Christmas Gift Idea for a family...inexpensive and a Bit Creative (EDITED)

I make homemade truffles with this recipe:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/10/chocolate-truf...
I put them in a little box from JoAnn's made for little candies, and I found some cute little fabric bags that I found for $3 that I will put them in. These will be for my chiropractor and her receptionist, family friends, neighbors, etc. They are so yummy! I am also sending some to family across the country with the other gifts we are sending them.

To expand upon an earlier idea. I think everyone enjoys homemade food. How about if you give them all the ingredients, and recipe card for your favorite dessert?

If they aren't foodies, you could make them the dessert and attach recipe card.

Who doesn't love homemade sweets at Christmas? Try Paula Deen's Chocolate Ooey Gooey cakes...amaaaaaazzzing!!!

(:

***I just made some chocolate covered oreos today and sprinkled them with red/green sprinkles. Sam's Club sells a huge chocolate bar of Ghiradelli (milk chocolate) and it melts in the microwave as well as a double boiler. Easy and will be gobbled up.

How about a game? You can always get good prices on games this time of year!

We give "New Year's Eve Baskets" every year
A sleeve of crackers, some cheese, a mini summer sausage, a bottle of Apple Cider (bubbling) or Wine and 2 champagne glasses (the disposable kind) with the next year written on them.

I love the ice cream sundae basket and the soup in a jar. Also since you like to bake what about cookies in a jar - a few different type :)

They have a "tickle me plant" that's cute and inexpensive.. $6, it's actually called a mimosa pudica... it's leaves and flower close when you touch it.

Gourmet coffee with a cute coffee cup
You can make mini cherry pies (they're SO good, the recipe makes 48) and decorate em really cute and make a little basket from dollar tree
pretty glass jar filled with candy
movie theater gift certificates

This year I am doing Ice Cream Sundae kits, and I figured them to be about $10 per family.
$1.00: Basket at the dollar store (for everything to go in)
$1.00 can of whipped cream
$1.00 for 5 pack small plastic containers at dollar store (for hot fudge and caramel sauce)
$10.00 Oreos, animal cookies (with the frosting and sprinkles), m&m's, candy canes (we crushed them using a food processor)
$1.00 ziplock bags (for the crushed toppings listed above)
ingredients for homemade caramel sauce and hot fudge sauce

I think this will be fun for families, especialy with kids, to have an ice cream party as a family with a whole bunch of toppings.

I like the game idea! What about a hot cocoa set - mugs, cocoa mix, marshmallows, candy canes (for stirring and adding mintyness) or maybe stuff to make cookies together - recipe, sprinkles/decorations, cookie cutters, maybe even dough or some of the ingredients? Or pizza instead of cookies?

I'm thinking of doing "soup in a jar" this year. There are several recipes for this on www.allrecipes.com that look good. Here's one:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Friendship-Soup-Mix-in-a-Jar...

You could make a candy tree or a couple of trees with different candies. You use a styrofoam cone and pin candies from bottom to the top like a Christmas tree. Lifesavers work great but other good options are mini-snickers (or others that size) or mini-candy canes.

make about 3 batches of cookies get some cookie bags and divide them in the bags and call it good everyone loves cookies and puppy chow is cheap to make and makes a huge batch too. :)

One year for my parents, we shopped at the asian grocery store. We sent them a package containing some decorated plastic soup bowls, the easy chopsticks that work like clothespins, rice noodles and other ingredients, and a recipe card.

I can't wait to see more answers to this question!

I make cookie tins for my neighbors and family. With about $35-$40 worth of ingredients, I made 12 tins last year and everyone raved about them. I used all simple recipes and although it takes a whole 10 hour day, it's really worth it. I can't wait to do it again later this month!
Here is a picture of last years goods!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1300899523808&...#

I do basket of cookies if you don't have time to bake walmart has some really good Christmas cookies. The Mom to our step kids did fruit basket of fruit and fudge one year that was nicer much better then what you buy

IF they are not vegetarians AND you have a food dehydrator, it is very easy to make delicious jerky. It is a great gift in a pretty tin and a bottle of sparkling juice (especially the delicious sparkling juices Trader Joe's sells). I have my own slicer and my husband is a hunter, so I make it with venison. If you have your own slicer, it works best to slice the meat while it is partially frozen. If you do not, just have the butcher slice a small roast or brisket into very thin slices. All I do is marinate the meat in a good soy sauce for a minute or two. I use organic, wheat free, tamari sauce I get at Whole Foods, but La Choy will do in a pinch)0. Just be sure the sauce is one of the sweeter ones and not too salty or too sour. After marinating, just lay the strips of meat on a paper towel for a minute and put it in the dehydrator. (By the way, it is soooo worth the money to get a dehydrator with a fan and an adjustable heating element. The ones that use only light bulbs can take days instead of hours to dry the jerky.) I set the dehydrator between 95 and 105, depending on when I might be available to take it out.

I promise you, this is some of the best jerky you will every eat and it is simple and inexpensive to make. I have tried adding other spices or herbs over the years, but I always come back to just soy sauce. No attempt to improve this simple recipe ever made it better.

The gift card to Blockbuster sounds nice. Only if you know that they all have a membership to Blockbuster...

=)