A good gift says, ‘I thought of you’. A great one says, ‘I know you’: I know the cake you’ll pretend to resist, the loaf that tastes like home, the biscuits you mean to share but never do.
Giving well isn’t about finding the most beautiful object, emptying your savings or chasing the most coveted trends. At its best, giving actually goes beyond the material – it’s about knowing someone. It’s the quiet emotional intelligence that develops over time, by walking through life with someone and gradually getting to know their most honest selves.
This Christmas, we’re honouring that kind of giving, the kind that feels like being known. The quiet joy of choosing something just right, of wrapping a little piece of care, of watching someone’s face light up because you remembered.
Our Christmas collection is made for those moments: Bags of biscuits, jars of preserves, boxes of festive pastries. You’ll find familiar favourites back for the season, along with new recipes baked with care and designed to be shared. Each one a small, thoughtful way to say, I know you.
Our new Filled Chai & Pistachio Cookie is delightfully chewy, with an oozing tea-infused, white chocolate ganache centre. Baked and boxed, these cookies make a beautiful Christmas gift for anyone particularly attached to their afternoon (and morning, and evening) cup of tea. We’ve used heritage grains and Diaspora Co.’s chai masala blend, with perfumed cardamom, sweet fennel seed, complex cinnamon, fiery black pepper and warming cloves.
Ideal for those with less of a sweet tooth, our new Ham, Cheese & Stuffing Croissant is a seasonal twist on our much-loved savoury croissant. The pastry is filled with a chestnut and sage stuffing-laden béchamel, free-range ham and Westcombe cheddar. A slightly spiced redcurrant barbecue sauce is then draped over the length of the pastry. We sprinkle the top with nigella seeds, and bake until the cheese is oozing and the barbecue sauce has added a brittle, caramelised coating of festive red.
Naturally, we’re bringing back our much-loved mince pies, made with sweet Jonagold apples, Calvados, vine fruits, cranberries and candied citrus peel. Our mincemeat is created by our friends at Tea Together, an artisan jam company based in northern France. Our boxes of mince pies are easy to pick up on the way to a festive gathering.
Of course, mince pies aren’t for everyone. New to the GAIL’s Christmas Menu is our Ecclefechan, inspired by the famous Scottish tart. The fruit-laden and butter-rich slice features seasonal cranberries, sour cherries, glacé cherries and a biscuity shortcrust pastry. We've added brown butter, Scottish whisky, pecans and almonds. Rich, fudgy and fabulous with any hot drink, our Ecclefechan is a great mince pie alternative.
Beyond our baker’s table, our pantry is well-stocked with thoughtfully made bakes that are ready for giving. Our Parmesan Shortbreads are an ideal gift for your favourite cheese aficionado. Decadently cheesy and wonderfully crumbly, the biscuits partner beautifully with a piccalilli on the ultimate Christmas cheese board.
Meanwhile, our luxuriously light sourdough panettoni are back, including the classic, a mandarin and white chocolate, pistachio and lemon, and chocolate version. Buttery and decadent, each bite of panettone warrants another (and then another). A lovely gift during the lead up to Christmas or for placing under the tree, they’re designed to be shared and savoured.
This Christmas, we’re also adding our first fragrances to our gifting range. Collaborating with the candle makers at Earl of East and Surrey Ceramics, we’ve developed two bespoke scents evoking the aromas of a baker's oven. Notes of grassy olive oil, aromatic rosemary and a hint of sea salt evoke freshly baked focaccia. Meanwhile, warming spiced notes of brown butter, burnt caramel and sweet cinnamon capture the mouthwatering scent of freshly baked cinnamon buns. Each candle is hand-poured in London into a handmade cup by Surrey Ceramics.
We hope you’ll treat yourself to our Christmas menu over the coming weeks, as well as find just the right gifts for your loved ones.
Have a wonderful festive season – and keep giving to show you know.
Love, GAIL’s
