Holiday baking ideas for gifts to mail?
Hi I am looking for ideas for something I could bake/make that would keep well enough to send to relatives for Christmas gifts. I was thinking of getting little tins to put either some type of cookies, snack mix, or brittle of the sort in that would still taste great when it arrived. Hopefully something not too expensive or time consuming to make alot of...I am a college student, but I would love to send some thoughtful homemade baking to my far away family. Thanks for any ideas!
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34 Comments:
rum balls. one for the family. one or two for you.
dearrie at 7:38PM on 11/13/08
Fudge, divinity or some sort of bark. Even better make fruitcake you could send that out 10 years from now and it will be edible.
pjracz10 at 9:16PM on 11/13/08
My boyfriend and I are doing the long distance thing and I send him packages with baked goods all the time. I've tried cupcakes, which didn't work out well and cake, which kind of crumbles as it gets thrown around in the box.
My best advice is cookies, either the no-bake kind or your favorite recipe packed in tins and then surrounded by newspaper or insulation of some kind. It minimizes the damage. Brownies are also a really good idea. They don't break apart and they stay moist in the Tupperware you mail them off in.
Good luck!
PumpkinBear at 9:18PM on 11/13/08
I actually just made and sent this off to my brother as a surprise- Chocolate Peanut Toffee. Receipe is super easy, tastes out of this world and best of all is well suited to tupperware!
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Chocolate-Peanut-Toffee-240932
mcanna at 11:30PM on 11/13/08
My best advise is to insulate your baked goods with marshmallows. Toss a couple of handfuls in the container to keep your goodies snug. The soft marshmallows will prevent the cookies/brownies/rumballs/etc from rattling around and breaking during shipping. Plus, they're way more edible than styrofoam packing peanuts ;-)
MollieBeth at 10:17AM on 11/14/08
I do treat boxes every year. Cookies are a standard (peppermint chip, sugar cookies, snickerdoodles, and peanut butter cup). Biscotti works well, and I think homemade versions are so much better than most storebought brands. This year, I might also make granola and caramel (though the latter isn't baked).
OneWallKitchen at 10:18AM on 11/14/08
Homemade jams and jellies are very easy to make. The recipes are right in the package of Certo. Just wrap them up well and they should ship fine.
Laurie Cooks at 11:38AM on 11/14/08
I agree with Laurie about jams & jellies (I mail out apple butter every year), but I've found that it can be pretty expensive to mail because it will definitely make your package over 1 pound, which means you have to pay more - and as a college student, I'm sure you'd rather not.
My advice would be fudge, other types of homemade candy like brittle, peanut butter balls, nougat, etc. I've made and mailed these before, and they turned out great!
http://orangette.blogspot.com/2005/12/coming-of-age-in-cookies.html
LizNYC at 12:09PM on 11/14/08
@ molliebeth i would never of thought about using marshmallows. thanks for the idea.
dearrie at 12:09PM on 11/14/08
here's a great gift idea: pick your favorite cookie or bread. layer the dry ingredients into a mason jar. decorate with ribbon & attach card with the other ingredients/instructions needed. (i.e. combine w/2 eggs, stick of butter at 350 for 20 minutes, etc.)
i did it last year and people liked it...as did my wallet!
gastronomeg at 12:22PM on 11/14/08
Baklava, it keeps for a while and it fits well into short, rectangular containers
culinaryrabbit at 4:20PM on 11/14/08
I make these roasted rosemary almonds. I have not mailed them, but I am sure they'll keep fine. or how about brown rice krsipies treats or hazelnut praline?
Madelyn
KarmaFreeCooking
MadelynRodriguez at 5:25PM on 11/14/08
@MollieBeth ~ the marshmallow cushion/filler is GENIUS! And they weigh next to nothing. Of course, you'd have to throw in a box of rice krispies, too. ;-D
PerkyMac at 5:35PM on 11/14/08
I actually compiled a collection of recipes last year for this exact topic. I hope this helps!
Mailable Holiday Food Gifts
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 6:25PM on 11/14/08
Thanks for all the ideas everyone!!! I'm not sure which I'm going to do yet, I like the chocolate peanut toffee idea, it would be different than cookies, but at the same time everyone loves cookies!! A lot of good tips too, like the marshmellow packing! This is my first time posting a food blog, I am suprised with the great response, thanks for your help! Keep coming with ideas....maybe it will help others too!
mg1017 at 11:28PM on 11/14/08
I'm posting from a cell phone so I can post a link, but google "easy microwave fudge" its a box of powdered sugar some milk butter some coco powder etc... You pop it in the microwave for 2 minutes and throw it in the fridge for an hour or 2 it is pretty tasty. Most people would never guess it was 6 staples dumped together tossed in the microwave. Even if you don't ship it give it a try for yourself, imagine it would be great for a college student, its fast, cheap, tasty, and will impress. If anyone gives it a shot let us know what u think.
derekhinton2003 at 1:30AM on 11/15/08
I wish I could make a link like the rest of you. One of you told me once...
Pumpkin cookies ship very well. My daughter loves them. I add a million times more cinnamon and NO raisins. http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1910,149175-226206,00.html
Try this recipe. Yummy. I also have a chocolate cookie recipe that my sister and I have been making for people for years. I'm looking for the recipe, we call them snowflake cookies. You roll the chocolate dough balls in confectioners sugar and bake them. I'm lookin...
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 2:59AM on 11/15/08
I do cookie trays for good friends every Christmas. It's 2 solid days of baking and butter and sugar. It's always been for people within walking distance, causing some friends to request permission to come pick up their cookie tray so they could have one too. Now that I've moved away, they go into boxes to be mailed, too. @lizNYC, I love the post office. They have 3 different standard sized boxes that cost $8.95 to mail, no matter how much they weigh. HO HO HO!
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 3:08AM on 11/15/08
I'm so glad you asked this as I was just yesterday googling ideas. I'm going to make some vanilla sugar as a gift to send as well as some spiced nuts, a home made tex-mex dip mix, and probably a tin of rum balls. I figured those items would ship pretty well and be fairly inexpensive to make. One thing I make every year for neighbors is crumb cake. I'm not sure how well it would ship, but if packed pretty tight it might do ok.
Shels01 at 11:32AM on 11/15/08
Mix up a couple of batches of herb blends and spice rubs. Put them in little canning jars, spice bottles or small bags. Make some cute lables, include instructions and viola'! They ship and store well.
We make a killer rib rub that gets raves from friends. We're amking it again this year.
CJ McD at 11:38AM on 11/15/08
This time of the year, there shouldn't be a problem with the marshmallow packing melting, but if you ever need packing material to withstand hot weather, try plain popcorn =)
Wan Yan Ling at 3:18PM on 11/15/08
I've made these for Christmas for the last 2 years. Everyone always loves them and they are really easy.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rosemary-roasted-cashews-recipe/index.html
jackiecat at 3:53PM on 11/15/08
I mail biscotti and Spanish turrón as Christmas presents. They can get a bit heavy, but it's always nice getting a nice heavy package of goodies.
gingercookiewithlime at 7:03PM on 11/15/08
@carolrsfMISSESTEXAS Are you thinking of chocolate crinkles?
http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/Recipe.aspx?recipeId=35432
KTempesta at 10:03PM on 11/15/08
Last year I baked stollen and sent them out across the country. It keeps well if wrapped tightly in waxed paper and then cling wrap. Even if they do go a bit dry, they toast wonderfully.
A nice loaf of bread will always be a welcome gift and a few teaspoons of vital wheat gluten mixed in with the dry ingredients will help extend the shelf life.
Goodythecook at 9:36PM on 11/16/08
@KTempesta. I think you're right! Yea you!
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 9:55PM on 11/16/08
I've been mailing food gifts since I was a kid but not matter what, it does take some work except for two things: chewy brownies and any kind of tea bread: pumpkin, zucchini, carrot, apple spice, cranberry-orange nut, banana with or without chocolate chips. They can be stirred up by hand if you let the butter get soft enough and can be mailed in the same disposable loaf tins you buy at the grocery store. I overnighted chicken noodle matzo ball soup to a flu-ish friend in LA this fall. I send cheesecakes overnight (frozen first) to family each Christmas and they love them. I make 6 or 7 jams/jellies each year and mail them all over and I have a wonderful elderly friend in Alabama to whom I send cookies and bars all of the time. But the tea bread is KEY!
Deb07 at 8:15PM on 11/17/08
burbon balls are a great keeper
cookery
cookery7 at 2:21PM on 11/18/08
@cookery, someone on another thread is looking for a recipe for bourbon balls.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 3:21PM on 11/18/08
@cookery, It's Callie on her thread Long Lost Recipes
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 3:41PM on 11/18/08
soda cracker candy!
watchforbears at 8:21PM on 11/18/08
@watchforbears, what's soda cracker candy?
And, I like your moniker.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 8:47PM on 11/18/08
@carolrsfMISSESTEXAS I knew those cookies because MY sister makes them every Christmas :-)
KTempesta at 11:08PM on 12/05/08
Aren't they yummy?
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 11:32PM on 12/05/08