Breakfast in Bed Gift Basket: perfect, thoughtful gift, includes a recipe and homemade mix for pancakes, and free printable.
Jump to:
This time of year we’re all looking for thoughtful, easy gifts for the holidays and this one is PERFECT. A bottle of wine is great, flowers are sweet, but I really love to give something that is practical, but still special and thoughtful and more personal. Everyone would love a gorgeous breakfast in bed gift basket like this one. This basket would be great as a teacher gift, or to bring as a hostess gift during the holidays.
I love the idea of writing on the card for the host of a dinner party “You made dinner, so I took care of breakfast.” It's the perfect gift to give to the host of a lovely meal. Any breakfast lover would basket full of an exciting assortment of gourmet treats prepared with the utmost care. This is the specialty gift worth savouring. These beautiful goodies turn a lazy sunday into a glorious morning.
What To Put In a Breakfast Basket?
- homemade pancake mix
- maple syrup
- Starbucks holiday blend ground coffee
- scented candle
- breakfast pastries
- basket
- cloth napkins
- holiday candle
We filled our basket with the perfect breakfast foods. I made up my little basket with some homemade pancake mix, maple syrup -has to be the real stuff too, Starbucks Holiday Blend ground coffee, a scented candle, and some pastries from my favourite local bakery. I love that most of the ingredients in our basket are non-perishable. It means the recipient can save most of the things to use any time. It also means you can put most of this basket together ahead of time. We didn't include any fresh fruit in ours, for this reason, but it could be a great addition too. Some classic oranges or juicy grapefruits are in season around the holidays and the best citrus fruits to include.
My favourite part of the basket has to be the homemade pancake mix and maple syrup. You could of course substitute this with your favourite pre-made pancake mix or waffle mix. As a Canadian, we had to include some real maple syrup for that classic combination of pancakes and syrup. You could also add something like flavored syrups, or strawberry preserves.
The Pastries
In my humble opinion, breakfast pastries on one of the greatest things in life. It's like permission to start your day with a dessert. Yes please. We went to our local bakery and picked up a few fruit-filled pastries for our basket. Of course you'll want to give these in a timely manner so that they still nice and fresh for the recipients. I'm partial to danish, or an almond croissant when it comes to breakfast pastries, but other great options are scones, or muffins, or cinnamon rolls. You know the chocolate lovers are going to looking for chocolate flavors in their breakfast baskets. You could include something like a chocolate croissant, chocolate chip muffin, or hand made dark chocolate chip scones from your favorite bakery.
Coffee
We couldn't make a breakfast basket without including our favorite of the hot beverages, coffee. Any coffee aficionados would never start the day without the true delight of a cup, or two. We added in the holiday blend for a node to the season. It's a great choice this time of year. Other options for any gourmet coffees, english tea, or some hot chocolate mix -see our homemade recipe for hot chocolate mix here. A beautiful set of porcelain coffee mugs would be a great addition too.
The Basket
We found a pretty wire basket to use as our base. A wicker basket would be a great choice too. You might also turn your basket into a bed tray gift. Use a lovely bamboo bed tray with fold out legs, and pile your gifts on top and wrap the whole thing in cellophane for a perfect breakfast in bed gift tray.
Our wire basket is lined with a set of pretty cloth napkins, and piled in all the treats. It's nice to include a variety of colors in your basket. Classic red and green were perfect for the holidays. We used some fresh greenery and berries on the front, tied with some baker's twine for a festive seasonal look.
Homemade Pancake Mix
The homemade pancake mix is really simple to make, and so, so yummy. Seriously I grew up on store-bought pancake mix. Then my husband started making pancakes from scratch. They are amazing. They are so worth the tiny bit of effort. I promise that once you’ve tried these, you’ll never go back. We used a vintage mason jar to package our pancake mix, but you could use any pretty jar or canister, or even a clear cellophane bag would work well.
I love these pancakes plain. But you could also include some dark chocolate chips or creamy milk chocolate chips for the chocolate lovers. Add them right into the dry pancake mix, or pop a bag of them into the basket as a perfect side.
Free Printable
For gift giving, just combine the dry ingredients, put them in a pretty container and attach the pretty free printable with the instructions for how to make them. The free printable is available in our Free Resource Library. Subscribe below for instant access to the this free printable and many more.
Recipe
Homemade Pancakes
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups milk optional: substitute buttermilk for regular milk
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoon melted butter
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a bowl, and then pour into a pretty container for gift giving, and be sure to attach the rest of the ingredients and instructions with our free printable.
- If you're making them for yourself, combine the wet ingredients in another bowl. Stir dry and wet together until just combined, be careful not to over mix. Cook on a hot, greased griddle or frying pan until golden brown -flipping sides once little bubbles begin to appear. Enjoy!
Nutrition
This breakfast in bed gift basket is a whole new level of indulgence and a fabulous way to show someone you love them this holiday season. The delicious combination of coffee, pastries, and pancakes in this cafe theme breakfast basket is enough to give anyone a good morning. I hope this gives you some great ideas for your own breakfast gift baskets this holiday season.
With a sweet Breakfast in Bed Gift Basket like this for holiday gift giving, life really is a party!
More Ideas
Also check out our Printable Christmas Gift Card Holders here.
You might also enjoy our Holiday Hostess Wine and Cheese Gift Basket here.
Dannyelle Nicolle-Ramjist says
These pancakes are fluffy and delicious, and make the perfect thoughtful homemade gift.
Samantha says
I love this Breakfast in Bed Gift Basket craft, amazing and unique . Excited to try this one.
Pamela says
What a great idea with this basket,,,I really appreciate you sharing...have a blessed day!!
dnr says
Thanks so much Melissa, I love hearing reports back like this. So glad she enjoyed it. Thanks for taking the time to let me know,
Merry Christmas!
Dannyelle
Melissa says
Hi Dannyelle,
I had been wanting to create a gift basket for my Secret Santa. After awhile of searching, I stumbled on your website. I had substituted homemade banana bread and a few things, but I did include the pancake mix and coffee. She LOVED it. Thank you for sharing your great idea.
Thanks,
Melissa
dnr says
Hi Kristen, the mug is actually a DIY that I made a while ago. There's a tutorial on the blog on how to make it, you can find it here: https://www.lifeisaparty.ca/2014/hot-chocolate-bar-cart-with-diy-woodland-mugs/
Thanks,
Dannyelle
Kristen says
Love this idea! Where is the buck mug from?
dnr says
Hi Gina, It makes about 1 dozen medium size pancakes.
Enjoy,
Dannyelle
Gina Gonzlaes says
Quick question....any idea how many pancakes one jar of mix makes? I have a family of 7 that I want to ensure I provide enough mix for.
Thanks!
Gina
dnr says
Hi Heather, the jar is a vintage mason jar, you might find something similar at an antique market.
Best of luck,
Dannyelle
Heather says
I love the jar you put the pancake mis in. Where did you get it?
Thanks for such a lovely idea.
Heather
dnr says
Hi Joanne, Sorry no printable, I would just write in the card. And, yes the candle was also from Target, last year though. Hope this helps.
Dannyelle
Joanna Melchor says
What a great great gift idea to take to a dinner party! Is there a printable for the 'you made dinner, so I took care of breakfast'? Also, did you get the candle at target too? Thanks, Joanna