Please don’t bring a cheese platter.
Well, bring one if you’ve been asked. Otherwise, that gorgeous selection of cheeses, crackers, and little pots of fig jam is probably going to sit on the kitchen counter while your hostess wonders what on earth to do with it. She’s already made dinner. Possibly enough dinner for twelve people who have brought another six people’s worth of food. A holiday host gift ought to be a treat for later. Something she can put away without feeling the slightest obligation to unwrap it, serve it, or rearrange the refrigerator.
And no, it needn’t cost a fortune.
Something for an ordinary Wednesday
The funny thing about nice gifts is that the best ones aren’t always particularly exciting.
Take olive oil. A good bottle of the finishing kind is lovely for someone who cooks. Graza’s Drizzle, for instance, is meant for adding to food after cooking. The sort of thing she might enjoy over tomatoes or warm bread when nobody’s coming over.
Coffee is another possibility, assuming you know what she drinks. Not everyone wants a bag of exotic beans requiring a grinder they don’t own. A beautiful tin of her usual tea would be just as thoughtful. Or the hand soap she always buys, only in a slightly nicer version.
One thing, mind you. Not an enormous basket containing seventeen variations on the theme.
There’s a difference between giving someone a present and furnishing a small specialty grocery store.
About the chocolate
Chocolate makes a delightful gift. It also makes a rather complicated one when you don’t know who’s eating it.
Milk, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, sesame—food allergies are worth taking seriously. The FDA lists nine major allergens and reminds shoppers that ingredients can change. If you’re buying something edible, keep the original packaging and ingredient information intact. Better yet, find out whether food is a good idea at all.
And forget bringing a homemade dessert as a surprise. Your hostess has presumably planned pudding already.
A small box of chocolates labeled “For you, tomorrow” is quite another matter.
Kitchen towels. Yes, really.
Not exactly the stuff of extravagant Christmas fantasies, but a good kitchen towel is remarkably useful.
Food52’s Five Two cotton towels are one option. Choose a color she’d actually keep in her kitchen, not necessarily something covered in reindeer because it’s December. There’s something appealing about giving a practical item that’s a little nicer than the version someone normally buys.
Of course, if her drawers are already overflowing with towels, forget this idea. Nobody needs another set merely because it’s tied with ribbon.
And while we’re discussing ribbons, go easy on the wrapping. A pretty paper bag and a handwritten note are plenty. The poor woman already has enough holiday rubbish to deal with.
Leave her with one less thing to do
Flowers are still perfectly acceptable, provided they arrive in water. An arrangement in a simple vase can go straight onto a table. Loose stems wrapped in paper are lovely, but they require immediate attention.
Whatever you bring, make it clear she can enjoy it another day. There’s no need to stand around waiting for her to open it, either. She’s hosting a party, not filming a gift-unboxing video.
A thoughtful present might end up in her pantry until January. That’s fine. Perhaps she’ll find it on a quiet evening, put the kettle on, and remember who brought it. Rather nicer than another decorative Christmas mug, don’t you think?
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