[Sca-cooks] Period Gifts in Jars and Baskets

[Sharon Gordon]

***Gifts in jars or some ingredients in jars***
(everything to include recipes and instructions)
1) Flour, Yeast, Herbs (other ingredients) for bread
2) Beer ingredients
3) Mead ingredients
4) Cordial  or spiced wine ingredients
5) Mustard flour and roughly ground mustard,  dried herbs, vinegar, wine for
making mustard
6) Vinegar and dried herbs for making flavored vinegars
7) Olive oil and dried herbs for making flavored oil.  Include a warning
that people should make only as much as they will use for that dinner that
day and keep it refrigerated to avoid botulism.
8) Olives, dried herbs, olive oil (all separate) for making spiced olives
9) Oatmeal, dried fruits, honey for a festive breakfast
10) A spice mix typical of a particular region and several recipes to use it
with.  This might be a spice mix you create based on a collection of spices
repeatedly being used together where you have figured out consistent
proportions in a variety of recipes.
11) Herbs, vinegar or wine, oil, etc for a particular grilling marinade
12) Conserves, and can it according to latest canning safety info
13) Syrups. May want to can them too.
14) Colorful seed packets for a 2005 garden
15) Soups with dried peas, grains, herbs, vegetables.  May want to mix 2
colors of peas to add extra sparkle.
16) Homemade dried pasta.  Sauce ingredients.
17) Homemade canned pickles.
18) Dried fruit
19) Sourdough starter
20) A short illuminated cookbook (nicely printed or photocopied if you want
to do this for lots of people) featuring an ingredient and a jar of the
ingredient.
21) Potpourri for sitting around or simmering made from a region's strewing
herbs or medically oriented aromatic herbs.

***Gifts in Baskets***
1) Elongated basket with plastic liner planted with live herbs.  I sometimes
give this as is and sometimes with a bottle of olive oil so people can make
freshly herbed bread dipping oil.
2) Homemade bread, cheese, olives, wine, dried fruit
3) Decoratively arranged dried/candied fruit and nut platter
4) Soup ingredients for a particular recipe that includes lots of basket
friendly ingredients: Peas, lentils, chickpeas, canned broth/paste/bullion,
grains, dried mushrooms, herbs, spices, nuts, garlic, root vegetables,
cheese, wine/beer/ale, dried fruit, dried vegetables, olive oil, honey,
sugar, vinegar. Homemade bread.
5) Health basket (anti-flu basket with more positive name).  Elderberry
syrup/wine, ingredients for anti-flu soup, strengthening herbs, several high
thread count finely woven embroider linen handkerchiefs.

Sharon
gordonse at one.net