Foodies will love these 10 gifts, voted as the best of 2021 by our readers

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If you need the perfect gift for a friend or family member who's a longtime foodie or found a new love of the kitchen during the pandemic, you'll want to check out this list of foodie-centric gift ideas. 

To find the best gift ideas for 2021, a panel of experts selected 20 nominees, then our readers voted for the 10 best.

Photo courtesy of Green Fig & Lionfish

10. "Green Fig & Lionfish" by Chef Allen Susser

Bring the flavors of the Caribbean into your home kitchen with the "Green Fig & Lionfish" cookbook from Chef Allen Susser. The book features 70 eco-conscious recipes, as well as references for how to prepare and handle fish and make your own Caribbean spice mixes.

Photo courtesy of Deirdre Lewis

9. Smallhold Mushroom Kits

Smallhold networks with mushroom farms across the United States to provide fresh products to local retailers and restaurants. They also offer grow kits for blue oyster and lion's mane mushrooms, which make great gift ideas for cooks passionate about cooking. Smallhold might even be an introduction to a mushroom farming career for the right entrepreneur.

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8. Emerald Estate Chocolate

Unlike most chocolate manufacturers, Emerald Estate processes their cocoa beans on their property in St. Lucia in the West Indies. This process ensures quality from the plants to the finished product while promoting better farm management practices free of harmful chemicals. They produce a variety of products that will make a tasty and thoughtful gift.

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7. Five Farms Single Batch Irish Cream Liqueur

Combine fresh cream from family-owned farms on the coastline of County Cork with authentic triple-distilled Irish whiskey, and you’ll understand why this cream liqueur won the Chairman’s Trophy at the 2018 Ultimate Spirits Challenge, the premier spirits competition in the world. It’s available online or through distributors in sixteen states.

10Best contributor Jacky Runice adds, “It’s a sweet holiday hostess gift.”

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6. Kroma Wellness OMG Cookie Butter

OMG Cookie Butter by Kroma Wellness contains powerful antioxidants, healthy omega fats and plant proteins that make a tasty gift for a health-conscious foodie. Key ingredients include raw almonds, coconut oil, hemp seeds, goji berries, cinnamon and a touch of maple sugar.

Photo courtesy of Laura Donovan

5. Grill Masters Box

Pre is all about meat. They ethically source grass-fed and grass-finished beef from Australia and New Zealand – no hormones or antibiotics, no GMOs – then bring them to the American market. Their Grill Master's Box makes an excellent gift for the steak lovers on your list; it includes 38 servings of meat in various cuts, packed on dry ice and delivered to their door.

Photo courtesy of Jordan Battiste

4. Prime 6 Charcoal

Charcoal has been a fuel source for cooking for centuries, as well as a popular choice for grilling today. Prime 6 was created by a husband-and-wife team who wanted to make the best charcoal product possible – no chemicals, fillers or binders, made from densely-packed pure hardwood waste dust, long-lasting and no ash residue to clean up. It's an ideal gift for the grill master on your list.

Photo courtesy of Hudson Valley Marshmallow Company

3. S'mores Gift Basket

Hudson Valley Marshmallow Co. lets you design your own S’mores Gift Baskets for gifting or indulging. Choose your marshmallow flavor (vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, salted caramel or French toast) and two graham cracker flavors (cinnamon sugar, chocolate or chocolate chip) for the ultimate customized s’mores.

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Photo courtesy of Zen of Slow Cooking

2. Zen of Slow Cooking Sampler Pack

If you have a budding chef on your gift list, surprise them with a globally-inspired sampler pack from Zen of Slow Cooking, a women-owned Chicago company. Whether they want to serve the flavors of coq au vin, provençale, Indian dal, Mediterranean, smoky barbeque or Southwestern, Zen makes it easy by packaging all the spices for them to add to their slow cooker or pressure cooker.

Photo courtesy of Nine Mile Restaurant

1. Nine Mile Hot Sauces

Spice up your foodie gift basket this year with hot sauces from Nine Mile, a North Carolina-based vegetarian-friendly restaurant. This Jamaican-inspired collection includes Red-I with chipotles and habaneros, the tomatillo-based Hempress Rising with hints of thyme and garlic, and the Sun is Shining hot sauce with a touch of mango and ginger.