Design It Yourself - How To Make A Gourmet Italian Gift Basket
Gourmet Italian Gift Baskets - Everything You Need To Design It Yourself
The Benefits Of Making Your Own Italian Gift Basket
Wondering how to make an Italian gift basket? Give your gifts a personal touch. Whether you’re shopping for one or for many gift recipients, as with holiday shopping, DIY gift baskets are an excellent choice. What we love about this option is just how personal you can make it, including favorites you know they’re going to love. There are endless options to customize your gourmet food gift, which may be helpful for someone on a restricted diet or with food sensitivities, such as gluten-free or dairy-free. For multiple baskets, you can buy in bulk, making for more affordable gifts for your people. Besides all of these reasons, it really is great fun!
The best Italian foods to put in a gift basket.
Looking to build a DIY gift basket? Italian foods make for the best gifts. What’s more exciting than opening a gourmet foods gift basket and discovering all of the amazing treats within? Because they’re loaded with so many gourmet goods in a curated presentation, gift baskets make the perfect group gifts, corporate gifts and thoughtful care packages for your favorite people. While you can totally go the easy route and order some pre-made Italian gift baskets online, putting together your own baskets for gifting is a fun way to make it more personal. Take it a step further and have gifts sent right to their door. Near or far, your friends and family will love having gifts delivered.
Here are some must-have items for your DIY Italian foods gift baskets:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A bottle of great Italian extra virgin olive oil in the kitchen is invaluable. Treat them to one they are sure to savor long after the gift basket is gone. Made from the first cold press of hand-selected Italian olives, our signature Extra Virgin Olive Oil captures a bright and fruity raw olive flavor. DeLallo Extra Virgin Olive Oil is guaranteed authentic and is perfect for everything from salads and vegetables to pasta and meat marinades. Our Private Reserve Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a special gift to give on its own.
Italian Pasta
What is an Italian foods gift basket without pasta? Our imported pasta is made in Italy with only the finest hard durum wheat and generations of pasta-making experience. To create our pasta, we use bronze plates to extrude each pasta cut and employ slow-drying techniques. These artisanal methods of production capture the best taste and texture for a pasta that always cooks up al dente. DeLallo Pasta comes in a number of varieties and shapes to include classic and specialty shapes.
But what if you need to make a gluten-free gift basket? We’re glad you asked. We offer two great-tasting varieties of Italian gluten-free pasta. And we’re not just talking about ordinary pasta cuts either. Our Gluten-Free Gnocchi is a big hit with our wheat-free fans.
Pasta Sauce
Next up, pick out a sauce or three that will shine paired up with that incredible Italian pasta. Not everyone makes from-scratch sauces, but everyone loves a great jar of sauce. In our minds, a great pasta sauce is a real gift, one that doesn’t require additional ingredients to amp up its flavor. May we suggest an irresistibly herbaceous basil pesto sauce, a creamy tomato vodka sauce or any of our fresh-tomato Pomodoro Fresco Pasta Sauces.
Olives & Antipasti
No Italian gift basket is complete without a generous selection of their favorite olives and antipasti. Whether they want to snack like a superstar or use them as gourmet ingredients in their favorite recipes, olives and antipasti boast big flavors and a stunning presentation making them a no-brainer for your Italian foods gift basket. Hint: Pitted Calamata Olives, Greek Feta Salad, Roasted Red Peppers and Pickled Garlic are some top-selling fan favorites around here.
Bruschetta & Spreads
Think of bruschetta as an essential condiment and gourmet ingredient in the world of Italian foods. When creating a custom gift basket brimming with gourmet Italian goodies, don’t forget the bruschetta. It is colorful, eye-catching and loaded with big flavors that are sure to excite the palate. What really makes bruschetta a necessary component of any great gift basket is that it can be used to brighten up just about any kitchen creation: from before-the-meal bites to pasta sauces and dressings. When served with toasts or toasted slices of crusty Italian bread, it’s a traditional Italian antipasto that’s both easy to love and to prepare. Bruschetta can also be part of an elaborate cheese board or antipasto spread. Just a spoonful or two is a simple upgrade for pasta sauces, marinades, dressings and more.
Bruschetta isn’t the only condiment that needs a spot in your gift basket. Sweet and fruity spreads, like our Fig Spread, and briny olive tapenades add a new dimension to your gift baskets as brilliant complements to specialty cheeses on charcuterie plates and cheese boards, as well as crostini appetizers.
Cured Meats & Cheeses
It’s no secret that cured meats and cheeses are the life of the party. Up your gift basket game with a stick or two of crave-worthy Italian salumi like Sopressata or the classic Pepperoni. Go for the gold with eye-catching dry sausages that have been coated for extra flavor, like Italian Herb and Black Pepper. As for cheeses, choose something aged and delicious like Parmigiano-Reggiano, Grana or Sharp Asiago. Not only are they natural pairings with all of your gift basket goodies, but they typically don’t need refrigerated right away.
We recommend choosing vacuum-sealed meats and aged cheeses that are air-tight and don’t require refrigeration.
For pairing ideas, check out The All-Inclusive Wine, Cheese & Olive Pairing Guide.
Toasts & Breadsticks
Don’t forget the crunchy carbs. Breads aren’t just the perfect palette cleansers, but also an irresistibly crunchy component to pasta dinners, antipasto spreads, charcuterie plates and cheese boards... and just about any gourmet snacking occasion, really. Items like our Focaccia Toasts and Italian Breadsticks are a delicious and easy way to add to the overall presentation of your gift basket.
Italian Cookies
Add a sweet finish to your handmade gift baskets with their favorite Italian cookies. Hand-crafted in small batches, our gourmet collection of Twice-Baked Biscotti and Pizzelles are the perfect after-dinner treat or cookie to enjoy with a morning espresso. They come in a number of sweet varieties, like Chocolate Almond and Orange Pecan.
Other Items And Tips To Consider
Take your food baskets to the next level with one or a couple of non-food items that relate to your Italian theme. Colanders, cheese graters, tea towels, pasta bowls, wine or a similar bottled beverage. Upgrade your presentation with cards, colored tissue paper and bows. Coordinate these for the occasion or holiday. Oh, and don’t forget the basket, of course!
If shipping gourmet food gifts, consider a gift box instead of a basket. We also recommend choosing jars over plastic containers for items that can spill. Glass is heartier than it seems—just be sure to wrap each item individually.
Looking for ready-made gift baskets?
No time to create your own Italian gift basket? Our team of gifting experts have put together an amazing collection of edible gift baskets. Gourmet gifts are available in a wide range of sizes, prices and styles, there’s something for every occasion and every gift recipient on your list—from artfully curated meat and cheese gift baskets to Italian grocery gifts to sweet Italian cookies for the sweet tooth in your life.
For bulk and corporate gift ideas, check out our corporate gifts page.