Show Your Appreciation at Christmas

Posted by JenniferR | 0 comments

Several years ago, as Christmas was fast approaching, I had a dilemma. I wanted to give small but meaningful gifts to a large number of people (pastors, church office workers, child care workers, teachers, coworkers, neighbors, and friends), but I had very little money to make it happen. I wanted the gifts to be useful and practical, but also something that would be a good fit for all types of families (singles, large families, couples with grown children, etc.).

My answer came when I ran across an article in a magazine that showed a layered cookie mix in a jar. I knew that’s what I wanted to do, so I made about 40 of those mixes that year. Everyone loved them so much that a new tradition was born in our family.

Since then, my gift mix obsession has grown as I have explored more creative types of mixes in more unusual packaging. We have made over 100 gift mixes in a given year. At this point, the question from friends isn’t whether or not we will give them a mix, but WHAT mix will we give and HOW will we package it. I have even had certain recipes requested year after year because they were so tasty!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with gift mixes, a gift mix is simply the dry ingredients for a recipe packaged as a gift. The recipient receives instructions for how to finish the recipe and what wet ingredients to add. The most popular gift mixes are “Gift in a Jar” mixes. These are basically mixes that are put into a glass canning jar. The ingredients may be mixed together or layered for a pretty effect.

However, there are many other kinds of gift mixes. You can give mixes for cookies, snack mixes, breads, drinks (hot cocoa, coffee, tea, smoothies, shakes, etc.), soups, rice mixes, cheesecakes, cheese balls, dips, casseroles, or vinegars, just to name a few. You can even design your own mix. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination and creativity.

Making a gift mix is simple and takes very little time. When making a large number of mixes, I suggest setting them up in “assembly line” fashion. Get your kids involved and let them help make and package the mixes. They’ll have fun and save you time in the process!

You will also be pleasantly surprised at how inexpensively you can make a large number of mixes. Your cost can be less than $1 per mix, depending on packaging and ingredients! (Nuts and dried fruit will tend to increase your cost considerably.)

While these gifts are very simple to make, there are a few guidelines to follow to make them work properly. Here are some tips on how to make your gift mixes tasty and beautiful.

• Always try the recipe before you give it away. I made this mistake on my first gift mix and when I finally made the cookies, I realized the recipe needed another egg. I had already printed out the recipe tags when I figured it out, so I had to write in the change. Oops!
• Start with the freshest ingredients. Your gift mix will have a shelf life of 3 months in most cases. If you use fresh ingredients, they will keep fresh that long and still taste delicious.
• When layering, try to keep each layer separate and distinct. Unless otherwise directed by your recipe, place the ingredients with the finest grains at the bottom, then add ingredients with larger grains, and finally top them off with any large chunks. Pack down each layer tightly before adding the next layer. Also, your gift will look prettier if you layer light and dark-colored ingredients alternately.
• On the printed tag, add the shelf life of the ingredients (usually about 3 months), as well as instructions to keep the jar in a cool, dark place. Your recipient will be assured of tasty treats even if he or she can’t get around to making them right away.
• List all the ingredients on the printed tag in case the recipients have any allergies you are not aware of.

There are so many ways to package a gift mix, I cannot possibly name them all. They can be as simple or as elaborate as you want. My best advice is to plan ahead – eventually, everything goes on sale! Here are some ideas to get your creative juices flowing:

• Canning Jars (large or small) – Dress up the jar. Take some pretty fabric and cut out a 9” circle with pinking shears. Place the circle on the lid of the jar and secure it around the neck of the jar using raffia or a ribbon. Print out the instructions on fancy paper using a decorative font and tie the instructions to the jar.
• Paper gift bags—Put the gift mix in a zippered sandwich bag to keep it fresh and then put the mix in a pretty bag. Fold down the top and punch 2 holes in it. Tie a ribbon or raffia through the holes to keep it closed. Attach instructions.
• Cloth bags (either purchased or handmade) – Again, put the gift mix in a zippered sandwich bag to keep it fresh.
• Cone bags – These are the decorator bags that you use for icing. Put mix in cone and tie the top with a pretty ribbon. I have used this method to make “hot cocoa cones.” Put the hot cocoa mix in the bottom, a small layer of mini chocolate chips above that, and marshmallows on top.
• Cups or coffee mugs—These work especially well with drink mixes.
• Purchased or recycled plastic containers – You can use icing containers, drink mix containers, or any other container that could be cleaned and re-decorated.
• Tins
• Recycled cans (coffee or other kinds) – Depending on how you decorate, they can bake the goodies right in the can!
• Clay flowerpots – If you are good at painting, you could paint a design on the pot as an additional decorative touch.
• Oven mitts – Put the gift mix in a zippered sandwich bag to keep it fresh and then put the mix in the oven mitt. Attach instructions with raffia or ribbon.
• For an added creative touch, add an embellishment such as a wooden spoon, cookie cutter, or decorative cheese ball serving knife to your package.

As you can see, gift mixes are an easy, frugal, and fun way to bless more people at Christmastime. There are so many people who touch our lives and our children’s lives during the year.  Giving these small but meaningful gifts is an encouragement them and lets them know that you appreciate their efforts.  Are there people in your life who would love a gift mix? If so, I have listed some resources below to help you find that perfect recipe.

Have you given a gift mix in the past and have a recipe that was a big hit? Do you have a creative idea for packaging not listed here? If so, please leave a comment and share your ideas.

For More Information, Recipes, or Ideas:

• Join an e-mail group that specializes in gift mixes.
• There are lots of gift mix recipe books on the market. Jackie Gannaway has many small gift mix books with recipes and packaging ideas (http://www.cookbookcupboard.com/).
• http://allrecipes.com/ – Search for “in a jar” to find some tried and true mixes.
• http://www.heart4home.net/giftsinajar.htm
• http://members.tripod.com/~MaryMae/jarlinks.htm
• http://www.nikibone.com/recipe/gifts_in_a_jar.html
• http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/christmas/gifts/index.htm
• http://www.allfreecrafts.com/giftinajar/index.shtml
• http://www.thatsmyhome.com/general/index.htm
• Or Google “gift mixes” or “gift mix recipes” to find many other links!

Jennifer R. has been married for 20 years to her college sweetheart and began homeschooling her two daughters in 2003, while also working full-time as a computer analyst. Four years later, she was blessed to be able to come home to be with her daughters full-time. She tries to cherish every day she spends at home with her family as she trains her children to use their natural gifts and abilities to glorify God and serve others. In her free time, she enjoys reading, singing, and crafts and loves to organize theme-based parties. Be sure to visit her blog at Reflections by Jennifer.