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Give a fig for Christmas: Rachel Roddy's dried figs stuffed with almonds dipped in chocolate.
Give a fig for Christmas: Rachel Roddy's dried figs stuffed with almonds dipped in chocolate. Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Esther Clark. Prop styling: Louie Waller.
Give a fig for Christmas: Rachel Roddy's dried figs stuffed with almonds dipped in chocolate. Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Esther Clark. Prop styling: Louie Waller.

Our best Christmas food gifts – with recipes

From our archive: from festive pickles and homemade sweets to luxury biscuits and exotic oils, a a gift you’ve made yourself can make someone’s Christmas

Rachel Roddy’s Christmas dried figs stuffed with almonds dipped in chocolate (pictured above)

A centuries-old Roman treat of dried fig halves, stuffed with almonds and candied orange, and dipped in dark chocolate.

Cheese biscuits, brittle and fig jam: Yotam Ottolenghi’s Christmas gifts for food lovers

Yotam Ottolenghi’s ‘everything’ cheesers. Photograph: Louise Hagger/The Guardian. Food styling: Emily Kydd, Prop styling: Jennifer Kay.

A trio of presents that you’ll want for Christmas dinner: a ginger nut brittle to serve as is or to blitz into a toast-topping paste, crumbly cheese biscuits and an enticingly easy fig jam

Spice up your life: Thomasina Miers’ chilli jar gift set

Thomasina Miers’ chilli gift set - chilli oil, chilli relish, chiltatis-style nutty sprinkles. Photograph: Yuki Sugiura/The Guardian. Food styling: Jenny White. Prop styling: Aya Nishimura. Food assistant: Toni Musgrave.

Three jars that will delight any chilli lovers: a Chinese chilli oil, an ancho pickle and a Mexican spice blend

Nut clusters and herby oat cookies: Honey & Co’s food gift ideas

Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Esther Clark. Prop styling: Louie Waller.

Buttery, crisp cashew clusters with a mustardy kick, and a cheeseboard showstopper of rosemary-scented oat biscuits

Meera Sodha’s vegan jewelled florentines

Photograph: Louise Hagger/The Guardian. Food styling: Emily Kydd, Prop styling: Jennifer Kay.

A fruit-and-nut Christmas treat to wrap up and gift – assuming you can keep your hands off in the meantime

David Atherton’s pickles and chutney gift jars

David Atherton’s picked beets with allspice and cloves. Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Esther Clark,. Prop styling: Louie Waller.

A festive ketchup, pickled beets, carrot chutney and marinated feta – all surprisingly easy to make

Bottle it: drinks gifts for Christmas

Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Esther Clark. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins.

A bottle of a favourite tipple is bound to be a surefire hit

Benjamina Ebuehi’s ginger and treacle crinkle cookies

Photograph: Ola O Smit/The Guardian. Food styling: Benjamina Ebuehi. Prop styling: Aya Nishimura.

Crackly, Christmassy, sugar-coated ginger nut biscuits to give to family and friends (or, more likely, to devour in one sitting)

Felicity Cloake’s festive shortbread selection

Photograph: Dan Matthews/The Guardian. Food styling: Jack Sargeson.

As made by the Guardian’s resident recipe perfectionist, with a few choices of festive flavourings

From chilli oil to tahini thins: Yotam Ottolenghi’s edible gifts

Yotam Ottolenghi’s festive chilli oil. Photograph: Louise Hagger/The Guardian. Food styling: Emily Kydd. Prop styling: Jennifer Kay. Food styling assistant: Susanna Unsworth.

Make room under the Christmas tree for these spiced biscuits, sweet treats and spicy infused oils

Thomasina Miers’ dark chocolate, orange and cranberry granola

Photograph: Yuki Sugiura/The Guardian. Food styling: Sunil Vijayakar. Prop styling: Louie Waller. Food assistant: Fernanda Milanezi

Not just any granola, but a deeply chocolatey one laced with festively tangy orange and cranberry to pack into jars and give as presents

Meera Sodha’s vegan spiced chocolate coins

Photograph: Louise Hagger/The Guardian. Food styling: Emily Kydd. Prop styling: Jennifer Kay. Food styling assistant: Susanna Unsworth.

A low-effort treat that will make a high-impact gift to send to friends

The four spirits of Christmas

Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Kitty Coles. Prop styling: Louie Waller.

A clementine cordial, a chestnut brandy syrup, a red-wine punch and a Christmas-pudding-infused vodka, from Claire Strickett and Bert Blaize

Kylee Newton’s Christmas spreads and jams

Kylee Newton’s pear and ground coffee jam. Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Kylee Newton. Prop styling: Louie Waller.

A chocolate and chestnut spread, an apple and date chutney, a pear and ground coffee jam, and a quince and rosemary jelly

Ravneet Gill’s pecan, orange and milk chocolate cookies

Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Benjamina Ebuehi. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food assistant: Kristine Jakobsson.

Freshly baked cookies are an ideal gift. Freeze the dough and cook from frozen when required

Felicity Cloake’s stollen

Photograph: Dan Matthews/The Guardian

The festive German fruit bread is a satisfying and delicious bake and a (ahem) perfect homemade Christmas gift

Chocolate thins and nut brittle: Rachel Roddy’s sweet Christmas gifts

Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Kitty Coles. Prop styling: Louie Waller. Food assistant: Sarah Vassallo.

Easy walnut, honey and bay leaf sweets (nociata) and little chocolate, nut and currant sweets

Helen Goh of Ottolenghi’s Christmas sweets

Helen Goh’s dried lime truffles with honey and salt. Photograph: Lizzie Mayson/The Guardian. Food styling: Rosie Ramsden. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins.

An assortment of sweet treats to box up for loved ones: hazelnut brittle, marmalade rugelach, lime chocolate truffles and treacle gingerbread stars

Chiristmas jams and chutneys, from Pam Corbin

Pam Corbin’s smoky beetroot ketchup. Photograph: Lizzie Mayson/The Guardian. Food styling: Rosie Ramsden. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins.

Smoky beetroot ketchup, Sauternes jelly, chutney and a sumptuous sticky jalapeno jam

Ideal Christmas sweet bottles to gift (rather than glug)

It’s safe to say your hosts will have selected booze to go with the main courses, so why not plump for a sweet or fortified wine to round things off with a bang?

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