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Meticulous cooks will appreciate how Alice Medrich organizes recipes by their texture in Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies ($32), and the nostalgic will enjoy The Gourmet Cookie Book: The Single Best Recipe From Each Year: 1941-2009 ($23), which curates 69 years of cultural history through cookies. The Cookbook Store, 850 Yonge St., 416-920-2665. Throw in a bag of cakey gingerbread cookies from Toronto’s Mad Batter Bakers for good measure (and inspiration). Mad Batter Bakers, 135 Jefferson Ave., 416-516-4759.
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For 11 years, Kim Flintoft has been making Maple Rush, Rush Creek’s signature dessert wine. A winner of multiple international awards, the full-bodied amber nectar is made entirely from Ontario maple syrup. 375 mL bottle $25.30; 12 bottles $303.60 and can be shipped anywhere in Canada. 519-773-5432, rushcreekwines.com.
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Generic toffees pale in comparison to Grant Street’s chewy-soft homemade treats. The buttery-rich nuggets are made with organic ingredients and wrapped in old-fashioned parchment. The country bar comes with a pouch of Murray River salt; the crunchy flakes are a perfect foil to the sticky sweetness. Three pieces $3; 13 pieces $12; uncut bar $12; larger orders available by request. Evergreen Brick Works Farmers’ Market, 550 Bayview Ave.; grantstcaramelco.com.
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A gift basket gets an original and Canadian touch with ingredients—birch syrup, grainy wild mustard, morels, elderberry jelly, lingonberry compote and pickled milkweed pods (a plump alternative to capers)—that are making their way onto the menus of the world’s top restaurants. Holiday basket $100. 1-877-354-9453, wildfoods.ca; Dufferin Grove Farmers’ Market, 875 Dufferin St.; Evergreen Brick Works Farmers’ Market, 550 Bayview Ave.; Green Barn Farmers’ Market, Wychwood Barns, 601 Christie St.
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Debbie Weston makes her yummy baked goodies to suit dietary restrictions in a peanut-free kitchen. The rum-soaked fruitcake is gluten-free ($10–$25), crumbly Scottish shortbreads are sugar-free ($10 per dozen), and ginger-cayenne cookies are dairy-free (18 cookies $6). Prices vary. Pusateri’s, 1539 Avenue Rd., 416-785-9100; grandmadebs.com.
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Nude Bee’s raw, unpasteurized honey is sourced from independent beekeepers in Guelph. We like the thick and creamy Star Thistle with hints of vanilla and butterscotch. From $8. A portion of the proceeds go to support Canadian Honey Council’s Save Our Bees campaign. Schefflers, 93 Front St. E., 416-364-2806; McEwan, 38 Karl Fraser Rd., 416-444-6262; The Big Carrot, 348 Danforth Ave., 416-466-2129; nudebee.ca.
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This dense fruit bread is made from a recipe that Marc Thuet confesses to stealing during his time in Dresden. Thuet adds gewürztraminer-saturated raisins and walnuts, candied citrus peel, spices and marzipan to a yeast-risen dough. The rich loaf keeps well after being drenched in melted butter and coated with a generous layer of icing sugar. $21. Petite Thuet, 1162 Yonge St., 416-924-2777; 244 King St. E., 416-519-4847.
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This inventive box of chocolates comes with directions on how to pair each square (there are four flavours) with the perfect cheese. White chocolate with fennel pollen is for soft-ripened cheeses, while milk chocolate with black olive goes with goat cheeses. $25. Xococava, 1560 Yonge St., 416-979-9916.
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Suitable for dinner parties, the hearty loaf is based on world-renowned Poilâne bread (which Holt Renfrew flies in from Paris) using head baker David Wilson’s riesling levain. The dough contains spring water, whole rye, wheat and Stoddart’s spelt flours. $18. Order must be placed two days in advance. O&B Canteen, 330 King St. W., 647-288-4710.
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Arnie Hengstler has been catching and hand packing his line of gourmet wild seafood since 1992. Six salmon species—including full-bodied sockeye and red spring—and number 1 grade albacore tuna, Pacific oysters and scallops are lightly smoked. $6–$9. The Healthy Butcher, 565 Queen St. W., 416-703-2164; thefishery.ca.
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This sparkler is aged for two years and made following traditional Champagne methods with a mix of pinot and chardonnay grapes. Baked apple flavours and buttery brioche aromas are a mouth-watering combination; tight bubbles and a clean, citrusy finish refresh and delight. $30. LCBO Vintages 183228; grangeofprinceedward.com.
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The four-tiered Venetian delicacy is made of thick flaky-crisp pastries (they come in vanilla, raspberry, cinnamon and chocolate) dusted with icing sugar. Warning: it’s extremely addictive. Available in 300 g and 1 kg. $14–$24. Bruno’s Fine Foods, various locations; Galati Market Fresh, 5801 Leslie St., 416-756-2000; vicenzas-crostoli.com.
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Subscribers to Monforte’s Renaissance 2010 plan receive locally produced cheese, preserves, charcuterie and baked goods over a five-year period. Three subscription plans are available ($200, $500 and $1,000) and are redeemable as vouchers to exchange for cheese and comestibles at local markets or as twice-annual gift baskets delivered to the door (valued at $250 to $1,500). monfortedairy.com/monforte-subscription-offering.html.