November/December 2015 EAT Magazine

Searching malls and big box stores for Christmas gifts can not only be exhausting, it can send money out of the community. So this year, I will be doing the holiday up DIY-style—and either making as many presents as possible or shopping at locally-owned stores to find unique and unusual handmade items. The pleasure comes, from not only making the gifts, but also going around and dropping them off—and if I’m lucky, I might be offered a wee tot of something good to drink.

One year my family and I made our own candy—almond butter crunch toffee brittle covered in chocolate and Persian-style nougats with pistachios and rosewater. We really got into it and bought a large, 4’ x 6’ piece of white marble. (When hot candy is poured on a marble slab, it cools more quickly and this makes it easier to work with.) We also bought small, white boxes and filled them with several layers of our candy separated by parchment paper. Of course, there was beautiful ribbon to tie up the boxes. As a final touch, we hand-painted ceramic Christmas tree ornaments and tied them to the ribbon. It took us a few days and, by the end, we were so sick of the smell of chocolate we had to get out of the house and eat out for a few days. Read Online

Merry Christmas and have a Happy DIY Holiday.

 – Gary Hynes

Editor