My Best Thanksgiving Tips

Thanksgiving is my most favorite holiday (as you might have guessed). In fact, last year, when I was GREAT with child, I still had a hard time giving up the privilege even though I did not have the energy. If this is your first experience cooking a Thanksgiving or even if you have been doing it for awhile, I hope these tips will help you as you prepare for the holiday of eating and thanks!

1) Don't let everyone tell you that the turkey is impossible...it is actually not as hard as you might believe. Check out my next post of how to cook a turkey.

2) Let others bring some of the food (especially whatever you don't like to make). You won't win an award for doing it all yourself.

3) Start a couple weeks early. Most casseroles can be made ahead of time and frozen. Then, thaw in the fridge a few days beforehand.

4) Set your table the night before Thanksgiving. One less thing to worry about.

5) Shop at night or the Friday before Thanksgiving if you can. That way, you avoid the craziness the weekend before (plus, many stores run out of popular items early).

6) Don't make something for the first time for guests. I am kind of a hypocrite with this one, but it is good advice to try it a couple weeks ahead of time.

7) Keep the appetizers light and simple. Buy mixed nuts, crudites, olives. This is not the time to make brie in puff pastry. Besides, you don't want your guests full by the time they come to the table.

8) Assign jobs to people. They love to help and it takes all the pressure off you.

9) Have fun and enjoy it! Remember, the food will be gone before you know it!

10) Check out the Latest Taste in the next few days for more great Thanksgiving tips and recipes.

Ultimate Chocolate Birthday Cake

If you've been reading my blog for awhile now, you've probably read my mention of how I have a hard time repeating recipes. I guess since cooking is my creative outlet, trying something new makes it fun and interesting. However, I also believe that every good cook needs a repertoire of tried and true recipes and a good birthday cake should definitely be one of them. This recipe fits the bill. I actually found this recipe after buying a cookbook for a friend's wedding. My inability to resist thumbing through a fresh, new cookbook lead to me copying this recipe down. I have included some minor modifications and tips. I hope you use it at your next birthday party!

Chocolate Fudge Birthday Cake
1 box Duncan Hines double dark chocolate or devil's food cake mix
1 c. water
3 eggs
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1/3 c. sour cream
2 t. vanilla
1/2 t. salt
1 c. semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter three 9-in round cake pans (can also do in a 9x13). Combine mix, water, eggs, oil, sour cream, vanilla, and salt in bowl of mixer. Beat on low speed until well blended. Increase speed to medium for 2 minutes. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into pans and bake just until knife or toothpick comes out clean (22-25 minutes).** Transfer pans to wire racks and cool 10-15 minutes. Then remove from pans and cool completely on racks.

Icing:
2 c. (12 oz.) semi sweet chocolate chips
2 c. sugar
2/3 c. milk
2 sticks unsalted butter cut into pieces
1/4 t. salt
1 t. vanilla

Place chocolate chips in mixer. Meanwhile, combine sugar, milk, butter, and salt over high in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Let boil vigorously 1 minute. Pour hot mixture over chocolate chips. Add vanilla. Beat on medium until mixture thickens and is spreadable (this can sometimes take 10-15 mins).

*You may want to refrigerate cake after second layer so that it won't slide.
**If using 9x13, bake cake 28-30 mins.

Rosemary Baked Chicken Thighs with Potatoes

This reminds me of an earthy French meal. Although it is simple enough, the flavor is great and is easy to through together with haricots verts (those are green beans) or a salad. I hope you enjoy!

Rosemary Baked Chicken with Potatoes

Ingredients
2 T. olive oil
1 T. paprika
1 1/2 t. fresh rosemary
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
6 chicken thighs
red potatoes, washed and cut into 1-inch pieces

Preheat oven to 425. Mix the first five ingredients in a large bowl. Arrange mixture on a greased, foil-lined baking sheet. Bake potatoes for 15 mins. Remove from the oven, move potatoes to one side, and add chicken thighs to baking sheet. Return to oven and bake everything for 30-35 mins or until potatoes are tender and chicken is cooked through (potatoes may be a little crispy, but I like them that way!).

Serve with a vegetable or salad.

Roasted Vegetables with Whole Wheat Rotini

Okay, so most of you probably realize the recipes on my blog are not in fact, my recipes. They are typically adapted from other recipes I find online or elsewhere. However, tonight I have something special for you: an original recipe by me. Not just that, but one that was good enough to share, or as I say "bloggable."

It started with these beautiful baby eggplants I found at Fresh Market the other day. $1.69 per pound was what the sign read. Too bad I read the wrong sign and ended up buying 5 eggplants for 8 dollars. Oops. I knew I must eat them soon and not let them go bad. I was in the mood for eggplant, which actually happens often. The dilemma was, however, that the only dish I know how to make with eggplants is eggplant parmigiana. And since I haven't had dairy in awhile I wanted to avoid the overload of cheese. After thinking for awhile, I decided to add my other favorite vegetable to the mix, zucchini, throw in some whole wheat rotini, a can of fire roasted diced tomatoes, a little Parm (just a little) and voila, a delicious original dish by me! It was met with positive reviews by my husband who commented that it tasted meaty even with no meat.

Hope you enjoy. Be sure to serve it with your favorite glass of red table wine and a little Italian bread.

Roasted Vegetables with Whole Wheat Rotini
Serves 2-3 as a main dish

Ingredients:
4-5 baby eggplants, peeled and cut into 3/4 in. chunks
3-4 zucchini, cut into 3/4 in. half moons
1/2 lb. rotini
1/4 c. grated Parmesan
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
reserved pasta water
dried basil and oregano to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray cookie sheet with olive oil spray. Add zucchini and eggplant to cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss with hands to combine. Roast for 30 mins or until soft, flipping once during roasting.

Meanwhile, cook pasta al dente according to directions on box. Reserve 1/4 c. of leftover pasta water and add back to pasta in same pot. Add roasted vegetables, diced tomatoes, and cheese and stir to combine. If too much water is at the bottom, turn burner on low for a minute or two. Once desired consistency is reached, remove pot from burner and serve. Garnish with additional cheese if desired.

Homemade Sticky Buns!

If you are a frequent reader of my blog, you know how much I LOVE Barefoot Contessa's recipes. I can honestly say there have only been one or two that I didn't love, and that's out of maybe a hundred I've tried. As soon as I saw her make these sticky buns on her show, I knew this was going to be a good one. What else is nice about this recipe is how easy it is. I bet you have most of the ingredients already in your kitchen and there's not a lot of advance preparation.

A couple of notes about the sticky buns: they are great for company, because they look fancy when in fact they are easy to assemble (you don't even have to roll the dough). I will say I was not a huge fan of the leftovers, but I am thinking now maybe they would taste fresher after a few seconds in the microwave. Feel free to try and let me know.

I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

Easy Sticky Buns
From Ina Garten and the Food Network

Ingredients

* 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
* 1/2 cup pecans, chopped in very large pieces
* 1 package (17.3-ounces/ 2-sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted

For the filling:

* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
* 2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
* 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
* 1 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a 12-cup standard muffin tin on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the 12 tablespoons butter and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Place 1 rounded tablespoon of the mixture in each of the 12 muffin cups. Distribute the pecans evenly among the 12 muffin cups on top of the butter and sugar mixture.

Lightly flour a wooden board or stone surface. Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry with the folds going left to right. Brush the whole sheet with the melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on the puff pastry, sprinkle each sheet with 1/3 cup of the brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the cinnamon, and 1/2 cup of the raisins. Starting with the end nearest you, roll the pastry up snugly like a jelly roll around the filling, finishing the roll with the seam side down. Trim the ends of the roll about 1/2-inch and discard. Slice the roll in 6 equal pieces, each about 1 1/2 inches wide. Place each piece, spiral side up, in 6 of the muffin cups. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry to make 12 sticky buns.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the sticky buns are golden to dark brown on top and firm to the touch. Be careful - they're hot! Allow to cool for 5 minutes only, invert the buns onto the parchment paper (ease the filling and pecans out onto the buns with a spoon) and cool completely.

It may only be Southern Fall, but I am in the mood for SOUP!

I was reading one of my favorite magazines the other day (Southern Living) and they had this huge spread all about what they were calling "Southern Fall." That got me thinking how different our "fall" is from other regions of the country. Despite our lack of cool weather (the high is 85 today and there is 100% humidity people!), Southerners know how to get into the holidays. We still carve pumpkins, shop for sweaters, and get cravings for cool weather food. This soup may be better in cooler climates, but I say, if you are in the South, just turn the AC down and enjoy!

Mexican Taco Stew
Adapted from Whole Foods recipe
Ingredients:
1/2 pound ground beef (could substitute ground turkey)
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
2 cups chicken broth
1 large zucchini or summer squash, cut into small cubes
1 (15-ounce) can black beans
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup medium salsa

Method:
Brown meat in a large pot over medium high heat. Drain, remove and set aside. In the same pot, sauté onion and garlic until onion is translucent. Add meat back to pot and sprinkle mixture with taco seasoning to blend. Add remaining ingredients and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, 15 to 20 minutes.

Notes:
Serves 4. This recipe is a good one to double. I served it with round corn chips and topped with sour cream.

Easy, delicious weeknight meal

Easy, delicious weeknight meal. Husband approved. Enough said.

Chicken, Mushrooms, and Parmesan with Orzo
Recipe adapted from For the Love of Cooking.net

Ingredients:

* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 1/2 cup yellow onions, chopped
* 2 cloves of garlic, minced
* 1/2 tsp dried thyme
* 8 oz button mushrooms, sliced
* 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
* 1/4 lb of orzo, cooked per instructions
* 1 chicken bouillon cube
* 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
* 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
* 1 cup frozen peas

Cook the orzo in water along with the chicken bouillon cube, per instructions.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add chopped onion, mushrooms, and thyme; sauté for 5 minutes or until the onion is tender. Add the chicken, sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste then sauté 7-8 minutes or until chicken is golden brown and cooked through; add the minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Remove skillet from the heat then add the cooked orzo, frozen peas, Parmesan and parsley to the chicken mixture and toss. Cover the pot for 1-2 minutes in order to let the peas cook through. Taste and re-season with salt and pepper if need. Enjoy.