Ever since Covid, my family and I have been exchanging food as gifts. Grocery-hopping to stores with empty shelves scared our grandparents, so a new family tradition was born.
These gifts consist of homemade pies, cookies, breads, pastries, dried figs from a relative’s tree, frozen chicken pot-pies, ginger marmalade, honey purchased from a family farm and bean soup in a mason jar (dry). A cousin who doesn’t cook will be gifting us with empanadas purchased from a co-worker; she’s very creative with packaging and makes her gifts look like they came from an expensive boutique. Our younger cousins are making soap, peppermint bark and sewing gift bags.
My brother is waiting for the price to drop on a certain wine. When it does, he pays a visit to the store manager who gives him a discount if he buys a certain amount. My mom is making her signature mini fruit tarts and placing them in holiday tins she purchased last year for about 50-99¢ each. She also wants to make madeleines.
This year, we’re adding DIY fresh fruit baskets at the request of our grandparents. The kids are getting money stuffed inside an origami frog (last year’s crane was a failure). I will be making several frozen lasagna (9x9) and mini loaves of banana bread baked in holiday-themed stoneware (very inexpensive).
My entire family would absolutely welcome you and your pickled okra; we don’t have a pickle guy. We have my uncle who made pickled bitter melon… it wasn’t bad.
EDIT: My dad made vanilla extract during lockdown, it took almost 2 years but it was a hit!