Top 10 Products to Bring Home

Italy is a great place for shopping and you'll definitely find something interesting to take home with you whether it be a souvenir, T-shirt, or bottle of wine. But as we all know, shopping for yourself is easy, it's shopping for others that's usually more difficult.

So, looking for a gift for someone back home? Or do you love to cook and want to be able to create some of the delicious meals you've had in Italy? These are some great ideas not only for yourself but also for those people for whom you don't know what to get.

Besides, what were you planning on buying everyone, a 'Ciao, Bella' T-shirt? These ideas are much, much better.

Products to bring home for Friends (or Yourself)

Being in Italy, all of these products are food-related. Here are some of the best ideas of things to bring home:

10. Pesto

This may not be as popular as the others but it's still a good idea. Fresh, homemade pesto is obviously the best, but the brands sold in stores in small glass jars are actually pretty good.

9. Cookies (biscotti)

You can buy Italian cookies at an Italian supermarket or at a pasticceria (a type of bake shope with cookies, cakes, etc.). While in the US the term biscotti is used to define a certain type of Italian cookie, in Italy there are many types of biscotti as it's simply a term for cookies in general.

8. Liquor (liquori)

Aside from great wine Italy has some decent liquors, mainly in the form of apertifs. Try limoncello, a strong lemon-flavored liquor or grappa, a brandy made from the leftover grapes after they have been used to make wine. There are also herbal liquors such as Fernet Branca.

7. Cheese (formaggio)

There are so many great kinds of cheeses in Italy. Unfortunately you'll be limited as to what you can bring home as not every type will be able to survive the voyage (mainly the non-refrigeration part). Harder cheeses like a nice parmigiano reggiano or a pecorino should survive the trip back. A ricotta or gorgonzola, as delicious as they are, won't make it. Feel free to ask whoever is selling the cheese which kinds are easily transportable, as they're probably used to tourists coming in and buying things to take back home.

6. Coffee (caffé)

If you could only take the gelato home, too. Like I said before, the coffee in Italy is amazing. Try brands such as Illy or Lavazza. My roommate and I are big fans of Lavazza Qualità Oro.