An Affordable Mason Jar Holiday Idea for Coworkers

 

"These days , you've gotta milk a dollar out of every dime." ~Gale Forman


Are you in need of an affordable holiday gift for the office or a small group of friends? I've done some research on the use of the mason jar and adapted a thrifty, frugal, yet creative idea for the perfect holiday gift! It takes a little time to create them and I would advise giving yourself a day or two ahead of time to make them so they are not rushed. I was able to create 10 Apple Banana Cinnamon Pancake mix for my coworkers to take home and use for about $28 bucks, which is less than $3 a gift!!

To create each Apple Banana Cinnamon Pancake Gift Mix you will need....

Supplies needed:
A food dehydrator
16 ounce Mason jar with lid
Large Funnel 
Holiday Ribbon
Burlap Ribbon
Burlap Twine or string
Hot glue gun
Labels (optional)

Ingredients needed:
1 cup of dehydrated Apples and Bananas
3 cups of Self Rising Flour or Wheat Flour, or even Gluten free flour
3-4 Tbsp of Sugar
2 -Tbsp of Ground Cinnamon
1 Tbsp of Nutmeg

To start, the apples and bananas will need to be dehydrated for 10-12 hours.  One can opt to use store bought dehydrated apples and bananas but it will be costly to do so. To make your own, fill a medium bowl with water and lemon juice and set aside. This will be used to treat the fruit and prevent it from turning brown. Using a peeler, take each washed apple and create card stock thin slices of apples. Do the same for the bananas using a knife. Place in the lemon water for no longer than 5 minutes. Place the treated fruit on the dehydrator and let them dehydrate until they are dry. Once complete, store them in an air tight container until ready to use.

Wash, dry, and place each mason jar in the oven for about 10 minutes at 450 degrees. This will ensure that they are completely dry which is essential! DO NOT PLACE THE LIDS IN THE OVEN. Remove them from the oven and let them cool for 30 minutes.
 
Using a funnel, add flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and dehydrated fruit to each jar being sure to tap the jar. this will ensure that flour is packed nicely and will have less air in the jar.  Wipe any residual ingredients from the rim of the jar. Place the lid on and set aside. You can choose to mix all the ingredients together before hand if it is easier before placing in the mason jar.
 
Making sure the outside of the jar is free of dry ingredients, Place the burlap ribbon around the jar and secure with hot glue or tape. Next, take the holiday ribbon cut enough so that you will have enough to tie a bow around the mason jar, on top of the burlap ribbon. Then, cut a few strands of Burlap twine and tie around the neck of the mason jar.
 

Creating the ingredients and message can be entirely up to you. I found some cheap small pack of 12 envelops at Jo-Ann's for $1.50 and a piece of textured card stock for about .20 cents which I cut to fit into each envelop nicely. Using a red sharpie I wrote "Happy Holidays! From TJ" on one side and the ingredient list on the other side using a black pen.  If you have labels you can also write on the outside "Apple Banana Cinnamon Pancakes," or place this inside the envelop. Either way be sure to inform your recipients of what ingredients they need to add:
1-2 Tbsp of oil
1 slightly beaten egg
3/4 cup of milk or more
 
Using a hole puncher, make a small hole at the corner of the envelop and tie it onto one of the burlap twine.
 
This affordable holiday gift idea is very versatile and can be used similarly at baby showers, bridal showers, and much more! Be sure to give feedback below!
 

TJ