Easy Homemade Holiday Food Gift Ideas

Wow your friends with a holiday food gift this season. These easy gift ideas come together quickly with just a few ingredients. Gifts cards have their place but making a special treat from the heart adds the special touch.

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The gift list for buying grows longer and longer every year. Teachers, neighbors, friends, family, mail carrier, etc. It’s easy to put together a bunch of homemade gifts in an afternoon. Most of the holiday food gift ideas below can be made well in advance, giving you a head start on the gifting season.

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Easy Holiday Food Gift Ideas

Chocolate Bark

This is one of my favorite holiday food gift ideas. The kids can help and the possibilities are endless. Simply melt chocolate chips in the microwave in 15 second increments until the chocolate is just melted. Don’t overheat or the chocolate will seize and become useless. Also, do not at water to the chocolate. If you need it to be thinned a little, add a small amount of oil. Don’t add too much or the chocolate will not harden properly.

Once the chocolate is melted, spread it evenly across a sheet of parchment paper. Have your toppings ready. I used marshmallows, cereal, m&m’s, fruit, nuts, pretzels. You can experiment with different chocolates and swirl them to make a new combination.

After you’re done decorating your bark, let it firm in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. When the chocolate is hardened, it’s time to crack it into individual servings and bag in a treat bag to be gifted.

Hot Cocoa Mix

One of the easiest holiday food gift ideas! I simply gathered a bunch of Ball jars and filled them with my Homemade Nesquik Mix. Then, I topped them with mini marshmallows and added ribbon and a bow. Super easy!

For an added touch, you can include a mini whisk as well. This mis is great because it has a long shelf life and can be made weeks in advance.

Peppermint Pretzel Rods

Melt white chocolate according the instructions above for Chocolate Bark. Dip pretzel rods in the melted chocolate and then roll in crushed peppermint. Lay the pretzel rods on a piece of parchment paper to set.

Once firm, the pretzel rods can be placed in a pretzel rod treat bag and sealed with a ribbon.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

Just TWO ingredients! TWO! I started with 4 oz amber bottles. Then, I place one vanilla bean in each jar. I had to fold the bean in half for it to fit. Next, I filled the bottle the rest of the way with plain vodka and then added a custom label. The vanilla extract needs to “brew” in a dark place for several months.

So, get started on this in the summertime and your homemade gifts will be ready in time for Christmas. This holiday food gift is perfect for anyone who loves to bake or loves flavored coffee. The best part about the homemade vanilla is that once the extract is gone, simply refill with more vodka and let it brew for several months again. It can be used over and over again.

Read here why I NEVER USE artificial vanilla flavoring!

Homemade Chocolate Fudge Sauce

Another easy holiday food gift idea. I used my recipe for extra rich fudge sauce and filled these bottles with sealing lids. Just a cute label on the front and its ready to be gifted.

This sauce is such a deep chocolate flavor and can be used for anything from pouring over a pound cake to sundaes, coffees, and making extra rich chocolate milk.

Homemade Caramel Sauce

Probably one of my favorite recipes EVER, this caramel sauce should be reserved for your best of friends! It’s so good, you may even shed a tear as you give it away. I start with this recipe for making caramel candy.

But, instead of raising the temperature after adding the cream mixture, I turn the heat off and let it cool into a sauce. Easily packaged into jars using chalkboard labels, the caramel sauce pairs perfectly with fresh apples for a sweet gift.

Be sure to check out all of my recipes with caramel!

Cookie Mix in a Jar

The quintessential holiday food gift idea. It’s a classic! I like to make these, starting with the recipe from Nestle, and then changing the add-ins for a custom gift.

Pretzel Wreath

So fun to make! Kids love to help with this holiday food gift idea too. Simple arrange mini pretzels in the wreath shape on parchment paper ahead of time. Melt your chocolate according to the instructions above for the chocolate bark. Next, dip pretzels one-by-one and place on the parchment. Once the first circle is done, let it set.

Then, repeat the process for a second layer to ensure its strength. Finally, decorate with holiday candies and attach a ribbon. These wreaths package easily in a round cookie tin.