Are you at a loss for frugal gift giving ideas this year?

Throughout December Wise & Wonderful Cookery will be posting simple, food related, DIY gift ideas to get you all inspired and creative and whatnot. Cause you know, we’re all sort of running out of time! So, without further ado, our first gift post, for the baker you love, Lemon Sugar!

Lemon Sugar is easy peasy and delicious! Simply use a vegetable peeler to cut pretty little ribbons of yellow lemon peel, leaving as much of the pith as possible (the white, fluffy, bitter part). Peel one whole lemon, and add to two cups of sugar in a sealed jar (like a mason jar!) Mix and shake around to distribute evenly, then place somewhere room temperature for a few days. The oils from the peel will be pulled out into the sugar, so it may seem to have the packable feel of brown sugar. And it will smell divine of course! Lemon is so spritely and bright; it makes regular sugar cookies pop with freshness. The flavor will be pronounced enough, you can even taste it by just spooning the sugar into your mouth (which I did.)

Any cook would love to receive this gift. It is the sort of sacred item that finds use in special moments, and each time they use it they’ll remember it was you that thought to make it for them. For the gift giver, it couldn’t be a simpler DIY gift– and for the sake of your sanity, I highly suggest simplicity being a theme in your Christmas projects this year. The jar or pot you choose to leave the sugar in could also be decked out in some lovely homemade ribbons and decor– go crazy.

You are also free to explore a whole realm of naturally-flavored-sugar possibilities. Vanilla beans, oranges, lemons, (Grapefruit! Blood oranges!) and limes all give off strong essence into the sweet little granules, and could make a great series of gifts or stocking stuffers to your lucky recipient. After making this once you’ll realize how insanely easy it is (like I have) and start stuffing everything you can find into your sugar pot just to see what happens.

So there you have it! One crazy easy DIY foodie gift, that would cost less than 10 dollars, and probably take you fifteen minutes to prepare. Gift giving feels enriching, so get out there and do some generous things this holiday season. Your time and love are your most valuable gifts– be sure to attach a little to each pretty package as well.

And then if you discover you still have too many lemons lying around, read this wise information on all the random in-house uses lemons have. Cleaning power in your refrigerator folks!