Our 23 Favorite Kitchen-Related Mother’s Day Gifts

My mom is incredibly hard to buy for. She always says she doesn’t want anything. But, of course, that’s not true. (Mom: I’m not falling for it!!!) And with a lack of guidance, I go rogue. Often, I land on a great gift (she uses her Alexa in the kitchen all the time to set timers and listen to podcasts while she cooks). Occasionally, though, I’ll get a dud (for example, she never charges her temperature-controlled Ember smart mug, which entirely defeats its purpose). 

If you, like me, are looking for inspiration for Mother’s Day gifts, welcome. Below, you’ll find 23 kitchen-related Mother’s Day ideas that we think will put you squarely in the “great gift” category with the mom or parental person/figure in your life.

A New Coffee Grinder

OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder

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If they’re into coffee (auto-drip, pourover, French press) and use pre-ground coffee or a blade grinder for whole beans, a burr grinder will vastly improve their brewing experience. And this model from OXO is one of our favorites: it’s well-priced, easy to adjust (just twist the top), and has just one start/stop button.

A Thermometer in Their Favorite Color

Thermoworks ThermoPop 2

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“I gave my mom and my mother-in-law both Thermopops, and they love them,” associate commerce editor Grace Kelly says. This makes sense! The ThermoPop 2 is one of our favorite instant-read thermometers and features a fast response time, an auto backlight, and a rotating screen. It’s also accurate, available in a range of colors, and just $35.

A Fancy Espresso Machine

Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine

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My dad brings my mom a cappuccino in bed every morning, which is just incredibly lovely. Whether they’re making it for themselves or having someone do it for them, an espresso machine is the kind of top-notch, big-spender gift they’ll use daily. One of our favorite espresso machines is the Breville Bambino Plus. As we say in our review, “It’s almost more difficult to make a bad espresso drink with this machine than it is to make a good one.”

A Cake Stand (And a Cake…Maybe?)

Nashi Home Tonal Resin Cake Stand

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If they’re a baker (or even not—these both make great display pieces!), a new, eye-catching cake stand may be the ticket. You could even make a cake and give it to them on the cake stand! They’ll be like “Oh, you made me a cake—thank you!” Then you can say, “I did, but the cake stand’s yours, too.” Lovely!

Cookies!!!

Levain Bakery Signature Cookie Assortment

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Sometimes cookies that you don’t make taste pretty great. And we’re fans of the ones from Levain Bakery, particularly their new caramel coconut chocolate chip cookies, which strike the perfect balance of crisp-yet-chewy. 

A Wok + One of Our Favorite Cookbooks

Yosukata Carbon Steel Wok Pan

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The Wok: Recipes and Techniques

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Our favorite wok from Yosukata makes an excellent gift. Though we have a lot of phenomenal wok recipes on this very site, you could pair the wok with Kenji’s latest cookbook (one of our favorite cookbooks of 2022) and even a couple of must-have wok accessories (like a chuan and bamboo steamer). 

Nice Olive in Nice Packaging

Graza Drizzle & Sizzle Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

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Another Great Oil Option

Frankies 457 Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

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A gift that will absolutely not go unused is nice olive oil. The Graza combo pack comes with two olive oils (“Sizzle” and “Drizzle”), one for cooking and the other finishing. Their squeeze bottle packaging is particularly satisfying and super useful. Grace also recommends Frankies Spuntino olive oil (the design looks very classy, and the olive oil is buttery and delicious). You could tie a bow around it and be done or pair it with one of our recommended oil dispensers.

The Most Powerful Immersion Blender

Vitamix Immersion Blender

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While our favorite Vitamix blenders cost hundreds, you can get our favorite Vitamix immersion blender for $150. It effortlessly purees soups, smoothies, crushes ice, and more. We liked it so much, we added it as one of our winners.

A Helpful Smart Device

Amazon Echo Show 5

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A Fancier Smart Device

Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd generation)

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My mom uses her Amazon Alexa Echo Show all of the time—like, way more than I thought she would. It’s useful for playing music and podcasts, setting kitchen timers, asking questions (like “How many tablespoons are in 1/4 cup?”), and watching shows/movies while you bop around the kitchen. 

A New, Stylish Apron

Hedley & Bennett Dream First Apron

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If you like to cook, you gotta protect your clothes. You can’t let oil splatters ruin a perfectly nice shirt! This makes a new apron an excellent gift. The ones from Hedley & Bennett are a great choice: they come in a variety of styles, fabrics, and patterns. We particularly like the polka dot one and the wax-coated Waxman apron, which is heavy-duty and ideal for those who like to grill.

A Spice Subscription

Burlap & Barrel Spice Club Gift Subscription

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Really, any cook would appreciate a spice subscription from the wonderful Burlap & Barrel. For $180 you get four boxes of spices, delivered quarterly. Each box contains, “pre-releases of brand-new spices and new harvests of our favorite spices, as well as a delicious collaboration food product, plus recipes and spice stories,” the company says. If that feels out of your budget, Burlap & Barrel has a number of cheaper spice sets, like the Fundamentals Collection.

A Super-Sharp Nakiri Knife

Tojiro A-1 Nakiri

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We reviewed nakiri knives and named this moderately-priced Tojiro our favorite. For prepping vegetables, the broad shape, squared-off spine, and double-beveled edge of a nakiri make it a wonderful addition to a knife collection. It can be used for boneless proteins, too, but is not to be confused with a meat cleaver. (Speaking of which, a cleaver is also a great gift!)

A Milk Frother for Hot and Cold Foam

Miroco Stainless Steel Milk Steamer and Automatic Foam Maker

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If you’re shopping for someone that works from home, a lovely pick-me-up is an afternoon steamer, coffee drink, or matcha latte using an electric milk frother. For a little gift set, might we suggest also picking up a tin of matcha and a bottle of vanilla syrup (with real-deal vanilla bean flecks, of course).

A Truly Exceptional Cutting Board

The BoardSmith Maple End-Grain Cutting Board

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A wooden cutting board is a fantastic investment, and it’s hard to beat this one from The BoardSmith, which has been our favorite for years. It’s made by a small, family-run company, is incredibly long-lasting, and is gentle on knives. It can also be customized in different sizes and with additions like feet or a juice groove.

The Easiest-to-Use Wine Opener

OXO Vertical Corkscrew with Removable Foil Cutter

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Our favorite lever corkscrew is really a thing to behold: it makes opening a bottle of wine exceptionally easy. It’s a great gift for the wine person in your life. To use it, you position the corkscrew over the cork, pull the lever upwards to insert into the cork, then press the lever downwards to draw the cork up and out of the bottle. To remove the cork from the opener, you just pull the lever upwards and downwards again. 

A Coffee Gift Subscription That Keeps On Giving

Mistobox Coffee Subscription

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A bag of coffee is always a lovely gift and a coffee subscription is even more wonderful. This one from Mistobox allows you to select gift subscriptions for three shipments ($60), six shipments ($120), 12 shipments ($240), and so on. Mistobox drop-ships from the roaster, too, so you know they’re getting fresh beans. 

A Small Mortar and Pestle

Thunder Group Marble Mortar and Pestle

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For an itty-bitty, downright adorable present, we present you with this small, marble mortar and pestle. It’s ideal for crushing small amounts of spices (like peppercorns or coriander seeds) or smashing a few cloves of garlic or a knob of ginger. 

A Soft Standing Mat

The House of Noa Nama Standing Mat

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A plushy standing mat can make prep work, cooking, and cleaning a lot more comfortable. This one from House of Noa “reminded us of a memory foam mattress” and comes in a range of patterns and lengths. (You might want to measure their space beforehand!)

Their Favorite Pasta Shape

Gustiamo Big Bag Bucatini Faella

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Pick a favorite pasta shape and Guistiamo probably has it—and an exceptional version of it. But, since it’s a holiday, why not go big and get them 5.5 pounds of bucatini or mezzi paccheri? Or maybe buy them a 6-pack of cascatelli.

A Machine for Fresh (!) Pasta

Marcato Design Atlas 150 Pasta Machine

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KitchenAid 3-Piece Pasta Roller & Cutter Attachment Set

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If they’ve been wanting to try their hand at fresh pasta like fettuccine or lasagne, you could get them one of our favorite pasta rollers and cutters. If they have a KitchenAid stand mixer, the attachment will make it super easy to make fresh pasta. If they don’t, we recommend the Marcato Atlas, which attaches to a countertop and has a hand crank.

A Smart Mug (If They’ll Actually Charge It)

Ember Travel Mug²

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If they enjoy coffee hot-hot-hot and will actually remember to charge it (unlike someone I know…), our favorite temperature-controlled mug is the Ember Travel Mug. It has an easy-to-use app and will keep coffee hot at a preset temperature for up to three hours. 

A Curated Gift Box of Delicious Things

Gustiamo Serious Eats X Gustiamo Holiday Gift Box

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Serious Eats collaborated with Gustiamo on this gift box and it’s pretty great, if we do say so ourselves. It has anchovy colatura, almond nougat, extra-virgin olive oil, caserecci, and more.

Really Nice Wine Glasses + A Bottle of Their Favorite Wine

Waterford Elegance Stemless Wine Glass

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If they like wine, a no-brainer gift is a great set of wine glasses and a bottle of wine (dealer’s choice on the latter). And since it’s a holiday, why not get them our pick for *fancy* stemless wine glasses? They’re lovely to hold, easy to grip, and, as we said in our review, have a “narrow opening” that captures “aromas quite well.”

FAQs

When is Mother’s Day this year?

Mother’s Day 2023 is on Sunday, May 14th. 

What day is Mother’s Day? 

Mother’s Day is always on a Sunday. Specifically, this year, it’s on May 14, 2023.