The Procrastinator’s Holiday Gift Guide for Your Favorite Cook

Blue Kitchen is back live this week, with six last-minute culinary gift ideas. This may seem like a short and somewhat random list, but all these items have one thing in common—we actually use them in our kitchen and love them. Happy shopping.

KMN Aluminum Rolling Pin

Before we saw this rolling pin from KMN Home at the National Restaurant Association Show this spring, we thought we had quite enough rolling pins, thank you. After we saw it—and after a few weeks of being unable to stop thinking about it—we bought one. Made of aircraft-grade aluminum, it has a laser-engraved ruler. The aluminum body makes it easy to keep cool for rolling pie crust dough—just pop it in the freezer for a little bit. The ruler—with measurements in inches and millimeters—makes it easy to measure those crusts as you roll them. And with its smooth anodized finish, doughs do not want to stick to it. Available in red, blue and black, it is also handsome enough to display. When I bake, this is now the rolling pin I reach for first. The KMN Aluminum Rolling Pin runs around $40.

Primula Cold Brew Carafe Coffee Maker

This is a relatively new arrival in our home. Primula Products recently asked us to try their cold brew coffee maker. The capsule review: we love it. The pitcher is a simple modernist glass column. The process is easy to understand. Overnight in your fridge, it produces a coffee concentrate from fresh ground coffee and water. The concentrate is delicious, and Primula suggests using it for iced coffee. But this season we’ve been making hot drinks with it every day, gently heating the concentrate on the stove and then adding a little hot water and milk. One great advantage of cold-brewed coffee is lower acidity—for those who need to avoid coffee because of problems with dietary acids, this may allow you to occasionally enjoy it again, which is a tremendous gift in itself. The handsome Primula Cold Brew Carafe Coffee Maker retails for about $30.

Beau Bien Preserves

Looking for a stocking stuffer, a host gift, a little thank you for a colleague? Artisanal preserves are a perfect fit. This year, we’ll be giving preserves from Detroit-based Beau Bien Fine Foods. Beau Bien has developed its own proprietary pectin, made from Michigan apples, so its recipes are naturally much lower in sugar. They are also superb. Our favorites are peach lemon lavender and roasted strawberry rhubarb, but the line includes a dazzling array of recipes developed by the founders, Noelle Lothamer and Molly O’Meara.  Beau Bien also makes preserves over on the savory side, among them an excellent Herbed Red Onion Marmalade and a Michigan Apple Mustard. You’ll find these delicious preserves on the Beau Bien website for $10 per 8-ounce jar; shipping is a flat rate of $10 for any size order.

A magazine subscription

This year we are sorely behind in our cookbook reading. But when we were starting to think about this article, we realized that we are always consulting our piles of magazines. Much of the information in them is online, but nothing beats the pleasure of a well-made magazine—holding it, leafing through it idly or with great purpose, enjoying the beautiful photographs, saving it for future reference. Of all the food magazines we subscribe to, our favorites—with smart writing and some of the loveliest food photography around, period—are Bon Appétit and Saveur.

Jo Snow Syrups

We’ve known Melissa Yen, the founding flavor genius behind Jo Snow Syrups, since the days when she ran the beloved and much missed Vella Café here in Chicago. That’s where she began developing the flavorings that evolved into her Jo Snow Syrups. The imaginative syrups are made with organic cane sugar, organic flavorings and no preservatives. Stir them into cocktails or hot tea or coffee. Use them in sodas, on ice cream, over shaved ice and in baking. For the challenges of winter, Melissa also makes lip balms, which are adored by my children. In the spring, I know we will be reverting to one of her citrusy syrups, like Tangerine Lavender Honey, lovely mixed with gin or just with soda and lots of ice. Right now, I’m having a cup of coffee infused with her Kugel in a Cup—cinnamon and hints of raisins—and it is setting me up to feel quite festive. Dozens of shops, restaurants and bars throughout the Midwest offer Jo Snow Syrups; you can also order syrups and gift sets (about $8 – 20) on the Jo Snow website.

Domaine Brazilier Methode Trad Brut

The Braziliers have been making wine in the Loire for seven generations, using estate caves that were carved out of limestone hillsides during the 1100s. This sublime non-vintage sparkling brut is imported into the US by Robert Houde, formerly Charlie Trotter’s head sommelier. We found out about it through Marion’s sister Lena in November and we are not going to tell you how many bottles we’ve bought since then. This Champagne method blend of 50% Pineau d’Aunis and 50% Chenin Blanc makes you feel effervescent and carefree. It is way wonderful for its price point (around $13 – 14), great for entertaining and definitely a nice little gift. If you cannot find it here in Chicago, that is because we drank it all.