Stocking Stuffer Ideas

This is one of my favorite times of year. Christmas is full of celebration, friends, and family. There are wonderful meals, smells, and memories. It's a time to be thankful and giving.  So, today I'm giving you more than 100 ideas for stocking stuffers. I divided the gifts into categories, so you can give gifts your friends and family will love.


Bakers

- Apron

- Spatulas

- Blind baking beads

- Candy thermometer

- Cooling rack

- Cookie scoops

- Cupcake liners

- Gel food colors

- Meringue powder (to make royal icing)

- Sprinkles

- Icing bags

- Icing tips

- Icing couplers

- Measuring cups

- Measuring spoons

- Vanilla beans or vanilla bean paste

- Flavored extracts

- Pastry Brush

- Rolling Pin

- Spacers for rolling pin (This ensures evenly rolled dough or fondant.)

- Fondant

- Squeeze bottles for icing or melted chocolate

- Cookie Cutters

- Oven mitts

Coffee & Tea Connoisseurs

- Coffee mug

- Travel mug

- Aeropress coffee maker

- Gift card to their favorite coffee shop

- Loose leaf tea

- Tea strainer or tea infuser


DIY-ers

- Drill bits

- Swiss-army knife

- Safety goggles

- Work gloves

- Level

- Hammer

- Screwdriver

- Tape mesure

- Gift card to their favorite DIY store

Foodies


- Bench scraper

- Pasta roller attachment

- Small cutting board or serving board

- Finish salts

- Seasoning blends

- Nut mixes

- Homemade treats

- Homemade hot cocoa mix

- Homemade caramel apple cider mix

- Magazine subscription

- Potted Herbs


Grillers

- Spatulas

- Tongs

- Apron

- BBQ seasoning blend

- Homemade BBQ sauce




Golfer

- Golf balls

- Golf tees

- Golf glove

- Ball markers

- Hand warmers

- Hat

- Golf towels

- Golf gift card


Host or Hostess

- Salad tongs

- Serving spoons

- Pie slicer

- Cake cutter

- Cake stand

- Cheese board

- Cheese knives

- Cheese labels

- Fig spread


Movie Lover

- DVD

- Movie Tickets

- Popcorn

- Candy


Outdoorsmen

- Gloves

- Hat

- Hand warmers

- Swiss army knife

- Fishing lures

Pamper

- Candles

- Bubble bath

- Bath bombs

- Scented lotion

- Nail polish

- Body scrub

- Gift card to a spa

Reader

- Book

- Magazine

- Bookmark

- Gift card to their favorite book store



Sporty

- Headbands

- Phone armband

- Athletic cushioned socks

- Scented Epsom's salt

- Wireless earphones



Tech Guru

- USB cords

- Memory card

- Chargers

- Headphones

- Video game

- iTunes gift card

- Amazon gift card


Traveler

- Neck pillow

- Eye mask

- Noise-cancelling headphones

- Travel-sized toiletries

I hope these ideas are helpful for you to come up with great gifts for friends and family. I know this time can become stressful because there are many things to do and enjoy. Let's all try to relax, enjoy this time, and remember why we celebrate.

Merry Christmas everyone!

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Tips for Easy Entertaining

Tips for Easy Entertaining

The holiday season is a time for celebrating and entertaining. Celebrations usually involve food of some kind. If you are entertaining, you don't want to be stressed. You want to be a successful host and enjoy the party. Here are some of my tips for easier entertaining.

If you are making a meal with multiple dishes, the preparation and cook times can be challenging. You are making multiple things with different cook times. Here are my tips to help make entertaining and cooking less stressful when entertaining.

RDtipoftheday Herbed Turkey

1) Make a plan. 
To make a plan for a successful dinner, assemble your recipes. Work backward to make a time line. For example, here's a plan for a 20-pound turkey.

Step 1: Defrost frozen turkey (about 20 pounds) in the refrigerator for 4-5 days before Thanksgiving.

Step 2: Brine or season the turkey over night.

Step 3: Cook the turkey for 20 minutes per pound (20 minutes x 20 pound turkey = 400 minutes or 6 hours and 40 minutes). The turkey will need about 25-30 minutes to rest after cooking to an internal temperature of 165*F. You will also need to allow time to carve the turkey. The oven may be open and shut to add extra items, so you would want to plan for the turkey needing about 7.5 hours to cook, rest, carve, and serve. If you have Thanksgiving lunch at noon, you would need to start cooking the turkey at 4:30 AM.

2) Prepare ahead.
Preparing ahead of time reduces stress. Set the table the night before if you're able. It's always nice to have something to cross off the to-do list.

Pick a simple appetizer or dessert that can be made ahead of time. Or, ask your guests to bring something. Pick up an appetizer from the store or make a fruit platter, cheese board, or vegetable platter.

Try making a turkey veggie tray with homemade hummus. The hummus can be made a few days before and refrigerated. The veggies can be washed, chopped, assembled and kept in refrigerator. You can have your kid chefs assemble the turkey. Extra hands make light work.

Try making a non-traditional dessert like my browned butter cereal treats. You can make it the day before and keep it sealed in an airtight container. These cereal treats are quick and easy to make. Kids and adults love them!

RDtipoftheday Glazed Carrots

3) Plan for extra.
This is a motto in my family. Knowing you have a little extra food prepared is nice for eliminating the mental stress caused by the question "did I make enough food?". It's also handy for the unexpected but welcome guests.  Also, who doesn't love leftovers?!?

RDtipoftheday Green Bean Bundles

4) Enjoy the party.
You've gathered your favorite people: your friends and family. You've prepped and prepared a delicious meal. Now, enjoy the party! A great host is relaxed and fully involved in the present. Have fun!

RDtipoftheday Tex Mex Deviled Eggs

To review, here are the four steps for successful entertaining.
1) Make a plan.
2) Prepare ahead.
3) Plan for extra.
4) Enjoy the party.

Stay tuned this week for leftover ideas to create new and delicious meals form your holiday leftovers. 

For more recipes, encouragement, and tips for healthy eating, follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 

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RDtipoftheday's Gift Guide Roundup

This month, I gave y'all some gift ideas. If you are doing some last minute shopping, here are all of the lists. There are great ideas from <$10 to $50. They are great gifts for anyone that enjoys cooking, baking, entertaining, and eating. And everyone likes to eat; right? Check them out!

RDtipoftheday's Gift Guides for Your Favorite Chef, Baker, and Foodie Friends

 Gift Ideas under $10

Gift Ideas under $30

Gift Ideas under $50

I hope these gift guides have sparked some thoughtful gifts for your family and friends; I hope I saved you time and maybe saved you from a little stress. Now that you have extra free time, you cancheck out my friend Brittany's Christmas posts on her blog Hint of Hess. She's walking through a little piece of the Christmas story every day for 10 days. They are quick reads, and she even gives tips on explaining the story to your little ones. The story is for everyone. Remember to make time for the real reason for the season and not hurry though the season stressed. Merry Christmas y'all!

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Healthier Hallowen

Happy Halloween! We all love to celebrate. When we are trying to eat healthier, sometimes celebrations can be challenging. Celebrations usually include rich, heavy foods, decadent sweets, sugary beverages, and an abundance of food. I want you to enjoy your celebrations, so let's set you up for success. Here's to a healthier Halloween!

1) Eat a satisfying meal or snack before trick-or-treating
If you and your children are full from a healthy, well-balanced meal, the treats are less likely to be tempting.



2) Make healthy treats for trick-or-treating.
There are a couple examples from the archives for healthy Halloween themed snacks. You can have healthy, fun treats to give away to trick-or-treaters. You can also save a few healthy snacks for your children after trick-or-treating, so there are healthy options instead of mounds of candy.



3) Set boundaries for treats.
We all need boundaries. So, make sure you set healthy boundaries with candy or treats. Before trick-or-treating, let your child know the amount and times they are able to enjoy the candy. Then, your child knows realistic expectations about the amount of candy they can consume.
You can also give your child a small bag for trick-or-treating. This limits the amount of candy you bring into the home.



4) Give treats away.
Have your child pick out their favorite candy to save. Give them a goal or number of pieces to save. Then, encourage sharing by giving the other candy away. This teaches your child the value of giving. It also limits the temptation to overeat candy since there will be less in the home.


There are several places that offer Halloween Candy Buy Back. Check the website for a location near you. These locations are often dentist's offices who offer to buy candy and prevent cavities at the same time! The candy is then donated to troops overseas. You help your kids moderate their sweets intake and send a gift to service men and women. It's a win-win situation!



For more Halloween recipes and tricks for healthy eating, follow RDtipoftheday on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. I provide different resources, tips, and recipes on each social media platform. So, make sure to follow me on all of them to get your #RDtipoftheday. Happy Halloween!



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