Today’s Works for Me Wednesday theme is to share a holiday tip or gift idea… I had so many ideas that it was hard to choose just one. I don’t always remember to participate in the themed editions at the beginning of each month, but I couldn’t miss out on sharing a holiday tip!
I love making homemade gifts, decorating, and putting together gift baskets. I just love it! So, as you might imagine, I had quite a few ideas for this post… After much thought and consideration, I decided to share my chocolate filled cookie cutter gift tags. They are easy to make and a really fun way to jazz up a holiday gift.
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Tags: candy, chocolate, Christmas, cookie cutter, easy, gift, gift tag, holiday, Homemade Gifts, WFMW, Works For Me Wednesday
I made this cranberry apple butter a few weeks ago, but it’s taken me a while to get around to posting it. I suppose that’s just as well, though, because it makes a great holiday recipe. I stretch cranberry season out as long as I possibly can. I start cooking and baking with cranberries the…
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Tags: apple, apple cider, butter, canning, cardamom, Christmas, cinnamon, cranberry, gift, ginger, granny smith, holiday, homemade, slow cooker, Thanksgiving, vanilla, vanilla bean
Each year, my mom and I go shopping on Black Friday. It’s our thing… and I love it! After my Black Friday adventure of shopping in the malls and stores with all of the other crazy shoppers, I’m usually ready to settle in at home for a few days. After Black Friday, I usually have…
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Tags: Bialetti, books, Christmas, coffee, cookbooks, cookie cutter, Cuisinart, espresso, gift ideas, holidays, Imperia, KitchenAid mixer, magazines, Norpro, pasta, recommendations
The 2010 November Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Simona of briciole. She chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ to make pasta frolla for a crostata. She used her own experience as a source, as well as information from Pellegrino Artusi’s Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well.
This is the third month in a row that I have actually participated in a Daring Bakers challenge! Can you believe it? I had a bit of a rough spell with very little inspiration/energy, but I’m back!
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Today, I thought I’d take the opportunity to wish you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving! I love to cook and bake for the holidays. I will be doing some baking and preparing the sweet potatoes, but I’m not the one preparing the turkey for our Thanksgiving dinner this year. I couldn’t go without…
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It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle this time of year, isn’t it? Whether it’s trying to get the house cleaned and decorated for company, developing an elaborate holiday dinner menu, or searching for the perfect gifts for friends and family, there always seems to be something that needs to be…
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Are you a leftovers fan? I’m not. Not at all.
There’s just something that happens to leftovers once they enter my refrigerator. They change somehow and become completely inedible to me. It happens with even my favorite foods… They enter the “cold zone” and are never the same.
I don’t like to be wasteful, though… And, I also bad making my husband eat all of the leftovers (though, he doesn’t have the same issues that I have). So, I tend to re-purpose my leftovers. For reasons I can’t understand, when I view leftovers as ingredients instead of just food to be reheated, I have no trouble using them up. It makes no sense, I realize.
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Tags: easy, Grana Padano, leeks, leftovers, parmigiano reggiano, prosciutto, simple, soup, sweet potato, Thanksgiving, yam
If you’re hosting Thanksgiving dinner, hopefully you’ve already finalized your menu and are well on your way to a spectacular dinner! If not, you can always check out last week’s Friday Favorites for my collection of favorite Thanksgiving recipes.
Now that dinner’s taken care of, let’s talk about a fun snack for your guests to nibble on when they arrive. I always like to have a few bites and snacks available to keep everyone occupied while I’m cooking dinner and getting everything together.
Lately, one of my favorite snacks is roasted almonds. Almost everyone I know loves to munch on nuts (and they’re not so filling that they’ll spoil your dinner!), but I prefer to make my own than buy a can of pre-seasoned nuts. By roasting my own almonds, I have the opportunity to get a bit creative with fun flavors.
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Tags: almonds, Appetizers, cardamom, chocolate, Christmas, cocoa, easy, espresso, gift, hostess, Kitchen Bootcamp, nuts, roast, simple, snack, Thanksgiving
I have hosted Thanksgiving dinner at my house for the past couple years. This time around, I have the year off. Yellowdog (our yellow lab, in case you were wondering) has to remain “calm” and is not allowed to play with kids, other dogs, and relatives for the next few months until she has fully recovered from her knee surgery. So, that pretty much means that there will be no big get togethers at my house for a few months, either.
That doesn’t mean I won’t be cooking, though! I plan to make a side dish or two, and of course I’ll be taking some sort of dessert. I will also be traveling with my handy dandy meat thermometer, which I believe is the key to a perfect Thanksgiving turkey. Whether it’s my kitchen or my mom’s, there’s no better place to be on Thanksgiving day!
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Tags: apple, artichoke, bacon, bourbon, brussels sprouts, bundt, butternut squash, cake, casserole, coffee cake, cornbread, cosmopolitan, cranberry, ebelskivers, flan, green beans, parmesan, pie, pie dough, pumpernickel, pumpkin, puree, relish, roast, rye, sauce, sourdough, stuffing, Thanksgiving, turkey, yams
It seems like everyone is really interested in finding some healthy alternatives to their favorite indulgent dishes… I’ve seen lots of great comments this week about everyone’s favorites. Among those comments, there have also been so many of you who have expressed how excited you are to check out Now Eat This by Rocco DiSpirito.
While I wish I could give all of you a signed copy of the book, I only have two to give away. Even if you don’t win, though, all hope is not lost. You can still follow Rocco on Twitter (@RoccoDiSpirito) for healthy tips, recipes, and ideas. And, of course, the book is available on Amazon.
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