I’m a dedicated home chef, I love to cook and feed my loved ones. I spend most of my free time at home trying new recipes, meal prepping, researching recipes, making lists, prepping ingredients, and researching beautiful and functional things. I love to host, and I love to bring homemade food and housewarming gifts to parties. My favorite gifts to receive around the holidays are cooking related! I think their cost per use is super low, they are some of the best value gifts for the home chef in your life. Here’s a gift guide I’ve put together focused on splurge items or things that are on lists but aren’t the first few purchases that would be amazing gifts for people who love to cook and host that they might not have gotten for themselves yet.
QUICK LINKS
1. Dansko Devyn Slides | 2. Tovolo Ice Cube Tray | 3. Material Knife Stand | 4. Hazeltine Candles | 5. KINTO CAST Glass Water Jug | 6. KINTO Travel Tumbler | 7. GIR Spatula | 8. CB2 Tasting Glass | 9. Walnut Cutting Board | 10. Element Brooklyn Mandarin Crush Hand Soap Refill | 11. PKK Brava Medium Mug | 12. Ateco Wood and Boar Bristle Pastry Brush | 13. Ceramic Non Stick Pan | 14. JB Prince Offset Tweezers
THE BREAKDOWN
1. Dansko Devyn Slides $59.98 | I love my Dansko Clogs for running around in the fall and spring. As I get older I’ve noticed I can’t just wear the cutest fuzzy slippers, they have to have support. These Dansko slides are amazing, cushy comfort, slip resistant bottom, non-sweaty open slide format for the summer and layerable with fuzzy socks for the winter, they’re the best. They look a little dorky, but they’re amazing.
2. Tovolo Ice Cube Tray $14.99 | This is the best ice cube tray ever. My MIL’s bougie sister has these in her freezer and she changed my life. They’re the easiest release ice cube tray, they never stink and are easily cleaned with a vinegar and water mix. The big cubes are perfect for a whiskey cocktail in a rocks glass, and the smaller cubes are great for any beverage. I will never purchase a different brand of ice cube trays ever again.
3. Material Knife Stand $110 | A gorgeous knife stand by a cool company with a strong magnet and double sided storage. This stand looks beautiful in your kitchen and keeps your knives looking tidy.
4. Hazeltine Candles $54 | A very nice candle is great to clear out cooking smells from your house. This brand from New Orleans has super strong and lovely scents that are really powerful. I love layering these with incense.
5. KINTO CAST Glass Water Jug $33.40 | When people come over for dinner I like being able to take the water to the table in a chilled jug, this one has a nice volume for table water refills and I love that it has a lid, I can infuse lemon slices in it in the fridge.
6. KINTO Travel Tumbler $34.20 | Another KINTO piece, I’m obsessed with this travel tumbler. I use it as my everyday water bottle, it keeps things cold or hot for hours. I love the 2 piece lid, resulting in a wonderful drinking experience that is super easy to clean. It’s totally spill proof, YETIs and other high end tumblers often leak as they don’t have a full seal lid, I can throw this KINTO in my zip bag on an airplane, take it to the gym, or use it at my desk all without spills. I’ve had mine for years and it still looks beautiful with literally constant use.
7. GIR Spatula $15.95 | The best silicone spatulas. These are plastic free, I’ve always been worried about plastic spatulas melting in my cooking so that’s amazing and no microplastics in food is a win. They don’t leave behind a synthetic taste, they can be thrown in the dishwasher, they’re one contiguous piece so nothing can break or rot, and they’re almost indestructible. They also come in pretty colors. I have the 5 piece set, all the pieces are great and in constant use in my kitchen, I especially love the ladle as it is flexible and can scoop to the bottom of the pot for the last bit of soup.
8. CB2 Tasting Glass $2per | These sweet little tasting glasses are so pretty. They remind me of glassware at Tonchin Ramen in Brooklyn. They’re perfect for a small glass of table wine at a dinner with friends, a sparkling water side car to your espresso in the morning, a mini matcha at 2pm, a Back to a shot of Mezcal, or a stemless alternative to a Nick and Nora glass. They’re delicate and sweet but are also dishwasher safe.
9. Walnut Cutting Board $180 | A gorgeous real wood cutting board from a single piece of wood is always nice. When buying cutting board focus on a single piece of wood that’s thick in height. If you’re going for a composite butcher block, make sure it is against the grain and sturdy, otherwise that will split within the year.
10. Element Brooklyn Mandarin Crush Hand Soap Refill $27 | I love fancy soap but can’t splurge on it for the kitchen. This dupe of Aesop makes great hand products, this scent is so refreshing for the kitchen. A plain amber glass bottle is a great accompaniment to this one and the refill is massive.
11. PKK Brava Medium Mug $65 | Beautiful ceramics by PKK Ceramics in the best colors. I love the sizes they make, not too big and perfect for an Americano. They shape is super satisfying. I think these have the potential to reinvent your fancy auntie’s after-dinner coffee service in her Ginori cup and saucers, replicating the effortless chic vibe in a collected and modern way. I’d love to get a set of 8+ of these to last me for the couple decades. Starting the collection with just 1 would be lovely, also.
12. Ateco Wood and Boar Bristle Pastry Brush $7.99 | A nice pastry brush is great for pastry egg wash, but also perfect for glazing hot proteins like salmon or buttering a muffin pan. The natural boar bristles clean beautifully in dish soap in your palm, and are very hardy with no risk of melting like plastic. They also hold on to fats and marinades better than silicone brushes.
13. Ceramic Non Stick Pan $109.95 | Ever since I watched Dark Waters I’ve been terrified of Teflon! I threw away 3 pans that same night. If you haven’t watched it, watch it, it is a great movie. A high quality ceramic non-stick pan is worth the money. Treat it right, and it will last you years. Always only use wood utensils, clean immediately, don’t use aerosol oil sprays, and don’t go above medium heat, and she’ll be happy. Non-stick is a necessary kitchen tool for things like scrambled eggs, frying frozen gyoza, super delicate fish, and crepes, you just sometimes need to do the non stick.
14. JB Prince Offset Tweezers $24.90 | Although not a splurge in price, this feels like something I’d hold off on getting myself for a while that would actually bring a ton of joy in everyday cooking. A cute set of offset tweezers, this is great for flipping a million tiny somethings, decorating cakes, working with precision, or plating pretty things.