A gift for every kind of foodie

You can’t go wrong with a food gift, they say.

They’re wrong. There was the year we got the shiny mandoline for the friend who could barely wield a knife. The peanut brittle for the allergic cousin. The garlic braid for the vampire. That sort of thing.

The point is, you have to match the food gift to the food personality. Here are some ideas that will certainly thrill the right receivers.

If they’re sweet, but not sappy

Chocolate nirvana: Aztec Elixir is seriously thick, spiced, nuanced and almost too sophisticated to be called hot chocolate. But heat some milk, add a generous scoop and you have a rich drink more like the center of a molten dessert than anything made by Hershey’s. The Aztec Elixir blend, from Vosges Haut-Chocolat, combines flaked dark chocolate with ancho and chipotle chiles, Ceylon cinnamon, maizena and Mexican vanilla bean. A 16-ounce box is $25 at Le Sanctuaire in Santa Monica, (310) 581-8999.

Cut it out: Cyn’s Cookies may be the prettiest Christmas butter cookies we’ve seen -- especially the golden reindeer and glittery snowflakes. $6.95 each, from Julienne in San Marino, (626) 441-2299.

For the carbo-phobic

Let them eat meat: There’s got to be at least one on your list. The Steak Lover’s Gift Pack is a natural: six big, juicy steaks from Niman Ranch, including T-bones, cowboy steaks (bone-in rib-eyes) and extra-thick New York cuts. $150 plus shipping, (866) 808-0340; www.nimanranch.com.

Designer ‘que: Toss those steaks onto the new Michael Graves-designed George Foreman grilling machine. This one’s polished stainless steel, with double-coated nonstick grilling plates and a 20-minute timer. $59.99 at Target.

The brushoff: And baste to your heart’s content: This Sili gourmet silicone basting and pastry brush has a 5-year warranty. And it’s heat-resistant to 500 degrees. $15.99 at Bristol Farms.

To the serious cook (very, very serious)

Weigh in: The tiny Frieling Accu Balance scale is accurate to 0.005 ounce (0.1 gram) increments -- a boon to Type-A bakers. About $35 at Surfas in Culver City, (310) 559-4770.

Degrees of success: The Super-Fast Thermapen commercial use instant-read thermometer has a needle-sharp probe, large digital read-out and handy wrist clip. Not satisfied? It comes with a certificate of calibration and hand-numbered test result. $69 plus shipping at www.thermoworks.com or (800) 393-6434.

Getting even: A heat diffuser may be the most underappreciated kitchen basic. The Ilsa cast-iron enameled version eliminates hot spots with the best of ‘em. $16.50 at Surfas.

On the edge: Finally, for the cook who’s still searching for the perfect knife: The beautiful, balanced Shun 6 1/2-inch Sontuku may be the one of your dreams (though you’ll be tempted to give the giver more than a penny for this one). $108 at Surfas.