Put These Last-Minute Ideas for Christmas Gifts on Shopping List

Gifts for the kitchen are always welcome during the Christmas season. For those who are still working on their last-minute shopping, here are some excellent gift ideas. And for those who will receive any of these items, the accompanying recipes will get them off to a good start.

Truffles can be easily made using the Braun Multipractic Hand Blender (from $29.95), a blending stick that performs most tasks a regular blender can do. The neatest thing about this gadget is that it allows you to take the blender to the food, not the food to the blender. Luscious and creamy, the truffles were created by Laurent Quenioux, executive chef of the Seventh Street Bistro in Los Angeles.

One of my favorite pans is the black Peking Pan from Joyce Chen Products in Waltham, Mass. ($24.99 for the pan alone and $50 for a set with lid, spatula and recipe book), an outstanding rust-free stainless steel wok. It has a copper-clad bottom for fast cooking and a convenient flat bottom design. The Peking Pan is not as large as the standard wok but it has the depth and wide bottom that are ideal for stir-frying, deep-frying or steaming. A high dome cover made of shiny stainless steel enhances the steaming process. During the holiday season, Gelson’s Market is selling a Peking Pan Gift Pack with wooden spatula, rice noodles and Joyce Chen sauces ($39.99). The Szechuan Stir-Fry Sauce was used in the chicken and green pepper recipe provided below.

Create a gingerbread house for a hostess gift or present a gift kit for making one for the next season. Mable and Gar Hoffman recently designed for Holiday Concepts, Tucson, Ariz., a new Santa’s Workshop Gingerbread House Kit ($4.95) that’s easy to do even for the beginner. Actual size color patterns and foolproof step-by-step instructions ensure picture-pretty results. Mable Hoffman, a noted food stylist and cookbook author, suggests four packages of gingerbread mix but includes her own gingerbread dough recipe as well for delicious eating.

Many people are buying small food processors for themselves or for Christmas presents this year. One of the newer models is the Emmie from Hamilton Beach ($69.95). Like other late models, the Emmie has several features that are an improvement of the original Oskar compact machine. Some of these are: it’s equipped with a handle for easy pouring, the bowl is larger, it unlocks and locks into place more quickly, and it has a larger steel blade. For Christmas entertaining, Hamilton Beach offered a Holiday Fruit Loaf recipe using the Emmie food processor.

If you like the CushionAire insulated baking sheet, pizza and jellyroll pans from Rema Bakeware in Salina, Kan., check out the new 13x9-inch insulated cake pan ($18.95 with lid, $14.95, pan only). The problem of overbrowning is solved in this bakeware concept: two pans in one with a cushion of air in between. The only adjustment, we discovered, in using these pans is having to slightly increase the baking period. Rema shared an easy-to-make, one-bowl, rich and moist chocolate cake recipe with a cherry pie filling.

Buying a microwave unit? Think combination convection/microwave oven this time. “The combination is the best of both worlds,” says Nancy Boyle, Sharp Electronics’ manager of product development and training. “The convection feature allows foods to brown and crisp while the microwave feature keeps food more moist while cooking them faster,” she explains. She contributed a recipe for Cardamom Pork Roast using Sharp Carousel II Convection Microwave Oven (from $479 to $599) with programmable settings.

To the health- and figure-conscious, a Donvier Shakemaker from Nikkal ($35) may be offered. Diet drinks are made more frothy in the gadget using very cold nonfat milk. The small electrical appliance has an aerating disk that can even produce thick whipped toppings using skim milk. CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES (Braun Hand Blender)

2 cups whipping cream

1 (16-ounce) bar semisweet dark chocolate, cut in small pieces

1 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened

Cocoa powder

Place whipping cream in saucepan and bring to boil. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and butter. Using hand blender, blend at regular speed until smooth. Chill 24 hours. Shape into balls and coat lightly with cocoa powder. Makes about 62 truffles. SICHUAN CHICKEN WITH GREEN PEPPERS (Joyce Chen Peking Pan)

2 whole chicken breasts, boned and diced into 3/4-inch cubes

3 to 4 tablespoons Joyce Chen’s Szechuan Stir-Fry Sauce

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 cup oil

3 tablespoons water

1 (8-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained

2 medium green peppers, diced

Toasted cashews or peanuts, optional

Mix chicken with stir-fry sauce and cornstarch. Heat skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add oil to heat. Add chicken mixture, stirring constantly, until almost cooked, about 2 to 5 minutes. Stir in water, water chestnuts and green peppers. Cook, stirring frequently, until tender-crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with cashews. Serve immediately. Makes 4 to 6 servings. CHOCOLATE CHERRY CAKE (CushionAire Insulated Cake Pan)

1 (18.25-ounce) package chocolate cake mix

1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Chocolate Frosting

Combine chocolate cake mix, cherry pie filling, eggs and almond extract. Mix well with large spoon. Turn into 13x9-inch baking pan and bake at 350 degrees 35 to 40 minutes or until cake tests done. Remove from oven. Pour Chocolate Frosting over hot cake and spread. Allow frosting to set before slicing cake. Makes 12 to 15 servings. Chocolate Frosting

5 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup milk

1 cup sugar

6 ounces semisweet chocolate pieces

1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine butter, milk and sugar in saucepan. Bring to boil and boil 1 minute. Add chocolate pieces and vanilla. Stir until chocolate is melted. Pour over hot cake. BROWN COW (Donvier Shakemaker)

3/4 cup nonfat milk

1/4 cup diet root beer

1 tablespoon chocolate syrup

1 packet low-calorie sugar substitute or sugar to taste

Pour milk and root beer into milkshake container. Place in freezer 10 minutes. Remove from freezer. Add chocolate syrup and sugar substitute. Blend 20 seconds and serve. Makes 1 serving. GINGERBREAD DOUGH (Santa’s Workshop Gingerbread House Kit)

1 1/3 cups shortening

1 1/4 cups brown sugar, lightly packed

1 (12-ounce) jar molasses (1 1/4 cups)

2 eggs

1 tablespoon water

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

8 to 8 1/2 cups flour

Beat shortening, brown sugar, molasses, eggs and water in large bowl until smooth. Add ginger, allspice, cinnamon, salt, baking soda and about half of flour. Beat until well mixed. Stir in remaining flour, mixing with hands if mixture is too stiff for spoon. Add enough flour so dough is stiff but not sticky.

Form dough into 3 balls, 1 slightly larger than others. Partially flatten each ball, then wrap each ball in plastic wrap or foil. Use immediately or refrigerate up to 2 days. Let refrigerated dough soften few minutes at room temperature before using. Makes dough for 1 Santa’s Workshop kit and accessories. CARDAMOM PORK ROAST (Sharp Microwave/Convection Oven)

2 tablespoons instant minced onion

2 tablespoons water

1 small clove garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon cooking oil

2 teaspoons ground cardamom

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup hot water

1 (4-pound) pork loin roast

Soften onion in water in 2-cup glass measure. Add garlic and oil. Microwave using 1 tap on Minute Plus or microwave on HIGH 1 minute. Blend in cardamom, salt and hot water. Place meat in shallow roasting pan. Brush generously with marinade. Set aside 1 hour, brushing meat with marinade often.

Drain marinade from meat and reserve for basting. Roast meat fat side up. Insert probe if using Sensor Temp. Program Sensor Temp for Roast Pork or set oven on High Mix/Roast and cook 14 to 16 minutes per pound. During roasting, continue to brush meat with marinade until all marinade has been used. Makes 8 servings. HOLIDAY FRUIT LOAF (Emmie Food Processor)

2 3/4 cups bread flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 package quick-rising yeast

3 tablespoons margarine, cut into pieces

1 egg, at room temperature

1/4 cup warm water (115 degrees)

1/3 cup warm milk (115 degrees)

1/3 cup raisins

1/4 cup candied fruits and peels

Powdered sugar

Fit food processor with metal blade and combine bread flour, cardamom, sugar, salt, yeast and margarine. Process 5 to 10 seconds to combine. Add egg. Combine water and milk. With processor running, add milk mixture in steady stream through feed chute. Process until dough forms ball.

Let dough rest 1 to 2 minutes. Remove dough and divide in half. Divide each half into 4 pieces and return 4 pieces to bowl. Process until ball of dough turns around in bowl about 30 times. Repeat process with remaining dough.

Turn dough onto lightly greased surface. Knead in raisins and candied fruits. Place in greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in warm place (85 degrees) until doubled.

Punch dough down, then turn out onto floured board. Roll into 12x8-inch rectangle. Roll up from short end, jellyroll fashion, sealing edges. Place in greased 8x4-inch loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled.

Bake at 375 degrees 25 to 30 minutes until golden and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack. When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar. Makes 1 loaf.

The Braun hand blender is available at most department stores.

The Joyce Chen Peking Pan is available at Bullock’s, Gelson’s and Bristol Farms.

The Rema Bakeware CushionAire baking pan is available at Gelson’s and Bullock’s.

The Sharp Convection/Microwave Oven is available at Friedman’s Microwave Stores.

The Donvier Shakemaker is available at most department stores.

Santa’s Workshop Gingerbread House Kit is available at Target and Walden Bookstores or by calling (602) 325-5263.

The Emmie compact food processor is available at Best Products and most major department stores.