Learn how to make beautiful Christmas gift baskets for families that are filled with holiday meals and Christmas decorations!
As a family, we wanted to help others this holiday season who might need a little help.
Why Make Family Gift Baskets?
It’s so easy for kids to focus on what they want for Christmas this time of year, while us adults focus on our neverending list of things we need to get done.
I wanted us to put the focus on others instead of ourselves, just like when we made and delivered our hot cocoa gift sets.
I knew that putting together these holiday baskets would help!
Making a Plan
We brainstormed together, then came up with the idea of creating family gift baskets for Christmas.
Each basket would be filled with delicious holiday dinner ingredients and a decoration, along with a few treats.
We chose to anonymously leave the baskets on doorsteps of those we thought would appreciate them.
Shopping for Our Christmas Gift Baskets for Families
We shopped together for three different families, then put together three Christmas gift baskets.
I wanted to include a full holiday dinner in each basket.
We bought three sets of food that would make a lovely Christmas dinner.
Holiday Dinner Basket Ingredients
Here is a list of what we bought for our three baskets-
- three hams
- red and white potatoes
- organic fresh carrots
- red pears
- green pears
- oranges
- stuffing mixes
- baguettes
- brownie mixes
- three bottles of sparkling apple cider
- candy canes
Your favorite Christmas cookies would be perfect to add too, like our popular chocolate no bake cookies and our tasty Andes mint cookies.
Finding the Baskets
Our Christmas gift baskets needed to look traditional and beautiful.
I wanted the recipients to feel loved and cared for, while feeling the spirit of Christmas when they found the baskets on their doorsteps.
I searched high and low for the perfect baskets.
Finally, I found some lovely large baskets with a red plaid lining and two handles at Michaels.
These baskets matched the ones at our Christmas tree trimming party that I put ornaments into.
They were perfect!
Assembling the Christmas Gift Basket for Family
The baskets were somewhat deep, so I needed filler to add to the bottom of each basket so the food could be seen.
I crumpled up some kraft paper, then placed it in the bottom of each basket.
I scored a bunch of free Christmas tree trimmings from the Christmas tree lot a few days before.
These made the perfect basket filler!
The pine trimmings added natural beauty and color, gave added height, and covered up the kraft paper underneath.
Next I added all the food in.
The bigger things, like the ham, sparkling apple cider, and brownie and stuffing mixes, went in the back of the basket.
I wanted the baskets to look classy and nice without any cardboard packaging, so each brownie mix into a glass mason jar with pretty plaid ribbon on top.
The cornbread went inside large muslin drawstring bags.
The brownie and cornbread mix directions were placed in the each Christmas basket, underneath the food.
When shopping for the baskets, I found some beautiful old-fashioned Santa decorations that I fell in love with.
One Santa went into each basket.
I love his sweet expression!
Making the Deliveries
Before delivering the baskets anonymously, I wrote a card to each family, wishing them a merry Christmas.
The deliveries went smoothly, and the kids took turns getting out of the car, placing the baskets on the doorsteps, then ringing the doorbell.
They ran to the car quickly so we could drive away before getting caught.
I don’t think anyone spotted us.
Mission accomplished!
I’m so grateful we were able to put together these Christmas gift baskets for families.
It felt wonderful to help others this Christmas.
We have so much to be thankful for!
It’s always nice to be reminded that it truly is better to give than to receive.
Merry Christmas!
This article was updated in November 2024 and was originally published in December 2017.
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