What I Want for Christmas This Year

Forget holiday gift guides. Let's get down to the really important holiday giving - my wish list! I've just seen too many holiday goodies and great wish lists this year to pass up. And what better way to make sure Santa brings me something I actually want than to post what I want. If he brings me a lump of coal, it better be edible. So, here goes: Dear Santa, I've been a very, very good girl this year...

And what can a good girl use better than a chocolate Christmas tree! This one from La Maison Chocolats in New York fits the bill. The tree is $138. Delivery could be a bit more -- you have to pick it up in person at one of their NYC boutiques.

The Cookbook I Want: Braise by Daniel Boulud. Those who know me, know I'm a big Daniel Boulud fan. And Braise, his latest, makes me want to slow cook meat all day long! (And you know what you get when your favorite chef slow cooks meat all day? You get everything delicious!)

Gifts for Foodies: Slashfood has their gift list for foodies. Hint: I'd like the foie gras, please. They also have a great book list if cookbooks are what your foodie loves. Hint: I recommend big, four color books as gifts. Guys, it's not cool to give your girl a cookbook full of food you hope she'll make. It's about food *she* hopes she'll make. And that you might eat.

For the Molecular Gastronome in Your Family: And from Wired News (via Megnut) comes this list of all the tools your favorite foamer or infuser could ever ask for. From a professional immersion circulator to the full El Bulli history and cookbook, anything on this list will let your favorite little sous vide chef whip, stiffen, foam, or dehydrate away. Includes PC cables for electronic monitoring of temperature, titrating guides and even links to El Bulli's own line of texturizers, Texturas.