Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas

The Perfect Christmas Gift! 

There is no better way to appreciate your loved ones during the Christmas holiday than with a well thought out gift. In Italian traditions, giving food as a gift is usually esteemed and respected. Italians take their food very seriously! As a result, it comes as no surprise that most Italians like using Italian food baskets for the Christmas holidays or any other occasion. They mostly prefer DIY custom baskets. 

In this post, you’ll discover well-researched Italian food gift basket ideas which you can use as-is or adjust to your preference. Read further to find out more!

Christmas basket, Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas - The Proud Italian

Why you Should not Purchase the Average Gift Basket Online

When you go online, you can easily find an average gift basket that would save you the hassle of creating one yourself. However, it will help if you avoided such gifts. In these food gift baskets, you’ll find a box of generic pasta, a jar of sauce, and some crackers. They also usually fill it with tissue paper to make it look full.

One reason you should not use these online food gift baskets is that they all look the same. That’s boring. Right? Furthermore, they are usually very costly and don’t give good value for money. Lastly, they may end up looking casual as they are not well thought out – they might contain something the person you’re sending it to does not like.

Because of these drawbacks of buying an average gift basket online, please consider creating your own DIY Italian basket that you can tailor to how you want it at a price that is within your budget. In the following sections, you’ll discover more on how to make your DIY gift basket.  

Five Benefits in Making DIY Baskets

If you’re not yet convinced that creating your own gift baskets is an excellent approach, here are five benefits you’ll enjoy when you make DIY baskets:

  1. You’ll have unlimited options to customize the gift basket.
  2. The overall cost is reduced because you’ll buy in bulk to create several baskets.
  3. Italian-themed gift baskets offer more than just Italian foods.
  4. You can customize it for your loved ones with food sensitivities.
  5. A mixed and matched gift basket looks more exciting and well thought out than the boring online gift baskets.

Christmas gift basket, Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas - The Proud Italian

Top Tips for Buying Italian Gift Baskets Online

If you insist on buying a gift basket online, here are some tips that could help you get the best deal:

Find out the actual size

Sometimes what looks big on the screen could be deceivingly small in reality. The images of the baskets posted online usually make them look big and gorgeous. But they are small and might disappoint or even worse embarrass you. It is advisable to find out the real size and use a ruler to understand the dimensions.

Also, look at the individual Italian products contained in the gift baskets. Beware of companies that use fillers like lots of tissue paper to make the basket look full and appealing.

Check the shipping times

If you usually get your Italian imports from Amazon, you must have realized that they offer prime shipping. However, it will help if you ensured that the seller providing the basket could quickly and reliably ship it. There are alarming experiences where the gifts reach the intended person past Christmas.

Go for reputable names

If you can afford it, go for reputable high-brand names. A top drawer Italian gourmet brand matches quality with class. It will help you get the best deal for your money.

Christmas basket and decoration, Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas - The Proud Italian

The Standard Items Needed for an Italian Gift Basket

As you prepare your Italian food gifts to send, ensure they bear the Green, Red, and White, which are colors of the Italian flag. These are the standard items your gift baskets should have:

  • The gift basket itself
  • Red Italian Colander (used in the place of a usual looking basket)
  • Tissue paper (mixed colors preferably green, white, and red)
  • Ribbons and Bows (green, white, and red)

A few Italian Christmas basket ideas

Italian Cheese Gift Baskets

There are various Italian cheeses, you know, but you never realized they are Italian.

Items to include:

Choose a few of the cheeses mentioned below to include:

  • Italian cheese
  • Parmigiana Reggiano
  • Romano
  • Pecorino
  • Gorgonzola (originally from Gorgonzola. It is usually creamy and considered gourmet)
  • Fontina D’Oasta
  • Asiago (this is also gourmet cheese. It is mild and mostly used with hard salami. It can be grated)
  • Taleggio (is gourmet cheese with a unique smell. Include it if the person is adventurous)Bruschetta Toasts, Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas - The Proud Italian
  • Bruschetta Toasts– instead of typical cheese and crackers, you can go for Italian cheese crackers. Bruschetta is a well-known type.
  • Spuntini – this is another type of cracker that looks like a cookie or biscuit.

Important Tips

  • Avoid hand-wrapped cheese that requires refrigeration. Go for vacuum-sealed and airtight cheese that will not go bad before reaching its recipient.
  • Ensure the cheese you select is a hard cheese.

Related non-cheese items to consider:

  • Cheese grater – this is a perfect choice if you’re using hard cheeses. Go for the one that will fit in your basket. Choose a lighter material if you’re concerned about the weight of the basket.
  • Cheese knife or Cutting tray – this piece will complement well with the cheese theme.

Italian gift baskets with wine

Italian food and Italian wine go hand in hand. By including Italian wines, you’ll have real Italian gifts instead of the typical wine basket.

Items to include:

  • Three wines per basket would be enough. For smaller baskets, consider using one bottle. Ensure you know the gift recipient’s preference: is it red or white?
  • Red, white or pink marsala (not for cooking)

Important tips

  • Ensure that the recipient loves wine and drinks alcohol.
  • Wines are usually expensive, so their gift baskets give a high-end impression.
  • If you’re planning to ship them, it will be best to buy them online as long as you can find Italian wine gift baskets.

Wine and Christmas gifts, Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas - The Proud Italian

Related Non-Food Items to Include:

  • Italian wine bottle stopper – you can find many beautiful wine stoppers online.
  • Wine opener – find an elegant wine opener suitable for gifting.
  • Italian wine map with regions – this is a thoughtful addition.
  • Wine glasses – ensure the gift box delivery service packages the wine glasses securely.
  • A subscription to Wine.com

Italian Antipasto Gift Baskets

This is one of the best Christmas gift baskets ideas because it is flexible, and you can get as creative as you want. You can effortlessly make a gift basket for vegetarians or meat lovers alike. Furthermore, you can purchase most of the items at friendly prices, making them economical yet extraordinary.   

What to include:

  • Meatless items: olives, hot peppers, garlic, artichokes, cheese, herbs, olive oil, wine vinegar.
  • Artisan meats: salami, pepperoni, prosciutto, among others.

Important tips:

  • Avoid using straight Italian green olives. Ideally, go for olives that are a mix of lives. They might not be “Italian only” olives, but olives nonetheless.
  • Use jarred items to avoid worrying about refrigeration.
  • You can use this gift basket for other occasions.

Related Antipasto Items to Include:

  • Olive oil and wine vinegar sets
  • Packaged fresh pasta
  • Antipasto bowls

Apart from the food basket ideas discussed above, you can also try a whole foods gift basket, a charcuterie gift basket, or a  pasta gift basket. There are also Italian gift baskets for men and Italian gift baskets for women. The most important thing is to tailor your gift basket to suit the recipient’s tastes and preferences.

Colored pasta pack, Italian Gift Baskets for Christmas - The Proud Italian

Summary

Gifting your loved ones should be a well thought out process. Don’t just get someone an Italian gift basket online without considering what they like. A DIY gift basket gives you the chance to provide your family and friends with customized gifts. 

Furthermore, as revealed in this post, it is more economical and very flexible. There are few tips on DIY Italian gift baskets shared above containing Italian products to get you started. But, if you choose to buy ready-made gift boxes, there are tips in this post that could help. Buone Vacanze!