For the foodie on your list, go beyond a gift basket this holiday season: Jasmine Mangalaseril

We're in the final stretch of gift giving season and if you're scrabbling for ideas for your favourite foodie, or if that great gift you ordered won't arrive on time, local businesses might have that perfect present.

Food subscriptions, delivery services, and packages are a great idea, whether it's for those who've gone through a life change like a new baby or have become the primarycare giver for an elderly relative, students living on their own, or people with busy lifestyles.

Lady Sara's Bounty is a meal delivery service in Guelph with weekly meals for families and individuals.

Dana Shortt Gourmet and Gifts in Waterloo offers heat-and-serve meal packages that feature foods from nearby shops and kitchens.

You can also gift a subscription as a treat or change from the everyday, like cheese subscriptions from Guelph's Sweet Cheeses.

Waterloo region's Food Zen offers in-home personal chef services as well meal plan subscriptions for singles, couples, and families. They also have a kids' lunch option for busy parents.

Kitchener's Mom's Bread and Pie Co. care package and new subscription pie package offers family-sized or individual-sized savoury pies (desserts can be added on), delivered monthly or quarterly.

"Food gifts are fantastic because you're supporting the local businesses, but you're also filling a very vital need," explained Kristie Bannon, owner of Mom's Bread and Pie Co. "So, to me, being able to contribute to that is very meaningful and it feels very good."

All about the experience

If you're not sure on what to give someone, experiences provide unique memories, expand horizons and create, build, or strengthen relationships.

Self-guided tours, such as the Craft Gin Trail, the Kitchener-Waterloo Craft Beer Trail, and Stratford's Bacon and Ale Trail provide a map, but the recipient will need to organise transportation and contact the stops beforehand.

Guided tours such as Waterloo region's Stroll Walking Tours, Taste Detours in Guelph and Stratford Walking Tours take care of all the details as you meet owners and chefs and try their dishes and drinks.

Stratford's Puck's Plenty hosts foraging sessions for fiddleheads, wild leeks, various mushrooms, and more.

For coffee lovers, a cupping session, like those offered at Waterloo's Eco Coffee, provide a fun way to learn about their favourite drink while sampling different bean varieties or processing techniques to compare flavours, body, and mouthfeel. Some sessions provide participants with beans to take home.

"What we offer, as part of the coffee cupping experience, is a time to share an experience together learn a little bit about something that you might enjoy," explained Eco Coffee's product manager, Jared Lyons.

Get cookin'

Whether they can turn out an impeccable six-course meal for 12 without breaking a sweat or find boiling water a challenge, there are cooking classes for every age group, skill level, and many cuisines and diets. The classes can be in-person or online, hands-on or demonstrations.

Ayr's 1909 Culinary Academy hosts hands-on classes, each themed around ingredients or dishes. Kitchener's Relish Cooking Studio has demonstration and hands-on classes, along with author events where they'll demonstrate recipes from their cookbooks.

Erin's Woolen Mill Kitchen and the Kitchener Market offer cooking classes for children and adults.

If you're interested in world cuisine, Krishan Indian Cooking School hosts in-person sessions in Puslinch, or you can learn Italian dishes online through Natalina's Kitchen.

K-W's The Culinary Studio offers on-demand and live, interactive online cook-along classes. For students, getting full support while in their home kitchens provides a different experience than learning on unfamiliar stoves and pans.

"Some of the feedback we get from people is 'I make that recipe all the time' because their very first experience [was] cooking that recipe [with us] in their own kitchen, with their own equipment," explained co-founder Jody O'Malley.

Support local

Maria Burjoski, co-owner of Kitchener's Relish Cooking Studio made these suggestions for those looking for gifts for home cooks:

• If PFOAs and other chemicals are a concern, carbon steel, cast iron and stainless steel are durable pan options.
• Sought-after kitchen tools include Dreamfarm's slimline citrus juicer and their always sharp peeler.
• Wustoff's 4.5" Kitchen Surfer doubles as a paring knife and a mini-chef's knife would easily fit into the home kitchens of experienced and novice cooks.
• Made from natural, renewable materials, wooden spoons avoid issues related to plastics, and reusable Swedish dishcloths make a colourful stocking stuffer. 
• If you're looking for a hospitality gift, consider a bottle of good olive oil or balsamic vinegar.