I’ve been thinking of a new home-made (edible) gift that I can make this Christmas, as I try to do at least one every year. Last year was Spiced Vodka, and the year before Gingerbread Syrup for coffee. Both turned out really well, so I was keen to do another. This year I wanted to steer away from a drinkable gift, and wanted something that I was sure I could tailor to my friends and families different tastes easily. My idea was infused olive oil. By no means an original one, but one that I could make quickly and to suit different tastes.
It’s really was simple to do, I chose chilli, lemon, rosemary and garlic oil as the ingredients to infuse my olive oil, and you simply add the two together. To give you an idea on quantities I used the following.
250 ml Olive Oil and 5 Chilli’s
250 ml Olive Oil and the rind of 2 Lemons
300 ml Olive Oil and 3 sprigs of Rosemary
100 ml Olive Oil and 4 cloves of Garlic
I then refrigerate the oils, and would keep for up to 6 months. The only one that I would only make in a small quantity and keep for a short amount of time is the garlic oil. See here for more advice.
Olive oil can be used in all sorts cooking, but by adding infused olive oils it adds favour and aroma to some of your most favourite dishes.
Chilli Oil – Try it drizzled on pizza or pizza’s. It can also used to marinade meats.
Lemon Oil – So yummy added to vegetables like roasted peppers, or use in seafood and pasta dishes.
Rosemary Oil – Great used when you roast a chicken, or root vegetables. How about making your own flat breads, sprinkle it liberally on the top before baking.
Such lovely ideas, I love garlic infused oil so I might have a go at making my own
These sound divine, love the glass bottles too. Yum! x
Ooo I love this idea – they look just like ones you can buy from the fancy oil shops in Salisbury that I visit!
These are beautiful! I wish I was that creative.
I love this idea, such a great gift and easy to make too
Thank you I am always looking for new gift ideas
Such lovely gift ideas. I will be pinning for (very) future reference. Thank you! 🙂 x
Have pinned this one and will definitely be having a go for my foodie friends
What a lovely idea! Have pinned to remember it. x
I learnt how to make infused oils as a chef and I never heard of garlic doing that and I’ve been making them for 15 years at home.I’m making some myself as I always do for Christmas, I’ll link back to you.
Beautiful looking gifts. I am planning to make a few 🙂
They look gorgeous – and definitely don’t look homemade at all!