Last-minute shopping ideas for the finicky foodie

When it comes to gift-giving, some people are easier to shop for than others. If shoppers still have a few foodies on their list to buy for, here are a few suggestions that say “season’s eatings.”

For the future “Top Chefs”

Friends with a yen for cooking should enjoy the Cooking Healthy Mexican cooking class with Chef Mike Minor at Border Grill ($75). The demonstration-style cooking class takes place Jan. 21 at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino-based restaurant and will teach participants how to prepare light and healthful modern Mexican fare, enhanced with vegetables, whole grains, beans and handmade tortillas. The class includes a multi-course lunch, signature cocktails and a recipe booklet.

To reserve a spot at the Cooking Healthy Mexican cooking class inside Border Grill inside Mandalay Bay, call 702.632.7403.

For the confectionery connoisseur

For those whose taste in candy is more refined than the drugstore box of chocolates, the Vosges 32-piece Exotic Truffle collection ($75) just might fit the bill. Each box contains truffles, which mix a variety of chocolates and caramels with such unusual ingredients as Ancho chili powder, pumpkin seeds, wasabi or curry.

Vosges Haut Chocolat, inside the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace, is open from Sunday through Thursday 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to midnight. 702.836.9866.

For the molecular gastronomist

For some people, cooking and eating food just isn’t enough—they aren’t happy unless the laws of physics are being tested. Wow them with a gift certificate to Popped, perhaps accompanied by a bag of popcorn in Dill Pickle or Marilyn Monroe ($3 to $7). The crafty kernels will entice the lucky recipient to head to the shop and check out their ever-changing variety of flavors, while the gift certificate will allow him or her to experience frozen popcorn ($3 to $6), freshly blasted with liquid nitrogen.

Popped, 9480 S Eastern Ave, Suite 110, is open 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. 702.998.9234.

For the aspiring brewmaster

Some guys like to buy beer; others would rather make it themselves. Help launch his (or her) new hobby with a trip to Big Dog’s Brew School 9 ($99), held January 7. Brewmaster Dave Otto shows his students how to brew up a batch of Tyrone! My Man! Black IPA, then the class gets lunch and two pints of beer. A diploma and a class picture round out the course, which graduates Feb. 2, with a dinner starring the class project.

Big Dog’s Brewing Company, 4543 N. Rancho Drive. Call 702.940.2739 or visit www.bigdogsbrews.com/brewschool for more information.

For the sophisticated sports fan

Chips and pretzels won’t cut it for this unusual breed of sports fanatic, unless it’s the chips of chili-dusted applewood smoked bacon found in Chipotle Bacon Brittle or the beer and pretzel caramels in Glitter City Sweets’ Man Candy collection (each $8 per half pound).

Visit www.glittercitysweets.com for ordering information.

Published on bestoflasvegas.com