Christmas Gifts for Teens Who Snack, Sketch or Cook
Teenagers have strong opinions and short lists. The easiest way to buy for one is to watch what they already do: raid the candy drawer, make hot chocolate at midnight, fill the margins of every notebook, or start cooking their own dinner. The gifts below are grouped by those habits, each with its listed price.
A price table follows, with two bundles for a bigger gift. If you are buying for a younger child, the guide to edible gifts for kids starts with simpler candy and a project to make with a parent.
For the snacker: Swedish candy
Swedish candy suits a teen who likes sour. So Sweet's Skulls Mix is an 8-ounce bag of skull-shaped gummies imported from Sweden: fizzy skulls, sour Swedish skulls, sour Danish skulls, sour watermelon skulls and sour pink skulls (shop So Sweet Skulls Mix, $16.00). The BUBS Mix gathers BUBS foam skulls and ovals with a light sour sugar coating; So Sweet lists BUBS candy as gelatin-free and vegan (shop So Sweet BUBS Mix, $16.00).
For a smaller gift, BonBon's Moomin Sour Gummies are shaped like Moomin characters, in lemon, raspberry, cola and melon. The ingredients include wheat starch, so they are not for a teen who avoids wheat (shop BonBon Moomin Sour Gummies, $6.00).
For hot chocolate on cold nights
Burlap & Barrel's Royal Cinnamon Hot Chocolate blends cacao from Peru, panela cane sugar, sea salt, vanilla and Royal Cinnamon. Whisk 2 tablespoons into a cup of hot water for a quick cup, or simmer it with milk; it also stirs into coffee for a spiced mocha (shop Royal Cinnamon Hot Chocolate, $23.99).
For the one who sketches or writes
A teen who draws will use a sketchbook every day. Leuchtturm1917's Medium sketchbook is A5, 145 by 210 mm, with 112 pages of white, acid-free 150 g paper for pencil, charcoal, chalk and ink. It is thread-bound so it opens flat, and it has a page marker, an elastic band, a gusseted pocket at the back and a sticker for labeling (shop the Leuchtturm1917 Medium sketchbook, $25.95).
Pair it with a first fountain pen. Lamy introduced the Safari in the 1980s. It has a matt plastic body, a polished steel nib, ergonomically shaped grip surfaces, and a self-sprung clip, and it comes with one blue LAMY T10 ink cartridge (shop the Lamy Safari, blue, medium nib, $25.00). For a teen who keeps a diary, see also the journal gift guide.
For the new cook
A teen who has started making dinner needs a few things that make plain food taste like more. Mama Teav's Hot Garlic Chili Crisp, the mild version, is organic garlic fried in cold-pressed grapeseed oil with sun-dried, flame-roasted chilis and dried onions; the maker lists it as gluten-free and vegan, at half the heat of the original (shop Mama Teav's chili crisp, mild, $13.50). It goes on eggs, rice and noodles.
Add Burlap & Barrel's Kebab, a Turkish blend of chilis, garlic, cumin and allspice for burgers, meatballs and roasted vegetables (shop Kebab, $9.95), and a jar of Salina Crystal Salt for finishing (shop Salina Crystal Salt, $9.95). For a cook who wants to try more, the Spice Passport holds eight half-teaspoon pods of different spices (shop the Spice Passport, $11.00).
Two bundles
The sketch kit: the Leuchtturm1917 sketchbook ($25.95), the Lamy Safari ($25.00) and a bag of So Sweet Skulls Mix ($16.00) for the drawing breaks. Together: $66.95.
The first cooking kit: Mama Teav's chili crisp ($13.50), Kebab ($9.95), Salina Crystal Salt ($9.95) and the Spice Passport ($11.00), packed in a red gift box with a magnetic flap lid, 8 by 8 by 4 inches (shop the red magnetic gift box, $10.00). Together: $54.40.
Christmas gifts for teens, by price
| Gift | Habit | Listed price | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| BonBon Moomin Sour Gummies | Snacker | $6.00 | Contains wheat |
| Burlap & Barrel Kebab | New cook | $9.95 | Spice blend for burgers and vegetables |
| Burlap & Barrel Spice Passport | New cook | $11.00 | Eight spice pods |
| Mama Teav's chili crisp, mild | New cook | $13.50 | Gluten-free and vegan per the maker |
| So Sweet Skulls Mix | Snacker | $16.00 | Imported from Sweden |
| So Sweet BUBS Mix | Snacker | $16.00 | Gelatin-free and vegan per So Sweet |
| Royal Cinnamon Hot Chocolate | Hot chocolate | $23.99 | Water or milk |
| Lamy Safari fountain pen | Writer | $25.00 | One blue T10 cartridge included |
| Leuchtturm1917 Medium sketchbook | Sketcher | $25.95 | 112 pages, 150 g paper |
| First cooking kit | New cook | $54.40 | Four items in a red box |
| Sketch kit | Sketcher | $66.95 | Sketchbook, pen and candy |
Prices follow the listed price on each product page. Products ship across the continental U.S. from theambrosianpantry.com.
Short answers
What is a good Christmas gift for a teen? Something that fits a habit they already have: sour candy for a snacker, a sketchbook for someone who draws, a chili crisp for a teen who cooks.
What can I give a teen for under $20? A bag of So Sweet Swedish candy ($16.00), a jar of Mama Teav's chili crisp ($13.50) or a Spice Passport ($11.00).
Is a fountain pen a good gift for a teenager? The Lamy Safari is one option: it has a plastic body and a steel nib, and it takes Lamy T10 cartridges.
The shop is at 263 Josephine Street in Cherry Creek, Denver.
