Not many gifts allow the giver lots of room for creative expression, are endlessly customizable, and involve the thrill of a treasure hunt. But homemade gourmet baskets do all that. They can be as small or as grand as your budget allows, and they're a great gift-giving option for so many occasions.
So, whether you pride yourself on your keen ability to choose the perfect gift, or feel at a loss before each housewarming and wedding shower, you owe it to yourself to add gourmet baskets to your gift-giving repertoire. These tips will get you started crafting memorable, personal gourmet baskets your recipients are sure to love:
Consider Your Budget
Before you start shopping, it’s a good idea to consider your budget. It’ll help inform your theme, and the size of the actual basket or gift receptacle. For example, if you’ve got a tight budget, your money will obviously go further if you steer clear of ultra-luxury foods like caviar and truffled honey. And your gift will seem more abundant if you pick a smaller container, instead of, say, a large picnic hamper, which will be harder to fill on a small budget.
If you’re mailing the gift, remember that shipping costs can get expensive, especially if it contains heavy items like glass jars. You may be better off sending a preassembled basket from a specialty shop that’s local to your recipient, or from a gourmet gift basket purveyor. Many specialty food mail order companies offer reduced shipping fees.
Even if you’ve got limitless funds, it’s easy to get carried away — and to spend more than you intended — when you’re assembling a gourmet gift basket. After all, compared to a blender, DVD player, or designer tie, specialty foods are relatively inexpensive. It's easy to justify adding one more jar of artisan jam to the mix, so remember all of those add-ons can add up pretty quickly.
Pick A Theme
Choosing a theme for your gift basket makes it easier to pull together a coherent, well-edited selection of gourmet treats that complement each other. A theme can help guide your selections, and lend a customized feel to the basket.
Think about both the occasion and the gift recipient’s needs. Gourmet pantry staples or spices are great for housewarmings. New parents or weekend hosts may appreciate this Italian Pasta Gift Basket, which includes all of the ingredients for a simple, easy-to-prepare gourmet meal.
If you know anything about the recipients’ hobbies or culinary tastes – they love to hike, they’re fans of grilling, they’re wowed by Indian food – use that knowledge. You can fill a basket with trail-friendly snacks, upscale barbecue condiments, or Indian-inspired ingredients.
Make A Shopping List
Once you’ve chosen a theme, brainstorm about the foods that fit. Draw up a wish list of prepared specialty foods or ingredients. Look to recipes for inspiration: if your recipient loves to cook, choose a few recipes they'd enjoy, and make a basket that includes any unusual or hard-to-find ingredients.
Consider Special Dietary Needs
Think about whether your gift recipient has any special dietary needs. Do they observe kosher or halal? Are they vegetarian or vegan? Do they have food allergies or any health concerns, like diabetes or celiac disease, that require adherence to a special diet?
If the answer to any of these questions is "yes," that doesn't mean you should steer clear of food gifts. In fact, if you take the time to seek out treats that your recipient can enjoy, a gourmet basket can be an especially thoughtful, and long remembered, gift.
Choose Nonperishables
Unless you're personally delivering the gift basket, have a short trip to the recipient, and know they'll be in a position to open and refrigerate your gift immediately, don't add perishable items to your basket. Food safety hazards don't make very nice gifts.
Check Expiration Dates
This may seem obvious, but make sure to check the expiration dates on any foods and spices you plan to include in your basket. Even so-called nonperishables have a shelf life, so make sure your gift recipient will have at least a few months to use each item.
Feel Free to Bargain Hunt
If you're diligent about checking expiration dates, there's no reason not to seek out specialty food bargains. Stores like Homegoods and Marshalls generally carry a large selection of interesting gourmet foodstuffs, often from international vendors you won't find elsewhere. And on the cusp of new seasons, shops like Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table mark down their specialty food stock as well. Scoring a discount doesn't diminish the inherent worth of the food, and can allow you more room to add to the gift (or to treat yourself to a little something, too).
Get Creative With the Holder
Just because it's called a gift basket doesn't mean you have to use a basket to hold your selection of gourmet goodies. A serving bowl or platter, for example, gives the recipient something lasting to remember your gift by.
If preparing the food in your gift requires any special cookware, let it do double duty as both packaging and part of the present. For instance, you could:
- Present an assortment of heirloom popcorn, oils, and spices in a Whirley-Pop popper.
- Use a colander to hold pasta, sauce, and olive oil.
- Wrap couscous, preserved lemons, harissa, ras el hanout, and pomegranate molasses in a beautiful tagine.
- Pack treats for camping or sports in a backpack.
- Fill a lunchbox with kids' snacks.
Assemble With Care
Protect the items in your basket with the same care that went into selecting them. (The last thing you want your gift recipient to deal with are broken jars or popped safety seals!) Cushion the bottom of your basket with tissue paper, and place non-breakables between glass-jarred or fragile items.
Wrapping the basket in clear cellophane can help hold everything together and keep items from shifting. Or, try the eco-friendly (and beautiful!) Japanese furoshiki method of gift wrapping in fabric.
If you're shipping the basket to the recipient, make sure to use enough protective packing material to properly cushion the basket and to keep it from shifting in transit.