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Here’s the thing about giving food gifts during the holidays: They get used allll year long — and when people use them, they think about the person who gave the gift (that’s you! 🥰 ). No matter who you’re wrapping gifts for, a good food gift is a surefire way to bring joy into their kitchen.

This holiday season, forget about the imprinted coffee mug, ironic T-shirt, and beer-of-the-month subscription (they’re all solid gifts, but we’ve got better ideas!). Kitchen gifts and gadgets are more personal, more memorable, and waaay more fun.

We’ve rounded up this year’s best festive, family-friendly kitchen gifts that will make every gourmet and budding chef on your nice list smile all the way through 2022.

best food gifts for familiesShare on Pinterest
Edit by Wenzdai Figueroa

Whether you’re looking for gifts for a family of chefs or people who just love food (LOL, who doesn’t?), there’s something for you on this list. Here’s what we looked for when we were searching for the perfect gifts for food lovers:

  • Affordability. You don’t have to break the bank to delight an entire family. All of our gifts are under $100 — and most of them are much cheaper.
  • Busy parent-friendly. Parents are BUSY. A good gift should help make their lives easier, more comfortable, or more fun. We made sure to include gifts that meet at least one of those criteria.
  • Kid-friendly. We also made sure to throw in a few gifts where the whole fam — kiddos included — can get involved in the fun.

Pricing guide

  • $ = under $20
  • $$ = $20–$40
  • $$$ = $40–$60
  • $$$$ = over $60
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Best for dessert lovers

StarBlue Churro Maker

  • Price: $

If you’re not familiar with this crispy dessert, imagine an elephant ear had a baby with a crispy baguette. This inexpensive gadget makes it easy to whip ’em up in eight different designs. Kids and adults alike are sure to enjoy this sweet, cinnamony delight.

It’s the perfect gift for anyone on your list who loves sweet and/or fried foods (so…basically everyone). They can experiment with different recipes and bring their delicious creations to your next family gathering.

Best for hot sauce connoisseurs

Williams Sonoma Make Your Own Hot Sauce Kit

  • Price: $$

We all know someone who might be a little *too* into hot sauce. They carry a bottle with them, know the difference between a ghost pepper and a serrano from the smell, and have strong opinions about the differences between Dave’s, Valentina, and Cholula.

This gift sets them up to brew their own, including all the ingredients and instructions necessary to create a half-gallon of their own personal blend. The kit makes it easy for the whole fam to get involved — and they can even use ingredients from their own garden.

Best for busy parents

Delish Recipe-a-Day Calendar

  • Price: $$

Exactly what it sounds like, this flip-per-day calendar delivers a new, routine-breaking recipe pulled from the most popular pages of a popular foodie website. It offers 365 recipes for snacks, apps, and even cocktails in a convenient stand-up format.

Some examples: grilled pineapple sundaes, everything bagel popcorn, and spicy grapefruit frittata. You can buy just one or sign your giftee up for an annual subscription so they’ll get a new year’s worth each holiday season.

Best for green thumbs

Fast Growing Trees Calamondin Citrus Tree

  • Price: $$$

A calamondin is a small citrus fruit (a lot like a mandarin orange) that grows on a tree small enough to keep inside. The trees often produce fruit in the first year, and having one in a pot means it can survive in any climate, offering sweet, tangy fruit every year.

It’s a fun addition to any indoor plant collection. Plus, harvesting the fruit is a hella rewarding way to teach little ones how to care for plants.

Best cookbook

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking by Samin Nosrat

  • Price: $

This award-winning cookbook inspired the popular Netflix series of the same name. Its simple, building-block approach to the four essential elements of cooking is a delightful guide for any chef, whether they’ve watched the series or not. It boils down (pun intended) the core ideas from the show to help anybody improve their kitchen mojo.

Best sentimental gift

BlueMountainBags Custom Recipe Tea Towels

  • Price: $$

These custom tea towels are both super sentimental and practical. Send BlueMountainBags any recipe — your grandma’s famous chicken noodle soup, your kid’s favorite cookies, or a dinner staple in your house — and they’ll send you two towels printed in your own (or your grandma’s!) handwriting.

They obvi take a little more effort than some of the other items on this list, but the juice is definitely worth the squeeze on this one.

Best under $10

7Bahar Raw Honeycomb

  • Price: $

People will be absolutely wowed when you add raw honeycomb to your pre-dinner charcuterie spread. Pair it with some mascarpone cheese and toasted baguette and you have yourself a guaranteed crowd-pleaser with minimal effort (and money) required.

Best for bakers

Chicago Metallic Professional Non-Stick Split Decision Pie Pan

  • Price: $$

Why did it take humans so long to come up with this idea? We’ll never know. Chicago Metallic’s split decision pie pan means you never have to choose between pecan and pumpkin pie again. The center insert allows you to make two different pies in one tin — that means more variety and less food waste. Win-win!!

Best for kids

Thames and Kosmos Candy Chemistry Kit

  • Price: $$

This kit gives kids a chance to learn more about chemistry while making rock candy, gummy bears, and chocolates. It’s ideal for any kid over 3 years old — they get to do experiments to learn science principles and eat the results when it’s over. YUM.

Best for new parents

Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug 2

  • Price: $$$$

This mug can keep a warm beverage at the exact preferred temp all day long. It’s app-controlled and sits on a wireless charging coaster. It’s an amazing gift for basically anyone — but it’s perfect for the new parents in your life who have to microwave their coffee eight times a day bc parenting is hard.

We know you’re prob shopping for a LOT of people, so we’re hoping this list makes shopping for the food lovers in your life just a smidge easier.

Just remember to start early this year — there’s nothing worse than showing up empty-handed (though you could always arrive with some homemade treats to make up for it!).