Santa Cruz County gift guide: 9 local non-booze gifts you can get at the grocery store

Holiday shopping lists have a way of getting longer the closer it gets to the end of December. Depending on your circle, this growing group of deserving folks could include teachers, child care providers, coworkers, neighbors and service workers. Then there are last-minute gifts for party hosts, random relatives and friends and the odd white elephant gift exchange. 

Before the mental and financial toll of all these presents turns the season of giving into a chore, here’s the secret: The answer to all of these is food. 

Everyone loves edible gifts, and I’m not talking about fancy pears or fruitcakes. Santa Cruz County is home to a talented cohort of culinary makers, and many of their products are hiding in plain sight on grocery store shelves. Wine and liquor might not always be appropriate, but estate-grown olive oil and craft hot sauce are easy crowd-pleasers. 

Need I point out the other benefits of this type of giving, like the importance of supporting small businesses, and avoiding the environmental impact and stress of shipping? 

The best part is many of these “splurges” are less than $20. Most of the gifts on this list are under $15, and are widely available at grocery stores throughout the county, including Staff of Life Markets and Shopper’s Corner in Santa Cruz, Deluxe Foods in Aptos, AJ’s Market in Soquel and and New Leaf Community Markets locations in Aptos, Capitola and Santa Cruz, as well as larger retailers.

Prices are approximate, depending on the retailer.

At Belle Farms in Watsonville, farmers Steve and Marguerite Remde make silky, flavorful olive oil from their sustainably grown olive orchards at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains. While the freshness and purity of imported olive oil can be suspect, Belle Farms olive oil is made with 100% Tuscan olives that are hand-picked and cold-pressed, and the harvest date is noted on the bottle. Of course you can cook with this oil, but the mild, floral, slightly peppery flavor is best enjoyed as the finishing flourish over roasted vegetables, a winter soup, or even over chocolate ice cream. More info and a full list of retailers at bellefarms.com.

Willy Willy Hot Sauce’s sweet fruity flavor blooms right before a rush of fiery heat, making this an ideal gift for chili heads who want to actually taste their hot sauce, not just be obliterated by a high Scoville rating. It’s hard to say exactly how spicy this sauce is, but I’d give it a rating of “hurts so good.” Willy Willy is made in Santa Cruz using organic peppers, vinegar, sea salt and a bit of brown sugar, and the label art by iconic Santa Cruz artist Jimbo Phillips – a devilish chili pepper – gives the bottle extra flair. 

Santa Cruz County is ripe with talented local coffee roasters, from international giants like Verve to homegrown retailers like Alta Organic and 11th Hour Coffee, and tiny one-person operations like Coffee Conspiracy. The flavor and freshness of these brews is superior to industry behemoths, but since the price of a 10- to 12-ounce bag of beans now sits firmly over $15 for most local roasters, that morning cup of joe has become more precious. There are myriad local coffees to choose from, but “The Answer,” Cat & Cloud Coffee’s house blend of Latin American and African coffees, has a balanced rich caramel, roasty chocolate and bright fruity flavor that pleases a variety of different palates. 

Maker Peggy Dillon has a knack for creating complex marriages of sweet fruit with unexpected spices and herbs, like raspberry with vanilla and lavender, or heirloom apricot with sage, making the applications for her jams near limitless, from elevating a PB&J, to cocktails or cheese board, or as a glaze for roast meat. I once used a whole jar of strawberry balsamic and rosemary jam to create an unforgettable frosting for a birthday cake. All of Twins Kitchen’s jams are made with organic fruit from local, family-owned farms. 

Confectioner Jennifer Ashby makes incredible chocolates, but her sour fruit candy “sourbys” have a devoted following. These pâte de fruits-type candies are made with organic fruit sourced from local farmers at the peak of ripeness, like Santa Rosa plums, Concord grapes and Meyer lemons, shaped into flat straws and dusted with citric acid. The colorful mix in every bag is a fun, grown-up twist on a candy many loved as a kid. 

Is there anything cozier than pulling a jar of honey out of the cupboard in the winter? Soquel-based family run Meeks’ Honey has been producing and distributing honey since the 1970s in simple glass jars that seem to glow from within. The clean, sweet flavor is ideal for swirling into a cup of tea, spooning onto a biscuit or drizzling over pizza. 

Santa Cruz’s Tiny House of Chocolate Artisans prides itself on the purity and simplicity of its chocolate. All of the bars contain between two to four ingredients, usually organic and all responsibly sourced. But that’s just icing on the cake; the real reasons Tiny House chocolates are a delight to unwrap are the beautiful packaging, rich flavor and silky texture. 

Jam Queen Suzanne McLean’s personality seems to shine through her marmalades and jams. For example, the label on the LGBT Marmalade describes this combination of lemon, grapefruit, blood orange and tangerine as “sweet, complex, and not surprisingly a little bit bitter!” The citrusy condiment’s sweetness is, indeed, balanced with a complex bitter note from candied fruit rinds. This jam took a bronze medal at the World Marmalade Awards in Penrith, England, and would be a thoughtful addition to anyone’s pantry. 

OK, so Deerhaven soap isn’t edible (I wish! Is that weird to say?), but it is stocked at most grocery stores in Santa Cruz County, and has a passionate cult following. These delightful little bar soaps are hand-made in Bonny Doon, and have a wonderful sudsy lather and lovely strong fragrances. The seasonal evergreen aroma smells like walking through a pine forest, but you can’t go wrong with classics like lavender and sandalwood. 

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