Here are some ideas for small stocking surprises that should delight your family and friends.
Grits Bits
When she published her “Gone With the Grits” cookbook in 1992, Atlanta resident Diane Pfeifer said, her readers kept saying, “Honey, I love your cookbook, but I want something I can just open up and eat!” Like any good entrepreneur, she listened, and created Grits Bits, 1-inch, bite-size biscuits with grits baked into a cheese straw batter. They’re available in four savory flavors — cheddar, Vidalia onion, jalapeno and pimento cheese — and one sweet version, butter shortbread. In every variety, the grits add a little crunch — the way a bit of cornmeal might. Our taste testers couldn’t decide on a favorite, but the contents of those little 3-ounce boxes went quickly. The boxes are perfect for stocking stuffers, but there also are tins for those bigger stockings, and gift baskets that include other local goodies, such as peach-shaped chocolates, pecan pralines and Peach Bites hard candies.
$5 per 3-ounce box, $11 for a gift-wrapped two-pack, $21 for a gift-wrapped four-pack, $14.95 per 8-ounce tin. Available at the Collective in Atlanta, Fragile in Sandy Springs, the Keeping Room in Marietta, Intown Ace Hardware in Decatur and at gritsbits.com, for pickup in Buckhead.
Credit: Jonathan C. Miller
Credit: Jonathan C. Miller
A Gobble gift card
If you have friends or family who want to eat healthy, freshly cooked food at home, but don’t have time to shop for and prep those meals, a gift card from Gobble is the perfect stocking stuffer. Gobble offers both classic and “lean and clean” meals, all of which can be made in 15 minutes or less. Everything is delivered fresh, with easy-to-follow directions on a full-color recipe card that lists any equipment the cook will need. We love to cook, and we found these meals to be a big timesaver and a source of inspiration. Spinach and really fresh broccoli, already chopped into florets, is included with the chicken fettuccine Alfredo — yes, please. Pre-cooked lasagna rolls are filled with ricotta and ready to heat, along with zucchini, grape tomatoes and artichoke hearts. That meal was delicious, vegetarian, and even came with mixed lettuces and a red wine vinaigrette. Some of our testers are experienced cooks, and we all agreed we learned tricks for quick dinners that we’re adding to our cooking repertoire. We could eat Gobble every night, but there are breakfast options, too, such as truffled eggs Florentine pizzette, with the eggs delivered in little bubble-wrapped “cocoons.” Everything came perfectly prepped, absolutely fresh, and turned into delicious meals we’d eat again.
Gift cards available, starting at $50. Classic dinner plan meals start at $11.99 per serving. Sides, including truffle macaroni and cheese and breakfast quiches, start at $1.99 per serving. Shipping and handling are $6.99 per delivery. Available at gobble.com.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Jelly Belly chewing gum
Small boxes of Jelly Belly’s new sugar-free chewing gum will tuck into the tiniest spaces in those Christmas stockings. It’s available in very cherry, watermelon, island punch and berry blue. Our under-10 taste testers and their parents agreed, this gum has lots of flavor and, indeed, tastes just like the Jelly Belly flavors they’re named after. The fact that they’re sugar-free makes these gums a healthier way to satisfy the craving to chew on something fruity.
$1.49 per 12-piece package. Available at Party City, Dollar General and Speedway, as well as at Amazon.com.
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