Ultimate Persian Gift Guide
This is the ultimate Persian gift guide! It was carefully curated to inspire gift ideas for the holidays, birthdays, hostess gifts or just to surprise a friend and make someone's day. Besides containing unique gift ideas, there is a focus on small businesses, which need support now more than ever. Hopefully you find it useful and can share it with a friend who would also enjoy it.
Persian Treats
Niloofar Persian Trail Mix is the finest quality nuts, berries and figs lovingly sorted so that only the best pieces make it into the bag. Niloofar also offers several varieties of tasty flavored almonds. These are great gifts for just about anyone - stocking stuffers, as a hostess gift or any occasion worth celebrating!
Vartamelon sells creative Persian-inspired baked goods from her home with the most loving attention to details. Varta's signature style of drizzled white chocolate with the most carefully placed crushed nuts and rose petals make her goodies so gorgeous. Don't miss her handmade lavashak - it's a real treat!
Zozo Baking offers beautiful handmade Persian pastries that are just beautiful. Packaged with care in various gift packages, you can choose just the right combination of sweets. Check the bazaar at Zozo Baking for more offerings like chai, baking tools and a Persian boutique.
Persian Royal Tea offers several varieties of chai that would make a great gift. Persian Royal Tea Company has been in business for three generations and takes pride in offering exquisite blends. Pair it with a box of baked goods for the ultimate treat!
Greeting Cards
Apparel
Make Tahdig Not War Shirts by Savage Muse are great statement pieces that are bound to be well received by a lucky friend or loved one. Founder Parisa Parnian designed the shirts and has made them quite popular as she wears hers with flair and has garnered attention from many other like-minded tahdig (and peace) lovers.
image via sumus.life
IRAN IRAN IRAN IRAN tee shirt is a collaboration with Taravat Talepasand that explores the constructed nature of national identities as they are negotiated within the tumultuous relations between the US and the East and West at large. Fashion is a way to proclaim your own image and views to the world, thus the collection is a way to protest, support, and proclaim peaceful solidarity and awareness of a country and its people to be free from injustice, hatred, racism, sexism and endless war. This super soft tee shirt is hand silk screened.
5x1 by Saffron Saints is one accessory with five uses: a handy dish towel that begs for saffron and turmeric staining, sun protection for a national park hike, mask for safety, rice bonnet for tahdig making, get spicy with it, go wild. Saffron Saints is a sister-started pop-up shop that celebrates immigredients (immigrants + ingredients), and the communities they came from. They have a mission of elevating and celebrating the contributions that immigrants have made to the American food landscape. 50% of proceeds to IRC and The Street Vendor Project, both of which help those who have dedicated their lives to feeding others. Orders are only being taken until November 30 to ensure holiday delivery so check out their apparel today!
Kitchen Essentials
Image via louisashafia.com
Persian Spice Kit by Louisa Shafia would be the perfect gift for someone just beginning to cook or looking to recreate the recipes of childhood. It has the essential spices as well as a spice blend and would be the perfect accompaniment to her highly regarded cookbook - The New Persian Kitchen.
Zaran Saffron offers premium Persian saffron in quantities from two grams to an ounce - so you can get just the right amount for the serious cook in our life. It will undoubtedly be appreciated and used with great joy!
Image via zozobaking.com
A mortar and pestle is a great toolset to have in the kitchen - especially this miniature size which is perfect for using with saffron. It would make the perfect accompaniment to a tin of saffron as a gift to a Persian food enthusiast.
Zaffrus Saffron Powder is a really neat idea for those who would appreciate the convenience of quality saffron that is ready to use in the kitchen. Use it as you would in any recipe - it's ready to go in pre-measured pods.
Rice bonnet or damkoni as it is called in Persian, is something not everyone may know exists but it is the perfectly safe solution to replace using a kitchen towel to catch steam when making tahdig. The fabric is sewn in the shape of a pot lid and elastic keeps it in place so that there is not any excess draping fabric near the heating element. It's just perfect! The ones available by Feast at LouisaShafia.com are made by graduates of Sew For Hope, which provides training and sewing machines for refugees so that they can earn income through entrepreneurial ventures.
Cookbooks
Image via bottomofthepot.com
Bottom of the Pot by Naz Deravian is a well-respected cookbook that has made its home in many kitchens of new and experienced home cooks and chefs. You can't go wrong with this one!
Image via amazon.com
Simply is the latest cookbook by Sabrina Ghayour and it is a fun one for those who appreciate Persian food and are interested in Persian-inspired dishes that are quick and easy. She is the author of several other well-received cookbooks and is known for bringing familiar flavors to approachable recipes.
Nilou's 21 Recipes from a Shelter in Place is a recently released project by a home cook who spent time during lockdown documenting recipes for her children to eventually use when they leave home. She has made these recipes so simply with the ingredients arranged and labeled pleasingly. It is truly easy enough for a child to follow, which makes it the perfect gift for a beginner cook of any age!
Online Classes
Image via ferdowskids.org
Persian classes for kids are now more available than ever with virtual learning options from Pardis for Children, Ferdows Kids and many other Persian Schools around the world. Give the children access to a captivating time in class full of learning, music and fun!
Image via caspianchef.com
Caspian Chef cooking classes are being offered via Zoom and are bound to be a learning experience for any Persian food enthusiast. Omid Roustaei is a trained chef and culinary instructor with a passion for Persian food and a wealth of experience sharing his techniques with others.
Image via moodypersian.com
Moody Persian cooking lessons are offered one-on-one or as a group. Mahsa Darabi makes it possible to share a meal with the ones you love (virtually) that you are able to all prepare together under her direction. She will undoubtedly make it a fun and memorable experience!
Toys & Books for Children
Image via shahnamehforkids.com
Shahnemeh for Kids offers great retelling of ancient Persian myths. They are a vibrant and engaging way to make a kid-friendly introduction to Ferdowsi's epic Shahnameh.
Image via azitoys.ecwid.com
Azitoys sells wooden eco-friendly puzzles that expose your child to the most common Persian letters. Over 200 words can be built with the letters which can be used independent of the puzzle board.
Image via gandomak.org
Gandomak offers high quality children's literature in Persian. if your child is already reading Persian, these are great titles to keep around for practicing Persian.
Image via unclegoose.com
Uncle Goose Persian Blocks feature debossed Persian letters and numbers on each block. Build towers, words and knowledge with these attractive blocks!
Persian Reading
Image via Amazon.com
Faces of Love is translated to English by an award-winning poet, poems by Hafez, Jahan Malek Khatun and Obayd-e Zakani - all from Shiraz, are represented in this compilation of poetry. This is a great compilation that combines the great Hafez with two other poets that may expand the reach of Persian poetry for many.
Another Birth is a wonderful introduction to Forugh Farrokhzad featuring letters, a timeline of Forush's life and creative work, analysis on her poems and best of all the Persian text of the poems faces the English translations. Get to know this woman who created much scandal in Iran through her reflections on womanhood, love, religion and society.
Image via amazon.com
Persepolis is a graphic memoir depicting the life of Marjane Satrapi growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. It is smart, funny and a most enjoyable way to learn about this important portion of history. It would definitely appeal to young adults as well.
Image from amazon.com
Oxford Handbook of Iranian History is sure to be appreciated by any history buff but would make a great gift for anyone who would benefit from learning more about the rich history of Iran. It was compiled by leading scholars in various fields, so it really gives a complete view of history including language, art, politics and linguistics. A great addition to any Persian family's shelf!
Persian Learning Materials
Hopefully you found this list helpful. Bookmark it for future use and share it with someone who would find it useful:
https://littlepersian.com/blogs/news/ultimate-persian-gift-guide
Little Persian has a mission to provide high quality Persian materials to English speaking families. Little Persian is more than just learning materials. It is a movement to connect children and their families to Persian heritage and to one another.
Stay connected on Facebook and Instagram
Check out Persian learning materials and greeting cards at LittlePersian.com