18 Best Gifts for People Who Love to Eat and Cook

Peeling garlic is hardly anyone’s idea of a good time. Cue this handy garlic peeler. You simply put cloves in the tube and then roll it back and forth. Our evaluator found that it required very little physical exertion and was easy to use and clean. Pro tip: Be mindful not to overfill the tube with cloves, as it can compromise its effectiveness.

Here’s one gadget that would make for a fun stocking stuffer. If the thought of pitting avocados frightens you or your giftee, this avocado slicer is here to save the day. The clever contraption offers three functions: You can halve, pit, and slice an avocado into strips using different parts of the tool. Our evaluator found the pitting component to be the most useful. All it requires is for you to push the steel pitter against the slicer and gently twist the pit out.

With its scalloped edges, two-tone color scheme, and semi-shiny finish, this pan isn’t only nice to look at. In our evaluations, it produced a decently browned and crumbly cornbread, thanks to the material it’s made from–clay from the Burgundy region in France–which evenly absorbs and distributes heat. Best of all, after a round in the dishwasher it came out looking as if it had never been used.

For more options: The Best Loaf Pans

A great pie dish that can seamlessly transition from the oven to the table is a holiday-hosting must-have and hack, all in one. Of all the pies our evaluator baked, the one made in this Staub ceramic dish had the best crust and texture. It’s oven- and broiler-safe up to 570° F and features generously sized handles for a firm grip. Staub’s website says it’s highly scratch-, impact-, and thermal shock-resistant.

For more options: The Best Pie Pans

For the butter enthusiast, we couldn’t think of a better gift. Le Creuset’s butter crock has a classic look that would fit in well with most kitchen aesthetics. It comes in four colors: “Cerise,” a rich red with a black fade; “Caribbean,” a happy blue and the colorway we evaluated; “Marseille,” a midtone, dusty blue; and white.

Like most Le Creuset products, it’s made from enameled stoneware. It’s dishwasher-safe and easy to wash by hand, too. The lid has a small divot that may retain water in the dishwasher, but putting it on its side means you won’t have to deal with accumulated water in the lid after it’s clean.

The Great Jones cookware line puts a vibrant spin on culinary staples, turning the stocking of a kitchen into a–dare we say–fun experience. It earns a solid rating for cooking evenness in our tests, plus it heats up quickly and cleans up nicely. Pair it with all the necessary ingredients for chocolate chip cookies or a sheet pan dinner and you’ll be golden.

For more options: Best Sheet Pans

Henckels has been making knives in Germany for nearly 300 years, and its expertise in design is on full display with this knife. The Premio’s handle is contoured with no sharp edges, resulting in a knife that’s extremely comfortable to hold. It also excels at force transmission from handle to blade, which means you don’t need to exert as much effort when cutting.

For more: How to Shop for a Chef’s Knife

Kitchen shears can easily replace knives for many culinary tasks: slicing herbs, trimming fat from meat, cutting pizza, and so much more. After testing six pairs of kitchen shears, all three of CR’s evaluators said the iBayam shears felt nice in their hands, were easy to use, and didn’t require them to grip too hard. The one downside is that the shears don’t come apart for cleaning, but the price and the comfort level make them our top choice.

For more options: Best Kitchen Shears

The Cole & Mason Battersea Classic Electronic Mill Set resembles mills you might see at a high-end restaurant when you ask for pepper on your dish. They have a large plastic window to see how much salt, pepper, or other spice is left in the chamber. They’re elegant and sleek, and they look wonderful on the kitchen countertop.

For more options: Best Electric Salt and Pepper Grinders

The Dream Cooker from Our Place offers key cooking features that many home cooks want right now, albeit at a somewhat steep price. It streamlines the array of options offered by more traditional multi-cookers with far fewer functions (slow cook, pressure cook, sauté/sear, and keep warm). If you prefer the simplicity that comes with fewer buttons, status updates, and beeps, not to mention a chic design that looks cool on a kitchen counter, this cooker is not to be missed.

Read more: Our Place Dream Cooker vs. Instant Pot Pro: How Do They Compare?

Consider this your yearly reminder to give the people what they really want: a good bottle of olive oil. It’s a splurge they’d otherwise not make for themselves, but one that’ll pay off in spades. This version from Flamingo Estate is not to be missed. Made from organically grown and hand-harvested olives, this cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil is vibrant and peppery, with subtle notes of softer fruit.

This version features a customizable label that allows you to go the extra mile and personalize the bottle for your giftee. Or, keep it simple and get the same olive oil, sans personalization, for $45 at Flamingo Estate.

Although this version wasn’t included in our evaluations of the best extra-virgin olive oils last year, I love it for dressing salads or as a garnish for homemade dips.

Miguel Leal is a big fan of Fly by Jing. The co-founder of Somos–a purveyor of ready-to-eat Mexican foods–recommends the Triple Threat gift set for home cooks who want to get creative in the kitchen. “It contains three products, one of which is the Sichuan Chili Crisp, which is a super-versatile sauce that I use on everything from eggs to dumplings and rice, and even on sushi,” Leal says. “It has a great level of spicy–but isn’t too spicy!–and I love the texture it adds to my food.”