JNGift A Food Lover's Gift Guide Ep icurean delights from cookbooks to gadgets Tom Head To Toe ...For The Ho si! • Hairstyling • Haircuts • • Highlighting • • Coloring • Perms • • Manicures • • Acrylics • Pedicures • Non Smoking Salon Sugar Tree Square- 6231 Orchard Lake Road West Bloomfield - 248-539-2111 Hours: Mon. 11-i (appointments only); Tues., Fri., Sat. 8-5; Wed. 8-1:30; Thur. 8-8:30 Sugartree Plaza • Orchard Lake Road North of Maple • West Bloomfield 248-932-3377 12/19 1997 76 ILENE S PECTOR AND ELLEN PINSKY Special to The Jewish News A t this time of year store shelves bulge with epicure- an gifts. These splendidly stocked baskets and ele- gantly wrapped boxes can be time- savers, but they can also be pretty pricey. It's cheaper, more fun, and almost as easy—to do it yourself. Here's another benefit: you'll end up with far more imaginative and memo- rable gifts. This year, instead of simply placing your gift in a box, use packaging that can be recycled as part of the gift! For instance, a Shabbat Collection can be assembled on an inexpensive cutting board or baking sheet. You might include special candles, drip guards, kosher wine, and a book such as The World of Jewish Cooking by Gil Marks, a rabbi and chef (Simon & Schuster, $30) This special cookbook is a compilation of kosher recipes and histories of Jews throughout the world. For the challah itself, sesame and poppy seeds, raisins, parchment paper and a challah knife and cover would be nice additions. Most fabric stores now carry Jewish-themed mate- rials — one-half yard is enough to line a bread basket. Bakers might enjoy receiving a brand new Teflon-coated tube pan filled with baking chocolates, extracts, a whisk, oven thermometer, a small sifter for flour or sugar and perhaps an unusual timer. A great cookbook to include would be The Jewish Holiday Baker by Joan Nathan (Schocken Books, $23). In this book, Nathan compiles recipes from the best Jewish bakers around the world. Challah, bailys, bagels, babka, rugelach and strudel are just some of the traditional baked goods she explores. Not only does Nathan include the recipes but she also reveals anecdotes and baking secrets. Another book filled with tradition- al holiday recipes is Fast 6- Festive Meals for the Jewish Holidays by Marlene Sorosky (William Morrow Publishing, $27). Her delicious pota- to pancakes contain one vitamin C tablet to prevent the potatoes from turning brown. A fast and easy tradi- tional rugelach recipe is transformed into a irresistible bar cookie. A person or couple who loves to entertain would be thrilled with a din- ner party assortment. Fill a large bowl with place cards, invitations, fancy napkins, napkin rings, a party game and gift certificates for a fancy table cloth rental. In House Beautiful Entertaining by the editors of House Beautiful (William Morrow Publishers, $30), you'll find delicious recipes from world-famous chefs, dec- orating tips from celebrity designers, and stunning photographs to illustrate the dishes, tips, and table settings. Children love to give gifts to their teachers. Use a soft, thermal lunch sack filled with an apple corer, apple jelly, a recipe for your grandmother's apple strudel and Ethel Hoffman's Everyday Cooking for the Jewish Home (Harper Collins Publishers, $25). Easy Homemade Dried Apples and Pink Applesauce are featured in this book.' A picnic basket is a romantic con- tainer for an engaged couple. Find a specialty linen store to monogram two beautiful damask napkins for the cou- ple. Add a bag of microwave popcorn and certificates for a movie theater or video rental — just in case it rains! Looking for a romantic gift for a couple of any age who are real homen, bodies? Fill a basket or large clay flower pot with an assortment of video tapes such as Love Story, The Way We Were, Casablanca, etc. Add a giant chocolate bar, microwave popcorn and maybe even some bubble bath. Travelers would appreciate a light- weight backpack filled with bottled water, small bottles of wine, a wine opener, cheese and crackers, gourmet-, jellies, a novelty spreader and wash and dry towelettes. The book, A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe by Ben G. Frank (Pelican Publishing, $18.95) provides a good source of kosher restaurants and cafes when traveling through historic Jewish Europe. Bagel lovers can never have too many gadgets. Use an authentic Bagel Bucket as a gift container. Add a Bagel Biter, a new device fashioned after a guillotine so that your fingers will never leave your hands! A new electric Bagel Maker is also available.