Sunday, November 22, 2015

Thanksgiving meal, all the good stuff.


This year for the first time in seven years, I won't be hosting Thanksgiving dinner.
I will still be sharing all my great recipes and tips, but since I am only making the stuffing, I have not been looking up new and creative recipes for one of my favorite holidays.


The best way to make Thanksgiving an enjoyable meal is to plan ahead and share the cooking.
There are things you can do in the next few days that will make life easier on Thursday.

Check your table linens, serving dishes, etc... to make sure you have ready and at hand everything you will need to serve the meal.

Make some of the dishes ahead of time.
Cranberry sauce can be made right now.
Bread or cornbread can be cubed and allowed to get stale for the stuffing.
Some people like to make their gravy drippings ahead of time using turkey wings.
Desserts can be made a day or two before depending on the what you are making.
You get the idea.

Here are some of my favorite recipes or tips by category.

Appetizers: Don't bother, let everyone get very hungry or if you must offer a plate of raw veggies.
It's a task you can assign to someone else anyway.

Side dishes; That's what it's all about !
Candied yams, made with maple syrup and rosemary.
Bacon roasted Brussel sprouts, bacon makes everything better, it's true.
Cranberry sauce, please make your own.
Cornbread stuffing, my sister's recipe.
Genna's and Laurie's hybrid stuffing, the best of both kinds.
Winter squash biscuits  these are great for breakfast too.
Roasted winter squash , tis' the season.
Stuffed baked squash, this dish would be great for your vegetarian and vegan dinner guests.
 Pumpkin cornbread

And if you need still more ideas here is a post : 101 Thanksgiving side dishes.

Check out this post for Alton Brown's explanation of why it's better NOT to stuff your turkey.

Desserts, you can never have too many, that could be our family motto.
Pumpkin pie
Pumpkin cheesecake
Pecan pie
Pumpkin cake
Ginger cake with caramel topping
Baked apples
Pecan pie bars
Old fashion gingerbread 


Do have fun, love your friends and family as much as you can, be grateful for the bounty in your life.

In the words of the immortal Miss Piggy: Never eat more than you can lift !







Monday, November 9, 2015

In the Garden Art Show and the last week of our trip...



I have been so busy making things for my show this weekend: jams, jellies, soaps, toffee, body butters and lippies. It's been hard to get this last part of our trip documented.

Do come to the garden and see the fabulous new Celtic soaps I have been making and sample the amazing new tomato chutney.  This show is always such a fun social event, bring a friend !!


Week three of our road trip...

Day 15: Our first night after Boulder, we camped at Elk Ridge Campground. Not only did it have full amenities like a laundromat and showers, it also had this sweet free library. I enjoyed the book I traded for one I had just finished.


Day 16: Driving through the snow dusted Colorado Rockies the next day was spectacular.
Day 17: Camping on this mesa with amazing views was one of the highlights of our whole trip.
Day 18: We love the crazy sculptures on the road up to Wheeler Peak.
Day 19: Wheeler Peak with a sprinkling of snow, the contrast in just a few weeks was astonishing.
Day 20: I learned to dress up the Trader Joe's noodle boxes into a simple tasty, hot dinner.
Day 21: Great fungus on the hike we took on the Chapman Creek trail in the Sierra Nevada.
What a great three week adventure we had, seems like a long time ago at this point.

After my show I will begin to delve into that greatest of all food holidays: Thanksgiving !!