Gifts for French Food Lovers, From Dijon to Paris
Someone who loves French food usually loves a place as much as a flavor: the mustard of Burgundy, a tea salon in Paris, the fruit and lavender of Provence. A gift that names the place reads as more than a jar. The gifts below are grouped by region, each with its maker and listed price, and a box at the end puts one from each region together.
A price table follows the regions. If the person you are buying for has a favorite corner of France, start there.
Burgundy: mustard from a stone mill in Beaune
Dijon mustard is the classic French food gift, and the version from Beaune comes with a long history. The Fallot mustard mill was founded in Beaune in 1840 and is now run by Marc Désarmenien, the grandson of Edmond Fallot. The mill grinds its seeds slowly between millstones so the paste does not overheat. The classic Dijon is made from black and brown mustard seeds mixed with verjuice (shop Edmond Fallot Dijon mustard, $4.99). The tarragon version blends the same base with tarragon leaves, a pairing for chicken, fish and egg salad (shop Edmond Fallot tarragon Dijon, $4.99).
Two jars cost less than $10, which makes them easy to tuck into a larger gift or hand to a host. The Dijon mustard guide covers how the style is made and how to cook with it.
Paris and Meaux: tea, jam and a second mustard
Mariage Frères has been a Paris tea house since 1854. Paris-Provence is a floral white tea with lavender from Provence, spearmint and rose, packed in 30 cotton muslin sachets; Mariage Frères steeps one sachet in 20 cl of water at 85°C for five minutes. The maker notes it may contain traces of nuts (shop Mariage Frères Paris-Provence, $36.00). For a black tea drinker, Earl Grey French Blue pairs black tea with bergamot and cornflower petals, in a 100 g canister of loose leaves (shop Earl Grey French Blue, $34.00).
For the breakfast table, Confiture Parisienne makes its jams by hand in its Paris workshop. The Orange Vanilla jam is made from fresh oranges, Bourbon vanilla pearls and unrefined cane sugar (shop Confiture Parisienne Orange Vanilla, $11.00).
Pommery's Lion's Mustard is a Dijon-style mustard made in the Meaux region, east of Paris (shop Pommery Lion's Mustard, $20.00). For a younger French food fan, Bonbons Barnier's tin of assorted fruit lollipops is printed with lollipop characters around Paris, Eiffel Tower included (shop the Barnier lollipop tin, $20.00).
Provence: fruit jellies, almond cake and jam
François Doucet Confiseur works in the village of Oraison in Haute-Provence, where François and Maggy Doucet made their first pralines and fruit jellies more than fifty years ago. The Billes Gourmandes are round, sugar-dusted pâtes de fruits in apricot, raspberry and blueberry, with a jellied Provençal lavender honey in the mix (shop François Doucet fruit jelly marbles, $15.00). In France, pâtes de fruits are served after dinner or with tea.
Biscuiterie de Provence, in the Drôme Provençale, bakes with almonds, a craft the family has kept for six generations. The maker labels its almond and vanilla cake gluten-free (shop the almond and vanilla cake, $15.50). Olbia en Provence makes jam near Hyères from fruit picked in the morning, cooked in small batches and hand-filled into jars the same afternoon; the wild blueberry jam is at least 65% fruit (shop Olbia wild blueberry jam, $19.00).
Cornichons belong on the same table. The cornichon guide explains what they are and how the French serve them.
A French box, one gift from each region
The box: Edmond Fallot Dijon and tarragon mustards ($4.99 each), Mariage Frères Paris-Provence ($36.00), François Doucet fruit jelly marbles ($15.00) and the Biscuiterie de Provence almond and vanilla cake ($15.50), 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: $86.48. Add a card that names the three regions, so the person knows where each piece comes from.
Gifts for French food lovers, by price
| Gift | Region | Listed price | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edmond Fallot Dijon mustard | Burgundy | $4.99 | Stone-ground in Beaune |
| Edmond Fallot tarragon Dijon | Burgundy | $4.99 | With tarragon leaves |
| Confiture Parisienne Orange Vanilla | Paris | $11.00 | Handmade in Paris |
| François Doucet fruit jelly marbles | Provence | $15.00 | Apricot, raspberry, blueberry, lavender honey |
| Biscuiterie de Provence almond and vanilla cake | Provence | $15.50 | Labeled gluten-free by the maker |
| Olbia wild blueberry jam | Provence | $19.00 | At least 65% fruit |
| Pommery Lion's Mustard | Meaux | $20.00 | Dijon style |
| Barnier lollipop tin | Paris tin | $20.00 | Assorted fruit lollipops |
| Mariage Frères Earl Grey French Blue | Paris | $34.00 | Loose leaf, 100 g |
| Mariage Frères Paris-Provence | Paris | $36.00 | 30 muslin sachets |
| The French box | All three | $86.48 | Five gifts in a red box |
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 gift for someone who loves French food? Something that names a place: Dijon mustard from Beaune, a Paris tea, or fruit jellies from Provence.
What French food gift costs under $20? Two jars of Edmond Fallot mustard ($9.98 together), a jar of Confiture Parisienne jam ($11.00) or a bag of François Doucet fruit jellies ($15.00).
What are pâtes de fruits? Fruit jellies made from fruit pulp and coated in sugar, served in France after dinner or with tea.
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