5 DIY Christmas Gifts to Create and Receive that you will want to keep for yourself. Whether you like to make food or home decor gifts this list will make you merry! It’s always great to have a little something home-made to give special friends, neighbors, or the Christmas holiday host. Grab your pen and notebook paper you will want to jot down these ideas.
DIY Gift # 1: Make Cranberry Apricot Jam
5 DIY Christmas Gifts to Create and Receive- Cranberry Orange Chutney
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2- 8 ounce cups 1x
- Category: Gift Giving- Chutney
- Method: Cook top
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
1-(6) ounce package dried apricots, chopped
1-(8) ounce package fresh cranberries, thaw if frozen
3/4 cup apple jelly or apricot jam
1/2 cup water or apple juice
1 shallot, finely diced
Instructions
- In large saucepan over medium high heat, combine apricots and cranberries.
- Add water or juice, jam and shallot.
- Cook to simmer for 20 minutes. Stir constantly until mixture is reduced.
- Remove from heat spoon into hot sterilized jar cover and keep refrigerated.
- Wrap and gift it.
Notes
- Use interesting shaped jars or 1/2 cup mason jars. You will not be sealing the jars but refrigerating.
- Include a gift tag with spreader if desired.
DIY Gift # 2: Pretty Napkins with Rings
Purchase 6 cloth 18″ x 18″ napkins or make your own, some cute napkin rings and wrap in a lovely box. Winter white with gold trim napkins will coordinate with most dinnerware and would be a great gift. If you don’t want to add napkin rings, fold the napkin into a pretty fold. For this fold, accordion pleat the napkin, slip on napkin ring and fan out the top third to form an angelic fold.
DIY Gift # 3: Pressed Wreath Butter Cookies
Butter cookies are super simple to make and bake. This recipes makes 12 dozen cookies so you will have a lot of dough to press in many designs. You will need a cookie press with templates. I highly recommend the Good Grips OXO cookie press.
Whether you like wreaths or Christmas trees you can decide the design you want. With the press you get 12 assorted disks. The press is easy to use but there are a few tips you need to be aware of.
Helpful Tips Using the Cookie Press
Use un-greased and cool baking sheet when pressing the cookies.
Dough should be soft and at room temperature when pressing.
Store purchased cookie dough is not recommended.. it is too soft and will spread during baking.
For best results use real butter, not margarine.
The first cookie you press will probably not be evenly pressed. Keep going it will get better.
Print5 DIY Christmas Gifts to Create and Receive-Christmas Wreath Pressed Cookies
Easy to press and bake butter cookies. Dough is tinted with food gel to create colorful cookies. Garnish with sprinkles, candies or glaze if desired.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 8-10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 dozen small cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert- Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
3 sticks of softened butter, unsalted preferred
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon clear vanilla or creme bouquet or extract of choice
4 cups all purpose flour
2 to 3 drops Green food coloring gel
Garnish: Sprinkles, red hots, chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- In large mixing bowl cream together butter, sugar and salt. Beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs one at a time, continuously beating.
- Add food coloring gel to desired intensity.
- Gradually add flour, beating until combined.
- Place dough in cookie press with desired disk. (wreath) and ( sunflower). Press dough onto un-greased baking sheet. Hold press vertically on baking sheet, then press and lift. ( practice until you get a pretty shaped cookie). Pipe cookies 1 ” apart. Dough will not spread during baking.
- Garnish with Christmas sprinkles, red hots, and chocolate chips if desired before baking. (Chocolate chip as center for sunflower pressed cookie.) Red hots for berries on wreath.
- Bake 8-10 minutes or until cookies are golden around the edges. Rotate baking sheet halfway at 4 minutes baking time.
- Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes. With spatula remove cookies from baking sheet.
- Arrange cookies on a decorative plate in the shape of a Christmas Tree for gift giving or mixed in a small box.
Notes
Recipe was developed by OXO Test Kitchen with my additions, food gel and Creme Bouquet flavoring,
DIY Gift # 4: Snowmen Cocoa Mix & Chocolate Cups
5 DIY Christmas Gifts to Create and Receive-Snowman Hot Cocoa Mix-Cups
Package cute quart sized new paint cans with blue scrapbooking paper and snowflakes. Add hot cocoa mix and seal. Include a scoop and mini chocolate cups filled with marshmallows as a pretty tasty gift.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: none
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4-cups dry mix 1x
- Category: Beverage- gift mix
- Method: Stir & Melt
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
1/4 cup unsweetened special dark cocoa
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground all spice
2 cups instant non fat dry milk
1 cup no dairy creamer
10 small baggies for packaging mix
Chocolate Mini Cups
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon shortening
dashes of ground cinnamon or nutmeg-optional
8–10 small baking cups as a mold
Mini Marshmallows
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together in large bowl; stir to combine.
- Fill small baggies with mix.
- Package for gift: Fill a decorative tin with one cocoa mix baggie. Attach gift tag instructions with small box of mini chocolate cups & marshmallows.
- Gift Tag Instructions: Place 2-3 tablespoons of mix into 6 ounce cup, add boiling water and stir. For richer chocolate add warm milk. Top with mini chocolate cup with mini marshmallows.
Chocolate Mini Cups Instructions
- Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave safe bowl, process 50 seconds , stir till melted.
- Line mini baking cup with melted chocolate using small brush.
- Let harden in refrigerator, when ready to serve, remove baking cup and add marshmallows, sprinkle with ground cinnamon or nutmeg if desired. Add to hot chocolate or to coffee.
DIY Gift # 5: Setting the Table for Winter
Purchase 4 dinner plates with a wintery point of view, in our case Snowmen. The plates could be for dessert or salad. Be sure to include details that coordinate with the plates for added joy. Like small gloves or mittens to hold silverware, a wool or fleece scarf that can be used as a table runner, and a small dessert or napkins. If you have time have the scarf monogramed with a special message. Package this setting in a pretty gift box with tissue paper. To add height to the centerpiece, consider painting white small tree twigs insert in small opening in top of hat. Hang faux snowflakes on the tree twigs.
Other Ideas You Might Like To Try:
Pecan Cinnamon Twists with Confectioner’s Glaze
Stocking Stuffer Candy Nuggets
Stir up Your Gifts- Food Gifts for Gift Giving
