Simple, heartfelt and hearty gifts

Stuck for holiday gift-giving ideas? This year, keep it very simple.

Friends and family will appreciate gifts from the heart, homemade or store-bought with care.

Food gifts to busy people from busy people are an especially good idea because so many choices are low-cost and practical. They aren't likely to go to waste, and they can be enjoyed now or stored for later.

Better choices include food that is relatively low in calories, added sugar and salt, saturated fat and trans fat. They're simply made and not highly processed.

Recommended picks:

• Savory soups. Take a Thermos full of hot soup as a hostess gift or deliver soup frozen in quart-size, airtight containers. Gift-getters can store soup in the freezer and reheat it later for a quick meal.

Split pea, vegetable barley, lentil, tomato and rice, potato leek, black bean and navy bean soup are good choices. Eliminate the added salt, and virtually anybody can eat these.

• Homemade baked goods. The large loaf of crusty, freshly baked sourdough bread a friend once brought to our home still stands out in my memory as special because he baked it himself.

Muffins and quick breads are also good choices. Add a handful of fresh cranberries or chopped, dried apples or dates to the batter. Substitute whole-wheat for half of the white flour to up the fiber content.

Personalize the gift by tailoring it for dietary needs: bread made with gluten-free flour for friends with celiac disease or heart-healthy oatmeal cookies made with trans-fat-free margarine to help keep cholesterol levels in check.

Deliver a loaf of bread in a basket or wrapped on a wooden cutting board, or pack muffins and cookies in decorative tins, kitchen canisters or foil-covered, cardboard boxes.

• Simple sweets. Give pure maple syrup in a bow-wrapped bottle or a jar of local honey from the farmers market. A teaspoon or two is all it takes to sweeten a bowl of cereal, a cup of tea or a pancake - far less sugar than in most packaged sweets.
• Aromatic herbs and the like. Small, potted rosemary plants, bags or jars of mulling spices or a fresh orange pomander covered in cloves (find instructions on the Web) are nice. Tall, skinny bottles of vegetable oil or balsamic vinegar infused with herbs are another good choice.
• Chutney, relish, sauces and other condiments. Little luxuries - jars of gourmet mustard, pasta sauce and sweet or spicy sandwich spreads don't cost a lot but are items many of us don't often buy for ourselves. If they're homemade, all the better.

Wrap bottles and jars in colorful sheets of tissue or cellophane and tie with a ribbon. Add a small, decorative spoon or spreader.

Many condiments and sauces are high in sodium. The good news is that it takes only a smidge to add big flavor to food. Keeping the rest of the meal rich in foods naturally low in sodium - fresh vegetables and fruits, for example - helps reduce the overall sodium load.

In these times of financial turmoil and hardship, you don't need to spend a lot on gifts to put a smile on somebody's face or warm a heart.

Make it yourself or choose it with care. The key ingredient is love.