Homemade gifts are one of my favorite things about Christmas. They capture the meaning of the holiday. Putting time, thought, and effort into a gift shows your loved ones how much you truly care. Unfortunately, I didn’t receive my family’s artistic gene. I don’t paint and I don’t knit (well, I’ve tried knitting, but the outcome wasn’t pretty). And if you put a potter’s wheel and some clay in front of me and told me to make a mug, I’d look at you like you’d lost your ever-loving mind. So what does that leave for me to give?
What I lack in the artisan crafts department, I can easily make up for with baking and preparing food gifts. Whether it’s dipping pretzels into chocolate or making macaroons drizzled in chocolate (chocolate is always a key ingredient!), making gifts in my kitchen and blaring Michael Bublé’s Christmas playlist on Pandora makes my soul happy. I never mourn the loss of department store shopping.
The best thing about working for a food magazine is the endless supply of recipes. I’m sure my friends and family will be happy to reap the benefits this Christmas, as goodies are made and packaged in my kitchen and doled out to welcoming hands. Here are a few gifts from Taste of the South that have caught my eye. Happy gifting!
– Caroline Russell, Editorial Assistant
Christy Jordan’s Chocolate-Covered Crispy Peanut Butter Balls
Such a darling article, cannot wait to taste these treats!
You are truly gifted! 🙂