Cookaholics Bulletin Board

I have two sisters...radically different situations. One lives on top of a mountain in NC and wants for nothing, except an occasional Chicago-style pizza. The other lives in Chicago and wants for time, etc., as she is a working mom. I rarely buy them anything culinary as gifts, as I'm just not sure if they are appreciated/used. But, I am sick and tired of buying them both clothes. Culinary gift thoughts?

Amy

That's something we would normally be asking you! How much do they cook? Ages? Price range?
How is your job going?
K

Kath,

My culinary interests are in things like vegetable sheeters...something my sisters would both look at and say, "huh?" I want to keep it around $100, and they are both in their 50s. (I love being the baby.) Both cook because they need to. I'm the chef of the family.

Amy

P.S. The job is going great! We just got a whack of new Sous Vide equipment, so it's going to be a fun season.

How about a good ham? We got one a few years ago and were thrilled with it even tho at first we were a little startled. Can't remember where it came from but it was one of the best hams I've ever eaten
Fitzie

A Dutch Oven?

Lost my friggin' post!!

First thought
Basket or containers of stuff you have made & have stashed in your larder. Jams, jellies, salsas, etc. If you don't think they would appreciate your hard work - give them good store bought that you like & they might not have tried. Stews & soups that are pressure canned. They can add a bag salad & store bought rolls & they have a nice dinner. Mixes that you make up - they add a few ingredients & they have great cookies, soups whatever. Beautiful or whimsical cloth napkins. Jars of store bought things they may not have tried with a note saying this is great over blah, blah, blah. I'll keep thinking.

Glad work is great. Look forward to more detail about what you are doing at work.
K

Well, CI's Chicago Style Pizza freezes amazingly well. Don't know how close it is to the real thing, but you could tweak it. I use a whole milk, low moisture block of moz, btw.

What about something like a panini press and maybe a list of suggested sandwiches. Seems like a great thing for a working mom or someone who like bread with pizza like fillings or maybe even me. Or an ice cream maker, just because it is fun. I would also like a big stack of nice pretty tea towels as mine are starting to looks sad. I also saw a gorgeous ceramic bread box that I would buy if I ever got a bigger shelf for my cookbooks and could get the overflow off the counter. Or a machine that makes soda water (they are called Soda Club and I know they have them in the States). I LOVE mine it is good to mix with flavored syrups to make your own pop. YOU could make them an array of syrups to go with it. Penzey's also has nice gift selections. You could get a nice salad bowl (or servers) and and fill it with mixes that could be sprinkled onto salads.

That's all I can think of now. What a nice sister you are, wish you were shopping for me!

Mary

Brilliant! My eldest sister (the one in Chicago) will love it!

Thanks Mary!

Amy

P.S. Panini press recommendations?

I'm liking the idea of sending the rich (I need nothing) sister a buttload of Chicago Deep Dish pizzas. My BIL would certainly love it. Okay, anyone from Chicago actually make the CI recipe? (Not that I don't trust you JesBelle.) It's got to be true, or it's just not worth it.

Amy