There are gift baskets…and, then, there are Italian gift baskets. We don’t mean to disparage the shopper who wants, say, a Canadian gift basket. But, really? You know that you can’t miss with a basket full of Italian greatness when it comes to giving Christmas gifts. It’s the long tradition of Italian food that beckons: who doesn’t love Italian food?
There are many different types of Italian gift baskets on this list. Some don’t come with a basket, but some other container—and, often, those containers—like the baskets— can be repurposed or (dare we say) re-gifted. Others include foods associated with Italian food, but not necessarily from Italy. And still, others feature foods that are strictly Italian. We’re not judging one better than the other. We are asserting that these baskets would be a great gift for someone who loves to indulge!
There is just something about Italians…about Italy…about Italian food. Put it all together, and you can just bundle it up and gift it in the form of a terrific basket from our list of the 10 Best Italian Gift Baskets.
You can easily describe this Italian gift basket as “the real deal.” There are 13 products here, all from Italy, and it would work very well for a dinner for four with plenty left over for another night.
Starting with the primo — the appetizer course:
Volpi Hot Sopressata — Italian salami spiced with red pepper and paprika Volpi Sweet Sopressata — not as hot Asaro Organic Sicilian Castelvetrano Olives — these are the butteriest olives on earth Terre di Puglia Taralli Crackers — made with extra virgin olive oil Casina Rossa Antipasto Vegetable Mix — a blend of Mediterranean veggies, Italian pine nuts and raisins
For the secondo — the main course:
Benedetto Cavalieri Casarecci Pasta — a short wide strip of pasta loosely rolled like a scroll Casina Rossa Vodka Sauce — vodka, cream, herbs and spices: very traditional Italian sauce Sogno Toscano 1923 Extra Virgin Olive Oil — 100 percent Tuscan from the estate of the Brembilla family Bertozzi Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese — Solo di Bruna, which means that the milk comes only from brown cows, as dictated by tradition
Finishing with the dolce — dessert:
Prato Belli Tuscan Almond Cantuccini — classic Tuscan biscotti Fior di Frutta Strawberry Jam — organic Amaretti del Chiostro — crunchy, bittersweet almond cookies made by the same family for almost three centuries Dark Chocolate Amaretti Cookie Crumble Bark — received the 2014 Sofi Award nomination for “outstanding chocolate” from the Specialty Food Association.
In this case, the “basket” is a rustic dark brown wooden crate with handles. Easily repurposed once the food has been deliciously devoured. Shipping weight is 14 pounds.
This is the big boy of the list. It comes with 22 items, so whoever gets this gift will be doing a lot of indulging. It would be a great idea for a raffle item at a fundraiser or the office. In addition to being a big basket of delicious, there’s also a red and white checkered table cloth and a serving spoon included in this. As for the goodies, take a deep breath:
Pasta – four assorted pastas Pasta sauce – three assorted pasta sauces Cheese spread – two assorted cheese spreads Italian pasta salad Artisan bread sticks Romano Garlic Crunchy Sourdough Twists Parmesan Bread Sticks Italian Cheese Biscuits Olive oil – one bottle of basil and garlic oil; one bottle of extra virgin olive oil Two assorted seasoning mixes Dessert – a tin of Pirouline Chocolate Hazelnut Cream Filled Swirl Cookies; Cashew and Almond Buttercrunch Toffee Roca An Italian style table cloth A pasta sauce/linguini spoon
The basket is a two toned, multi-weave basket with a handle, so it’s easily repurposed. Shipping weight of the basket is 14 pounds.
This basket includes eight items. It’s from Wine Country Gift Baskets, which has been making all sorts of gift baskets for a long time. In this case, The Italian Collection will really work well for a dinner for two (or four, if everyone eats very politely). The items include:
The primo — appetizers:
Crackers — twice-baked roasted garlic crackers Cheese swirls – Nonni’s mozzarella cheese swirls (a variation of a cracker) Cheese spread — Vino e Formaggio asiago cheese spread Olives — obvious antipasti, but I’d include the olives in the sauce (making sure to remove the pits prior to throwing them in the marinara)
The secondo — main course:
Pasta — Bella Campagna rigatoni Pasta sauce — Colavita marinara sauce
The dolce — dessert:
Cookies – Cantucci D’Abruzzo almond cookies Pralines – Rovelli milk chocolate pralines
The basket is a very rustic, thick weave with handles on either side of the rectangular basket. Disclaimer based on some reviews: some reviewers say the basket they received had different items than they expected. Indeed, even the listing on Amazon shows a different pasta in the photos. But, hey, any pasta is great, right? Pro tip: get this Italian gift basket for someone special and invite yourself over to help deploy the basket ingredients. Shipping weight of this basket is four pounds.
This Italian gift basket is, basically, an aperitivo (Italian way of saying “snack” or light meal) basket and it’s got some nice cheeses and meats included. A total of nine items:
Cheese — Provolone Piccante; Asiago d’Allevo; Grana Padano
Meat — a salami chub; sliced Italian speck, which is a smoked, cured ham very much like prosciutto
Crackers — Grissini breadsticks
Tapenade — a vegetable tapenade from Fattorie Umbre
Sweets — biscotti from Falanga of Sicily; Italian chocolate bar (filled with ganache)
It comes in a hand-assembled woven basket and is finished with a dark brown ribbon. Each of the cheeses is almost half a pound and the speck is three ounces, which is a typical size for thinly sliced cured meats. It gets a handful of reviews, but they’re exceedingly positive. It comes from igourmet.com and I will say that my mom has bought igourmet products for me in the past and I’ve always loved them. It’s shipped in a reusable insulated cooler and the shipping weight is 4.8 pounds. Quick disclaimer: the items in the photo (supplied by igourmet) don’t exactly match the items that igourmet lists.
Another one from igourmet, this 10 item gift basket is great as an appetizer course that should last through a couple of meals…unless it’s for a large dinner party, in which case it would also work very well. The bounty includes:
Three cheeses — Provolone Picante; Monte Veronese; Crotonese. Each cheese is from Italy. Each is eight ounces.
Antipasto meat tray — From Italy-based Fratelli Beretta, three 4 ounce packages of cured meats: prosciutto; salami; coppa ham.
Crackers — Grissini con Olio d’Olivia baked snacks (4.2 ounce); mini toasts (2.75 ounce)
This is a gift basket that’s perfect for a couple who wants to eat Italian one night. It includes seven products and will work for appetizers, main course, dessert, and cappuccino.
The primo — sun-dried tomato basil dipping sauce mix; a jar of sliced mushrooms (to nom-nom as an appetizer or to add to the sauce); Parmesan crisps
The secondo — the pasta is spaghetti; a jar of marinara sauce
The dolce — chocolate covered biscotti; Bella Cappuccino mix
It all comes in a woven handled basket with a bow. Shipping weight is six pounds.
This Italian-themed dinner gift basket for two is the perfect gift for couples. It comes with what they’ll need to make a fantastic Italian dinner together.
Here’s what’s included:
Handmade Italian Pasta Salad
Creamy Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce Blend
EVOO
Handmade Sun Dried Tomato Basil Linguini
Asiago Cheese Straws
Focaccia Crisps (Delightful!)
Tuscan Style Crackers
Sun Dried Tomato and Herb Bread Dipper Seasoning Mix
La Dolce Vita Gourmet Cocktail Mix
Dolcetto Italian Tiramisu Cream Filled Wafer Rolls (YUM!)
Cafe Latte Barista Blend (For those of you who like strong gourmet coffee)
A gift basket is a great gift. An Italian gift basket: even better. Our 10 Best Italian Gift Baskets 2018 features a wide variety of baskets for every taste and budget.
