Deck The Halls With Edible Holiday Gifts

Last week the Cancer Support Community invited me to speak to a group of their members about edible holiday gifts. Not the kind you buy at kiosks that appear in the mall after Thanksgiving, but gifts you can make in your own kitchen. For those of you who are experts at canning and preserving, this is an easy assignment – add a pretty fabric cover or ribbon to top the jars of your delicious creations. For those of us who may be intimidated by all the boiling involved in making jams and jellies, there are a few other options.

One of the simplest gifts is an herbal infused vinegar (at the center in the photo). Start with a slender-necked bottle with an attached ceramic lever-stopper or a reusable cork. Rinse everything with boiling water and make sure none of the elements that touch the vinegar are made of metal. Select your herbs and rinse them thoroughly; set them to dry on a piece of paper towel and pick out any imperfect leaves.

Your choice of herbs can include rosemary, lavender, thyme, parsley, sage or tarragon. You can also add whole peppercorns or cloves, depending upon the flavor profile you’re creating. Avoid dried or ground herbs, as they’ll cloud the vinegar. Choose high quality vinegar with at least five percent acidity.
More