I think for most people one of the most integral parts of every festive season is the food. Even the people I know who ordinarily have little interest and view food merely as essential fuel get a little bit excited when the selection boxes hit the shelves. For those of us with serious foodies in our lives this is the perfect time of year to spoil them rotten with some luxurious and unusual treats and today I’m bringing you a selection of sweet (and savoury) little stocking filler ideas…I hope those around me are taking notes!

First up we have almost a rainbow of chocolate from Chocolate and Love* which Mae took an immediate interest in- she couldn’t even be distracted by a bag of dreamies! Chocolate and Love offers something more luxurious than your average chocolate bar, made with ethically sourced organic, high quality and fair trade ingredients. The bars come in seven different flavours which include coffee, mint, orange, sea salt and caramel as well as some varying degrees of darkness plain bars. Just how gorgeous is that packaging? You almost wouldn’t need to gift wrap these bars, just tie a stack together with some string. The mint 67% dark chocolate was my personal favourite and the coffee was a real winner with my best friend. You can pick these bars up in Sainsburys for £3.00 or look at their website for more stockists.

Next up we have a pyramid of pickles (and chutneys) from The English Provender Company* all of which would make a welcome addition to any festive buffet as much as they would make a spectacular gift nestled in to a foodie hamper. I was really excited by these as I’m a bit of a condiment queen and love loading up a festive leftovers salad or sandwich with as many kinds as I can get my hands on. The most intriguing of the selection I was sent was the Moroccan Spiced Chutney which would be simply amazing with a cous-cous and turkey based salad. The website suggests combining it with creme fraiche for a dip with a twist too, I’m so giving that a whirl! You’ll find The English Provender Company in all major supermarkets. I’m doing my best to save this selection for the festive period but I don’t know how long I’m going to last out!

I’ve been a fan of Nakd bars since they first hit supermarket shelves and the festive addition of a Christmas Pud bar has been a seasonal highlight for me for the last couple of years, despite really disliking actual Christmas Pudding. These bars are made from all natural ingredients with a festive kick and counts as one of your five a day! Stock up if you see these in store (or order yourself a case, which is my plan!). Perfect for stuffing in to stockings as an alternative to a chocolate orange too.

What are you food highlights of the festive season? I’m wondering how soon is too soon to start on the Stollen!

Products in this post are PR samples.