use only if you’ve completely lost the run of yourself and are throwing money at the Birthday/Christmas/ Anniversary:
- Anything by Magimix
- Anything by Kenwood
- A hamper (top of the range please) from Harrods, or (preferably) Fortnum and Mason..
- A cookery course somewhere exotic. Like Cork. – Just kidding, Ballymaloe would be brilliant!
- A one carat, flawless diamond. (Carrot, I said carrot; that’s food, right?)
- Dinner in your nearest Michelin starred – or even their own local – restaurant.
So off you go, and I have no doubt your Foodie friend will love you even more than ever when they receive such thoughtful presents!
I started writing down recipes in an old copybook when I was about 16. With 6 children at home, my Mother was always glad of a hand in the kitchen, and really allowed us to experiment - as long as we washed up afterwards, and left the kitchen immaculate! Having a tidy kitchen has followed me through my life, as has the habit of writing down my favourite recipes; except that these days I write them for my website, and add photographs when I can. The website really started when it occurred to me that my daughter might like to have these recipes when I've forgotten them. In my early days of cooking for family and friends, I used to phone my Mum all the time to ask her for the recipe for some of our favourite family dinners. She rarely had a recipe to hand - I think, like me, she made a lot of it up as she went along.. So welcome to Eating for Ireland - these are the recipes that my friends and family having been eating these past 40 years.. yes, I truly am ancient! They are tried and tested, and have worked for me for all that time - I have updated them as new ingredients became available - I really hope you'll find something that you can make into a family favourite of your own. You don't have to tell anyone where you found these great new dishes that you're serving up - it can be our little secret, but I'd really love it if you could give me a sneaky 'follow' on Facebook and Instagram.. So off you go - have a good rummage around, you're bound to find something new! My sincere thanks to all of you who have found a recipe that you liked and dropped me a line to tell me - I really do love to hear from you! Happy Cooking! Becks xx