Gift Guide: Stocking Stuffers

Every holiday list has a few small gifts on it: the mail carrier, the person who cuts your hair, the neighbor who signs for your packages, and the stockings themselves. The tricky part of a small gift is choosing one for someone you only half know. So start with how well you know them, from the person you wave to from the porch all the way to the people whose stockings you fill.

You know their name and their wave

The mail carrier, the mechanic, the dog walker, the plumber. You probably have no idea whether your plumber likes cumin, so these are the things nearly anyone will use.

Cinnamon Toast Spice is three cinnamons, nutmeg, and brown sugar, already mixed and ready to shake over buttered toast. It's a childhood breakfast in a tin, and we've yet to meet someone who turns down cinnamon toast.

Mulling Spice is a reason to put a pot on the stove. Warm a tablespoon or two per quart of cider or wine for 10 to 15 minutes, keeping it below a boil, and the whole house smells like the holidays.

Candied Ginger is sliced, sugared ginger that you eat right out of the tin, no recipe required. Pick up a few small tins and you could cover the whole delivery route.

Ranch Seasoning is the herby ranch flavor everyone already knows. It's salt-free, so they can stir it into sour cream for a dip or shake it over popcorn and salt to taste.

You know a little about them

The coworker, the neighbor, your kid's teacher. You might know whether they drink tea or coffee, or whether Friday is movie night. Our tasting flights help here, because each one gives them a handful of things to try and they get to pick their own favorite.

The Loose-Leaf Tea Tasting Flight holds five of our best-selling teas, from the smoky Northwest Tea Time to the herbal Pink Chai. For anyone who likes a cup before bed, the Dreamy Nights Tasting Flight is five caffeine-free teas, including Chamomile and Midnight Berry.

For the hot chocolate crowd, there's Mayan Cocoa. It's a bittersweet drinking chocolate with mellow chile warmth, true cinnamon, and allspice.

The Popcorn Sprinkles Tasting Flight has five blends for the bowl, including Buffalo Spice, Bar-H Beef Rub, and Cinnamon Toast Spice. Tuck in a bag of kernels and you've covered movie night.

You know them well

For the person who wants everything hotter, Smokin' Hot Garlic Pepper tastes of garlic and pepper up front, then a smoky, intense heat from chipotle and habanero, with a hint of orange peel. If they'd rather try a few kinds of heat, the Some Like It Hot Tasting Flight has five of our spiciest blends, including Rooster Spice, Piri Piri Blend, and Jerk Seasoning.

For the baker, the Madagascar 3-Count Vanilla Bean is three fair-trade beans. They can scrape the seeds into a batter, or bury the split beans in a jar of sugar for a few weeks and bake with vanilla sugar all winter.

For the person who cooks dinner every night, give them a seasoning salt. They're salting every dish anyway, and with one of these they get garlic, pepper, and spice in the same pinch, with no extra step on a busy weeknight. Svaneti Seasoned Salt is a Georgian blend with caraway, fenugreek, and garlic, and it's a staff favorite on eggs. Voodoo, our best-selling blend, is a chunky seasoning salt inspired by New Orleans, with a gentle kick. They can shake it on grilled meat, roasted vegetables, and eggs, or run a lime around a glass and use it to rim a Bloody Mary.

Once the small gifts are wrapped, you can get on with the big ones. Or make yourself a mug of Mayan Cocoa first.

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