It’s not too late to consider giving food gifts. Many can be thrown together pretty quickly.
There are many recipes for soup mixes. Here’s an easy one that anyone can make (or cook) in The Bachelor’s Kitchen. It’s Country Soup In A Jar
. This makes enough for a one-quart jar. You can scale the recipe for the size you want. You could even make a large batch for several jars.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup barley
- 1/2 cup dried split peas
- 1/2 cup uncooked white rice
- 1/2 cup dry lentils
- 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
- 2 tablespoons beef bouillon granules
- 1/2 cup uncooked alphabet pasta
- 1 cup uncooked twist macaroni
Directions:
- In a wide mouth 1 quart jar, layer the barley, peas, rice and lentils. Then layer around the edges the onion, parsley, salt, lemon pepper, bouillon and the alphabet pasta. Fill the rest of the jar with the twist macaroni.
- Seal and attach a gift card or label. It should read:Add contents of jar to 3 quarts of water, 2 stalks of chopped celery, 2 sliced carrots, 1 cup of shredded cabbage (optional) and 2 cups diced tomatoes. Over medium low heat, cover and simmer about 1 hour, or until vegetables are tender.
You can decorate the jar with ribbons, bows, stickers or other handicrafts. Just be sure to include the instructions.
Another idea is an infused oil
or vinegar or a flavoring. These usually keep for about six months. There’s berry-infused vinegar, garlic and basil olive oil, homemade mustard or your own spice mix. Just remember to use the highest quality ingredients you can afford.
We have some more ideas, so keep looking for our holiday gift ideas. And we really want to hear some of your own ideas.
