Holiday Gifts for Foodies

Being a native Angeleno I take great pride in the amazing makers and creators in this beautiful city! For this holiday season I’ve rounded up a little something for every kind of food lover in your life at a variety of price points AND everything is made right here in LA or by an LA resident.  Search no further, this is the gift guide you’ve been looking for! You may even want to gift yourself once you see what I’ve found.

andSons Chocolatiers

A second-generation family owned Beverly Hills-based chocolatier. Committed to updating the experience of fine chocolate, andSons’ chef-driven creations bring together superior ingredients, culinary invention, master craftsmanship and artistic imagination with a modern approach. They specialize in two lines of chocolate: their “classic” line, which features traditional flavors such as ganaches and pralines topped with subtle decorative elements, and their “modern” line, which showcases bold and inventive flavor pairings inside distinctive and colorful hand-painted shells. Customers can expect to find inspired flavors such as Yuzu Verbena (which combines a White Chocolate Ganache with Fresh Lemon Verbena, and a Dark Milk Chocolate Ganache with Yuzu and Lime) and Texas Pecan Praline with Coffee Ganache (with Roasted Pecans and Peruvian Dark Chocolate infused with Counter Culture coffee). Each piece is handmade in their Los Angeles kitchen by in-house chef and chocolatier and chef Kriss Harvey, and available exclusively at their Beverly Hills boutique and nationwide shipping via their website.

Caffe Luxxe

An L.A.-based roaster and coffeehouse dedicated to serving hand crafted artisanal espresso and brewed coffee. Founded in 2006 by owners Mark Wain and Gary Chau, their commitment to serving great coffee begins thousands of miles away at farms where beans are grown and where they strive for full transparency and sustainable practices. This year they launched their very first GESHA, the world’s most sought-after coffee varietal. For the holidays they are offering their last Gesha roast of the year from Ethiopia and also offer a variety of single origin coffee subscriptions. Gifts are available in store or onine. This is the perfect present for the coffee lovers in your life.

Wally’s

Beverly Hills and Santa Monica opulent wine bar and small-dish destination that also has a fully stocked bottle and gourmet-food shop. Gift baskets are available year round and just perfect for the holidays. Wally’s offers a selection of wine gift baskets for any price point so there is something for everyone you’re gifting this season.

And what food lover doesn’t need a new cookbook! I’ve rounded up 3 amazing cookbooks that came out this year from LA based writers/bloggers/chefs!

Aloha Kitchen

In Aloha Kitchen, Maui native food blogger Alana Kysar takes you into the homes, restaurants, and farms of Hawaiʻi, exploring the cultural and agricultural influences that have made dishes like plate lunch and poke crave-worthy culinary sensations with locals and mainlanders alike.

Husbands that Cook

The husband team Adam Merrin and Ryan Alvarez are the award-winning creators of the popular travel-inspired cooking blog, Husbands That Cook, which is the name of their debut cookbook that just came out this year filled with over 130 delicious, quick and easy recipes. This book is filled with delicious entertaining ideas for the holidays like their Cheddar-Beer Fondue which is perfect for parties, the festive I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas Cake, and their easy recipe for Toasted Hazelnut Fudge that you can wrap into cute gift bags and hand out to your friends as presents.

Bigger Bolder Baking

Bigger Bolder Baking: A Fearless Approach to Baking Anytime, Anywhere is the first cookbook from Chef Gemma Stafford, host of the hit online show (5 million fans online; 300 million+ video views). In her cookbook she shows you how with just a few common ingredients and basic kitchen tools you can make 115 bold twists on cakes, cookies, pies, ice cream, and more. Unique to baking cookbooks, chapters are organized by the basic tools you’ll need — such as Wooden Spoon & Bowl, Rolling Pin, or No Oven Needed, so you can choose the recipes that are most convenient for any spur-of-the- moment craving no matter how your kitchen is stocked.

Sweet Rose Creamery

All of the artisanal ice cream shops have these sweet holiday treats that are perfect for Stocking Stuffers, Secret Santa and Host Gifts. Plus, they don’t melt! Decorated with naturally-colored sparkling sugar, our Gingerbread People are so yummy dunked into a rich, velvety cup of our handmade Hot Cocoa Mix, made from Guittard chocolate. Our Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies, a Sweet Rose holiday favorite, are two-bite-sized, crispy and nutty. If ice cream’s more your thing, their pints of holiday flavors include a rich Chocolate Peppermint Patty, a nostalgic Brown Sugar Butter Pecan and a Dairy-Free Chocolate Hazelnut Praline.  

BONUS: Delicacies, creator of the world’s first (and only!) line of fine food jewelry. The necklaces come in: Spicy, Sweet, Bitter, Sour, Umami, Delish and for extreme pizza fanatics they even have one that says pizza. Bonus: they are a give-back company donating 10% of profits to organizations in communities that help feed the hungry. Check out their commitment to giving back here!