I've done the White Elephant exchange for both good gifts & gag gifts.
Some of the nicest "good gifts" we've gotten included a set of towels for the kitchen & bathroom, decorated for the holidays, serving trays & utensils, popcorn along with a big bowl and shakers for seasonings. You get the idea.
For the "junk gift" exchange, for the longest time we did the same thing - went to Goodwill or 1/2 Price Books & picked out 2-4 movies in a theme on VHS. Action/adventure, chick flicks, etc. & put them in decorated bags to match the theme. Add a packet or two of microwave popcorn, & our gag gift turns into a date night!
Unfortunately, many people don't have VHS players anymore, & the DVD's haven't quite gotten down to $1 apiece...
For a nice gift, keeping in line with your love of cooking, you can pass that on. Find a recipe that is easy, doesn't require a lot of ingredients (or really hard to find/expensive ones) & build around that. You can print out a recipe on nice paper for homemade pizza dough, & include seasonings, pizza cutter, oven mitt/potholder, bottle of vino... Or a brownie/cookie recipe with a nice mixing bowl, quality wooden spoons & apron.
Personally, I've seen the little "kits" that are sold for various things. They tend to be overpriced & not very useful beyond what they are designed to make. I'd rather put together something myself & invest in a few quality items (bowl, spoons, oven mitts) that can be used over & over.
Think outside the box & have fun! T.