Miami Holiday Gift Guide 2016: MIAbites Contributors
Thanksgiving was early this year, the first night of Hanukkah and Christmas Day are December 24th and December 25th respectively. That leaves plenty of time for holiday shopping.
No matter who is on your shopping list…which seems to grow longer and longer with each passing year, these items suggested by our MIAbites contributors are sure to please any food lover in your circle. We have compiled a list of favorite items both from local purveyors or if you prefer avoiding the crowds and shopping online.
Alex Beck- @bitesbybeck
I am obsessed with The Joule! An at home sous vide system that turns out the juiciest steaks, chops and chicken I have ever made. And it works with app on Smartphone. Crazy techie cooking item. https://www.chefsteps.com/joule
Manuela Meija- @Miami_Eatz
Dessert or goodies Gift basket from @TheLittleSugars
Donation to No Kid Hungry
Foodie phone cases: https://shop-milkyway.com/search?type=product&q=*food*
Brandon Chase- @thebowtiebarrister
I think with all the hoopla of barrel-aged cocktails, gifting a 1L (or larger) Custom Oak Barrel would be awesome. That way people can tinker with their own barrel-aged recipes at home.
The New York Times has a Personalized Oak Whiskey Barrel that ranges from $89.95 for 2 liters to $119.95 for 5 liters and plenty of other personalized food and wine related items. Order at www.nytstore.com
Also, with the craft beer explosion in Florida, most breweries permit you to go to their brewery and fill up your own growler. Wynwood Brewing Company offers a Growler Hour daily from 12-1pm, and Funky Buddha currently has no less than ten growlers for Tuesday fills in both 32 and 64 oz sizes. A lot of online stores are now creating the 32 oz. containers for the beer advocate and they are pretty neat (and green!).
Melissa Ginsberg Chase - @TheFoodieTeach
I like gifts for the holidays like magazine subscriptions or monthly gift box deliveries because the recipient continues to receive something even after the holidays are over! Also they're easy to purchase and you don't need to brave the holiday rush at the stores. Here are a few that are great:
• For men who like to cook: Mantry--monthly artisanal gift box specifically curated for the male cook/gourmand. www.mantry.com
• For cocktail lovers: Imbibe Magazine subscription. www.imbibemagazine.com
• For the coffee aficionado: Drift Away coffee subscription--www.driftaway.coffee
• Other Magazines include: Gastronomica, Lucky Peach, Sugar & Rice
Amber Love Bond- @ Amber_Love
This year I'm a big fan of the craft cocktail movement and I like to try and recreate some of my favorite drinks at home. Food52.com has a ton of gift options for the at home bar enthusiast - a make your own bitters kit, an old fashioned kit, fancy tonic waters! Basically everything you need to make your holiday cocktails even better, and they all come in cute packaging!
https://food52.com/shop/pantry/drinks-cocktails
Diana Rodriguez- @dmrodrigzz
Since I have recently gotten really into cooking, a spice assortment would be my “go to” gift for anyone who likes to cook, Dean & Deluca’s Italian Spice Kit has everything you need to be a master in the kitchen.
http://www.deandeluca.com/gifting/holiday-loves-to-cook/dean-deluca-italian-collection
Deanna Dominguez- MIAbites Contributor
Etsy can be a time warp. 3 hours later, and you don’t know what the heck happened. We’ll save you some time. Check out The Vintage Cookbook Maven. The online store has a fantastic collection of vintage cookbooks for everybody on your list. https://www.etsy.com/shop/cookbookmaven
offers up some healthy options for holiday gift giving including della test kitchen gift cards for their nutritious and nurturing plant-based menu of globally- inspired, addictive bowls like the Caribbean bowl, one of the newest items, made with black coconut rice, adashah (a red-lentil-based protein), plantains, kale and an addictive curry cashew sauce. They’ve made it easy for any budget, you choose your price and email info@dellabowls.com to order your card.
At Radiate Miami, the five-seat counter apothecary created by nutritionist and certified holistic health coach Susan Duprey, you’ll find goodies that invigorate and rejuvenate the body and soul like holiday-flavored kombucha, a special Christmas kraut along with their regular kombucha-based selection of eats like cultured vegetables or their Healing Food Community boxes packed with raw vegan foods like locally sourced ferments, fermented condiments, kombucha and nut mylk, to name a few.
Lemon City Teas is a local tea company making their way about town. You can currently find their teas at Oak Tavern, Andiamo, and Uvaggio. Varieties include Oolong Old Fashioned (90% oxidized competition grade oolong tea), Granada Green (organic green tea, pomegranate essence, organic raspberries and rosenips), and San-Té-Ria (premium whole leaf nilgiri tea blended with yunnan golden buds). http://www.lemoncitytea.com/
Cacao Art Miami offers locally made artisanal chocolates made on site from the finest Venezuelan cocoa. You can order online wonderfully packaged gift boxes or visit their shop at 7165 SW 47th st.
Javier Ramirez- @GourmandJ
Holiday cooking is always special this time of year and this year I have THREE books I will be drawing from for my "3 Parts of Holiday Cooking" project: All are available on Amazon.com
The Mission Chinese Cookbook- by Danny Bowien and Chris Ying
Zahav- A World of Israeli Cooking by Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook
Gjelina- Cooking from Venice California- By Travis Lett and Michael Graydon.
Also notable for 2016 is Anthony Bourdain's new “at home” inspired cookbook, Appetites: A Cookbook and Pierre Herme: Chocolate, from the legendary French Pastry Chef and seller of delicious macarons. And James Beard Foundations's new All American Eats; Recipes & Stories From Our Best-Loved Local Restaurants.
Jen Massolo- @liquidprojects
Sometimes shopping online for the foodie in your life is easier that braving the traffic and crowds. Racked.com just posted a link to www.mouth.com Tasty Gifts for Everyone on Your List. Pre-packaged kits are designed to be the favorite gift. Top choices include Bacon Me Crazy, Marc Murphy Chef Kit, The Holiday Chef and The Spiked Tailgate.
Gift basket items: Put together your own gift basket by visiting a local Williams Sonoma, or ordering items online at www.williamssonoma.com
Always good smoked paprika, sauces, oils, rubs and kitchen tools like olive wooden spoons, fish spatulas small and large, flat cheese slicers and spreading knives.
Some artisan spirits to look for this season are: St. George Spiced Pear liqueur and Palm Ridge Whiskey from Florida or Miami Club Rum.
Allison Riley- @YallTasteThis
The best gift for a foodie is ALWAYS a donation to a local food bank. Local non-profits to support include, Feeding South Florida, Food Pantries, No Kid Hungry and Common Threads Most people who can afford to be “foodies” are more than capable of buying their own gadgets and gizmos, but if you must include a small gift for someone to unwrap with that donation card, I recommend local South Florida gifts, such as preserves and hot sauces from Robert is Here, a growler from The Funky Buddha, or a key lime rum cake from The Rum Cake Factory.
Ellen Bowen- Managing Director @MIAbites
Hot Stuff
Turn heads while working off those holiday pounds or just show how HOT you like your coffee with Sriracha Hot sauce items from Amazon.com. Choose from water bottles, t-shirts, leggings, socks and coffee cups.
If you are "Bacon me crazy", Bacon lovers check out this website http://hiconsumption.com/2013/09/bacon-buyers-guide-21-great-gifts-for-bacon-lovers/. They even have Bacon Shaving Cream for the man in your life!
More Bacon gifts that sizzle with humor...Iphone cases, t shirts, ties, aprons, clocks, luggage tags, wrapping paper...and on and on! 169 pages online at Zazzle.com of Bacon Gifts! and Bacon Flip Flops from CafePress.com , a must for walking on those hot beaches!.
Uncommongoods.com has also always been my “go to” catalog for fun but functional, good quality gift items and this year my faves include Foodie Dice, a set of wooden dice that challenge even the most creative cook by offering over 186, 000 combinations of proteins, spices, cooking methods and bonus ingredients, a Box of Chocolate Soaps AND for the kid in you (or for kids in your life ) the Mr. Food Face Plate which allows you to customize the face using your food. Reminds me of that Wooly Willy magnetic face toy invented in 1955!
And of course, gift cards to favorite restaurants are always great gifts…or stocking stuffers, especially if you get to go with the recipient!
Happy Holidays and Happy Shopping!