Gourmet Gift of the Day Blog

Featured in Oprah’s Magazine as the “Best of Bread”, Hannah Banana Bread is wildly popular in Chicago and is quickly gaining fame throughout the country.  The company started by accident, when the founder was hosting a party for her daughter and ended up serving her fresh baked bread because the caterer was late.  The guests were so impressed with the bread that they convinced Lisa Spinner to start marketing it.  9 years later Hanna Banana Bread is sold to a number of retail outlets in the Chicago area and is available online through the company website.

My homemade banana bread has never won any prizes, but my family still seems to enjoy it.  However, I’m not sure they will ever settle for my recipe again since they tasted the Hannah Banana Classic loaves.  The bread had a crusty top (made by sprinkling pure cane sugar on top of the hot loaf), moist and tender inside, was easy to cut and delicious to eat!  We warmed the slices in the microwave and slathered them with butter, but then found the butter was not necessary because the sweet taste was perfect by itself!  We quickly “disposed” of the 8 mini loaves (12 oz apiece) and my boys were begging for more!  The classic pack of 8 mini-loaves cost $48 plus FedEx Ground shipping of $11.51.  I was a bit worried about the product’s freshness after being in transit for a few days, but the bread arrived tasting fresh and stayed that way for the 4 days it took us to devour them.

Bottled in the height of grape-crushing season, this Napa Valley Cabernet has a full-bodied flavor that compliments the foodstuffs included.  The dark willow basket includes a bottle of Avalon Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Ghirardelli chocolates, pecan chocolate chip cookies, gourmet nuts, California crisps crackers, creamy jack cheese and beef salami.  This basket was a great gift for my aunt and uncle – who had lived in California for years but just recently returned to the midwest.  They sponsored my son in so he could attend summer camp and this was a great way to thank them.  We found the gourmet basket for $65 at All About Gifts & Baskets.

High in protein, low in fat and 100% natural, these jumbo sea scallops are some of the best I’ve ever tasted!  Because they are caught fresh, hand-shucked and flash frozen, the U10 graded scallops (the largest size available) have a flaky texture and fresh taste.  We ordered a two pack (each pack is approximately 10 ounces) for $45.50 and received enough for 3 meals.  The website even offers delicious recipes for their items, we tried the Scallop and Tomato Pasta and were rewarded with a great tasting meal that even our kids enjoyed!

The folks at Alaska Harvest offer 10 different types of seafood, all of them freshly caught and quickly frozen for shipping througout the United States.  The company is in control of the product from the time it is caught until the time it is shipped to you, so there is no middle-man markup and they stand behind the quality of their foods 100%.  I highly recommend both the products and the customer service from this company.

This gift is a great idea for dads that love to ride – and it’s much cheaper than a Harley!  Not only that but the cookies are delicious and if you’re lucky dad may even share some.  The ceramic motorcycle planter is filled with a dozen jumbo cookies in assorted flavors, or you can choose your own from a list of 6 gourmet varieties.  Perfect if dad has a sweet tooth, the planter is available for $50 plus $9.95 for ground shipping.

Many years ago, during a high school trip to Florida, my classmates and I tried alligator meat at a restaurant.  Being from a small town in the midwest this was quite an exotic experience for us!  Since it has been nearly 20 years since that school trip I decided it was time to try alligator again.  I ordered this “Tail Gator” package from Gatorama – one of the original roadside attractions located Palmdale, FL.  As you can tell by their name Gatorama is all about alligators – they offer tours, shows, souvenirs and fresh farm-raised alligator meat.  The $99 package included 7 1/2 lbs of alligator tail meat, Everglades all purpose seasoning, “Swamp Mustard” for dipping and a package of alligator jerky.  To cook the meat we first covered it with all purpose seasoning, then baked it in the oven and dipped it in the “swamp mustard”.  I liked the meat without dip but my husband loved the dip!  The meat was great – moist and tasty with a mild flavor.  It’s hard to describe the flavor of the meat because one bite would remind of chicken, the next fish, the next like nothing I’ve ever had (or can remember anyway).  Overall we were very pleased with the meat and I’m looking forward to having it again – maybe this time during another trip to Florida!

By the way, the alligator jerky in this basket was outstanding!  My entire family loves jerky and it’s too bad we only received one piece because the four of us fought over it.  I’ve added alligator jerky to my “must order again” list!

My dad loves to share treats with his 14 grandchildren!  That’s why this goodie tin is a great choice for him – not only can he enjoy some favorite snacks while we sit around a bonfire, he’ll have plenty to share with everyone.  The large 3 1/2 gallon tin contains 4 popcorn flavors, pretzels and a fiesta party mix.  After the tin is empty it will be a great place to store our campfire necessities – marshmallows, candy bars and graham crackers!  The white tin with a fun Father’s Day logo sells for $50 at Holiday Gifts & Gift Baskets.

With berries in full season, we love to incorporate them into every meal.  Not only are they great tasting but their great mix of anti-oxidents are good for our health.  Here we found a light and buttery crumb topping covering a delicious mix of raspberries, blueberries and strawberries with a hint of citrus.  The thick berry filling is a great match to the light topping and is delivered in reusable ceramic containers.  When they arrived for my sister’s birthday dinner last week I only had to pop them in the oven and finish with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for the perfect ending!  We received four large (8.8 oz) desserts for $41.95 plus shipping.

There are always good things to be found in a treasure chest – and this one is no different!  The folks at Gourmet Cookie Bouquets fill a dark brown chest with a dozen fortune cookies that have been hand dipped, decorated and individually packaged.  You can even choose your gourmet dip flavors – Belgian chocolate (milk, dark and white) or gourmet caramel flavors (including caramel toffee and caramel almond).  There are more than 10 fortune themes, you can send traditional messages of good fortune, congratulations messages for birthdays, weddings or new baby, even graduation and holiday messages.  This handsome treasure chest is available for $21.

If you want a something more out of your peanut butter, try this Gourmet Sampler offered by P.B. Loco.  Not only does this company own some of the most unique PB&J Restaurants, they also sell 10 flavors of refined, “grown up” peanut butter.  Their Team Morale Booster Kit contains a jar of each flavor with a box of tasting spoons for $60.55.  Flavors include:

• Dreamy Creamy
• Munchy Crunchy
• PB with Asian Curry Spice
• PB with Sumatra Cinnamon and Raisin
• PB with Raspberry White Chocolate
• Jungle Banana Peanut Butter
• Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Duo
• CoCo Banana Peanut Butter
• PB with Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
• Caramel Apple Peanut Butter

We have found that this golden gift bucket is a great way to thank our clients for their business.  It has a great mix of snack items and a reasonable price.  The bucket retails for $37, and has become so popular that some of our clients have asked for the website information and they have ordered it themselves.  The bucket features star cut-outs along the upper edge and is filled with:

• Gourmet Cookies
• Roasted Peanuts
• Hard Candy
• Popcorn
• Pretzels
• Chocolates
• Sparkling Cider
• Gourmet Coffee