GIFTS FROM THE KITCHEN: What to Give with Your Loaf of Bread

Photo by Suat Eman/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

When I wrote my post on how to make fancy loaves of bread for gift giving, I promised to do a follow-up post with some ideas on what you could give along with the bread to make a satisfying gift basket.

Bread is such a versatile food gift; you can develop a number of different themed gift baskets around a gorgeous loaf of homemade bread!

My favourite is to make a "breakfast basket" with honey butter and homemade jams (this cran-raspberry jam is perfect for Christmas gifts) alongside the bread. You could tuck in some fancy teas, coffees, or hot chocolate mixes as well. To make honey butter, beat 1/4 cup honey and 1/2 cup butter together with a hand mixer until light and fluffy and pack into a pretty glass jar.

Another option is to do a "soup and salad" basket. This gift would include a bean soup mix (there are many different variations of this gift in a jar, there is a good basic recipe here) and some homemade salad dressing or some bottles of herb vinegar and olive oil. I did a variation on this and did an "Everything From Soup to Nuts" basket for my dad for his birthday which he loved. It had a loaf of bread, a lentil soup mix and a tin of candied peanuts.

For a slightly different spin on this, create a "pasta dinner in a basket" and include a jar of homemade tomato sauce (or a good quality purchased one), a homemade salad dressing or the oil and vinegar as mentioned above, a bag of spaghetti, and a jar of Parmesan cheese.

Any other ideas? What do you love to give with a loaf of bread?