Homemade food gifts as christmas presents

[FlowersAndShit]

What do you all think about homemade hampers with things like hm shortbread? Would you appreciate them or would they go straight in the bin?

I'm always boggled by how obsessed people are with hygiene are on here. Honestly, what makes you think food you eat in cafes and restaurants the standards are any higher? (I ate in a fairly upmarket central London restaurant last week and fearless mice were just ambling between the tables!)

I'd love a homemade hamper, OP.

Not for me, I wouldn't use or eat ot

I would love it (even if I hated it).

I would really appreciate the thought and time that had gone into it even if I didn't actually like the contents. I've got enough stuff, I don't need any more crap and anything I do want I can buy myself I don't need people giving me crap to clutter up my house. I would love a food hamper (homemade or not) partly because you eat it and it's gone, nothing to keep.

It would depend on how well I knew you. For instance I worked with a really lovely woman who apparently made the best homemade caramel shortcake but because she has uber long hair thats wasn't tied up ever, had long plastic nails and cats i refused to try it because i didn't know what her kitchen was like.

So it would be a no from me unless you where close family or my best friend lol

Lovely, especially jam, chutney, or damson vodka, sloe gin etc.
Really Christmassy and much appreciated here, also home-made sweeties and biscuits
Nothing nicer!

My aunt always makes personal homemade hampers at Christmas. Last year it contained sloe gin (very nice and quite strong), Christmas cake, plum jam, gooseberry jam, pickled onions, pickled cauliflower, and a selection of biscuits. She's an extremely busy person healthcare professional working 60 plus hours a week, I just think that it's fantastic that she finds the time to make them for the whole family. I look forward to receiving one every year.

For friend's is good.

For teachers, only good if you the parent tells the teacher that you made with or instead of your child.

We never ate anything a child made unless the parent told us they actually made or made with.

I was only too aware that they lil children do not wash their hands without supervision.

Funny, i have been thinking of doing this for my bro and sis in law. They love cooking and I live in an area with loads of cheap Asian/middle eastern/ oriental food stores so i plan to do a hamper with all kinds of cool ethnic foodstuffs. I am on a budget so thought this would be a great gift. I would be happy to receive something like this.

I'm not making anything homemade but would be delighted by this - provided not all my relatives decided to do it at once.

I would love it, but know close friends who would hate it.... Be very certain who your gift is going to

And also at the hygiene obsessives. What bugs do you think survive an oven or pickling vinegar?

Thanks for the Sainbury's tip Celeria - I need some pretty bottles for my home made Blackberry Schnapps. Seriously - if you're the kind of person who wouldn't be grateful for the love and thought that's gone into making something special for you then we'd never ever be friends anyway - and that could only be a good thing!

I've just bought a whole load of Willy and booby molds. My plan is to make chocolates/vodka jellies etc for my friends and family. Oh and poo shaped molds for the children. (not for the vodka jelly though!!)

I do like homemade stuff in general but it depends on the smugness of the giver. I say that because one family member always makes things to give but it's very much in a 'look how talented I am' type of way. I can't explain how that is but it really is. It's like the thought isn't in it.

Incidentally if any of you lovely makers of stuff do want to try your alcoholic beverages at a new level and have any friends visiting Italy get them to bring you back a bottle of the 90% alcohol that is freely available there. Costs around €20 a bottle and you can dilute it up to x 5 - actually you HAVE to dilute it else you'd go blind and do-lally-tap all in one go! - it's brilliant for schnapps and home made limoncello amongst other things.

annandale Don't know about pickling but we got very ill eating some Jam from a child- which the child had made.

Never ever again.

I would not go back to a restaurant if I got food poisoning.

The same applies here for me.

Plus the nose picking and bum scratching does not appeal me towards certain kids or adults foods.

One friend is grim and never washes hands.

She pisses, shits, changes tampons and does not clean hands.

I will not even share popadoms with her, let alone eat food she's cooked.

Though I love fudges and vodka jellies, when made by people who are clean.

hellBellsJingleBalls

I soo want to put smugly made by Starky on my labels now! Except nobody but me would get the joke like usual with my sense of humour then and people would be asking my DM if I was feeling alright!

I'd love it. Mmm, food.

I would much rather some delicious bits made by a friend than more decorative, smelly, hangy, tacky crap. I don't need anymore crap.

Dove, for bottles also check out Wares of Knutsford online. I get all my jars and bottles from them, they're good quality and the customer service is excellent.

Welshmaenad so something cheap where more was spent on overpriced 'packaging' of a basket/jars to tart it up? Hmm. Even bought hampers are naff and have stuff you really dont fancy. I'd rather buy a nice gift and have done, not go for cheap and cheerful then spend extra to make it look better.

Boots 2 for one Xmas stuff is nice packaging but v small, not great value or quality 'gift' when you do open it. M&S is better value & quality for money and not expensive for small gifts/stocking fillers. So is Debenhams.

We used to love homemade gifts from my friend until we received damson jam complete with dead fly half way down.
I have told friend we are borderline diabetic

Actually I hate Boots, if you are on a budget, they take the mick/are a rip off, everything in there is twice what it is in Superdrug - who do good value and better quality everything including gifts for half the price.