Bake Elaborate This Holiday Season

 The Christmas and Hannukkah parties are cancelled. Kwanzaa and tree trimming parties are a thing of a past. What to do? Bake like a contestant from The Great British Baking Show. You have the time to create something wildly elaborate. Go for it. The result is not only a following on Pinterest and Instagram but also a yummy treat afterwards.

One of the most complex yet fun creations to make is the gingerbread house.If you're a beginner , you can always buy the kits which has everything from the actual gingerbread pieces to the icing and decorative candies. There are a lot of styles to choose from. However you can easily build your own. You do need to download or draw templates. It usually is the four walls and two squares for the roof.  If you're especially creative you can also add a chimney and movable front door.  As for the actual building materials, you can use a packaged cookie mix or make your own, the last having a richer and more robust taste. Keep in mind that your dough should have a smaller amount of baking soda for less puff  and less butter so that the pieces keep their shape. Also decrease the molasses for a less sticky dough and  add more water for a smoother one. As for the icing , use royal. This is a mix of egg whites and confectioners sugar however a safer version is using chickpea brine or aquafaba instead. Keep in mind that royal icing is also perfect for icing cookies too. Decorate with Starlight peppermints and gumdrops for a more traditional look or add fun candies like KitKat  Bars and M&M's for a hipper vibe.  Ambitious bakers may try baking a whole village plus people, pets and cars.

Another labor intensive treat is sufganiyot, the Israeli jelly doughnut eaten at Hanukkah. The dough is a mix of the usual doughnut dough, spiked with cinnamon and enriched with butter or pareve  or kosher margarine. Apricot, raspberry or strawberry preserves are placed in the middle and then the dough balls are fried in vegetable oil for two minutes. They can then be dredged in granulated sugar or confectioner's. If you want to fancy them up a bit , think about filling them with dulce de leche or thick caramel sauce. For  really lush doughnuts, fill them with  a rich dark cocoa filling that's more like a pudding. Kwanzaa also comes with a variety of delicious desserts like banana cake. This is fine on its own but think about serving it with a homemade side of homemade Bananas Foster ice cream  for extra indulgence. One of the best holiday desserts for any holiday is the Spanisches Windtorte, This was featured on  The Great British Baking Show  and it is a decadent Austrian meringue cake with a decadent filling of whipped cream laced with brandy and cognac along with confectioner's sugar for body. Each layer is then topped of with fruit. You can use strawberries but for more bite use blackberries or raspberries. It's then finished off with more whipped cream and fruit followed by a dusting of shaved dark chocolate.

Bake big.  Bake  elaborate this holiday. Create something amazing and complicated  - not just for your family but for yourself. It;s the best give you can give.

Leftover Fun

Most Americans are probably staring at all the leftovers in their fridges right now. What to do with all that turkey, stuffing and sides? Create some tasty sides and fun new dishes with the old ones.

Most have what's left of a small to midsize turkey right now. Of course you've been through all the sandwiches right now , from hot with gravy and bread to cold with tomatoes and mayo. You could take a tip from The New York Times Food section and make turkey tamales. A variety of chiles are used to make the meat more flavorful (although turkey doesn't need this) along with tomatillos and cilantro. The tamales have the classic corn and husk coverings, softened with either chicken or turkey broth. You could also make tacos with the meat using cold shredded turkey and the usual taco fillings such as sliced tomatoes and shredded lettuce. Add a dab of mayo to moisten the meat too, eliminating some of its' dryness. A hot soup is great for right now and again leftover turkey fills that bill. Think a rich cream of turkey soup, made heartier and creamier with the addition of half and half. Rice or orzo can be added too along with carrots and peas. Turkey pho is a different spin. The meat's earthiness will work well with the five spices, brown sugar and fish sauce.

What about the stuffing and sides? Again the New York Times suggests turning the stuffing into dumplings. It's mixing your leftover stuffing with eggs, flour and baking powder and then dropping them into a turkey soup, complete with repurposed sweet potatoes. Yet , what about just cooking the dumplings in turkey stock and have them swim in left over gravy as a delicious side. They can also be turned into cups, filled with turkey, peas and sliced carrots along with gravy for an instant version of turkey pot pie.  You could also flatten the stuffing , frying it into two circles and make a stuffing panini with it. Fill with turkey and gravy. As for those leftover sweet potatoes,, turn them into puffs. It's mashing them with eggs , flour and salt and then frying or air frying them. These make for a tasty lunch or fun dinner. Sweet potato mash can also be used for waffles too.They'd be a great side with fried chicken or even turkey. Greens such broccoli and green beans can be repurposed into tasty salads , dressed with a simple vinaigrette.

Thanksgiving leftovers provide such a wide variety of tasty new dishes. Get creative with that bird and sweet potatoes. Make something exciting with that stuffing and broccoli. It's a whole new table of delicious dishes.

And Now Apple Cider Doughnuts

 After all the cooking it's time to look to baking - leisurely baking. Think the fall classic apple cider doughnut. They're a perfect snack and a fresh break from all that pie.

Erin Jeanne McDowell, author of Let's Bake A Pie!  and creator of the  baking blog Erin Jeanne McDowell wrote about these gems plus gave the recipe in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. what is great about her recipe is that the doughnuts are baked and not fried. They're more like little cakes, without the usual greasy doughnut aftertaste.Cinnamon lovers will love this recipe as well. Two teaspoons of cinnamon along with a half a teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg (you can find whole nuts in your grocery's spice section) is added to the batter. You can also add other fall spices like ginger, clove and cardamon for a more flavorful bite.Cider is used but Ms. McDowell recommends boiling it first to reduce it to a maple syrup like consistency. Doing this gives the doughnuts a more concentrated apple flavor. Just use one and a half cup of cider and reduce it down to one half cup. Remember to cool it down before using. Of course doughnuts need a coating of some kind of sugar. Ms. McDowell lets the freshly baked rings settle for a minute or two in the pan before releasing them. They're  brushed with melted butter and then dredged in a mix of cinnamon and sugar. You could use powdered sugar as they do at farms. That's your decision.

You can use a six doughnut baking pan but you can also use a twelve cup muffin tin that can be converted into a doughnut pan. Take a four by four piece of aluminum foil and bend gently around your middle finger. Remove your finger and press the foil in the muffin cup.Use a non stick cooking spray (and not butter or margarine) to grease the pan and then flour it.It's then sifting all the dry ingredients including the cinnamon and baking powder given for lift.. One stick of butter is also used, mixed with light brown and granulated sugars. Two large eggs are also added along with one teaspoon of vanilla extract. Dry and wet ingredients are mixed together then carefully spooned into the doughnut pan about two thirds full. Ms McDowell also suggests using a disposable piping bag or a reusable plastic bag  with a half inch opening cut from one corner). Bake until evenly golden or until a toothpick inserted in the thickest portion of one comes out clean, twelve to fifteen minutes baking in a 350 degree F oven.Muffin tin doughnuts takes longer , about fifteen to twenty minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through. It's then letting the doughnuts settle and brushing them with melted butter before dredging. Again you can use the cinnamon sugar or powdered sugar. 

Apple cider doughnuts are a nice alternative to all the holiday pies and sweets. Even better they baked for a fluffy flavor. Make them today for a tasty snack with a hot cup of coffee and tea.

Happy Homesgiving

                                             This says it all.

Hope your Thanksgiving was as productive, messy and tasty as mine in this very messy year.

Yet Another Pumpkin Mousse

 Every year there has to be a pumpkin flavored dessert for Thanksgiving. This year is another vegan pumpkin mousse.It's a different spin on the traditional pie,.

I found the recipe on Delish Knowledge, a blog started by dietitian Alexandra Caspero. I scanned over several  vegan dessert recipes in the past week and saw this. It had me at aquafaba, chickpea bean water that can be whipped into a yummy meringue. This looked good. However I didn't realize just how labor intensive it was.

First of all I decided to double the recipe, knowing there may be one extra visitor on Friday. I had to use half a cup of maple syrup, 1 and 1/3 cups Libby's pureed pumpkin , two teaspoons of pumpkin spice and two teaspoons of vanilla extract.

It was the just mashing everything together. Then came the cream, made with solidified coconut cream.

This took about twenty minutes to half an hour to get the same consistency as regular whipping cream. I used my stand mixer which is pretty powerful., After it was the cream was relegated to the fridge. Then it was onto the third leg of the recipe.

It's mixing one cup and a third of the chickpea water along with half a cup of powdered sugar and half a teaspoon of cream of tartar. This produced a very stiff and perfect meringue as always. The pumpkin mix was added. Unfortunately I made the mistake of adding all the coconut cream instead of a small amount. It lost its' pudding like texture and became soupy.

I'm hoping a night in the fridge will set it, especially with the properties of the coconut cream. The flavor's not bad, sort of a marriage of maple, pumpkin and coconut, the last unexpected. Will  I make this again. Yes, but without the coconut cream. I feel it sort of ruined the texture. Hours later , it's still a big soupy disaster.

This vegan pumpkin mousse is a different alternative to pie. It's tasty and hopefully will set into a kind of pudding mousse hybrid. It'll be a nice dessert after a full Thanksgiving meal.

Gearing Up For Thursday

 Thanksgiving is really the Super Bowl of home cooking. It's a lot of prepping and planning along with praying that the dinner will be a success. For many cooking this year may be a first or a return after many years away. The best bet is have a game plan.  Be prepped and be ready.

The first thing home chefs should do is check out their pots and pans and decide which will work well for the turkey and sides. Do you have a large enough one or a just right size for your smaller bird? if not , then run to the grocery store and get a suitably sized one. Another check has to be for all your appliances. Is the stove working properly? What about the air fryer or immersion blender? Make sure everything is in working order. Another must check is if there's enough wax paper, aluminum foil and Saran wrap. These are also vital for cooking and storing leftovers.First time home chefs and those trying new recipes should have the recipes and their steps down pat. This is not a time for forgetting one step or needing to look over the instructions or ingredients as you're mixing or chopping. Study the steps. Memorize the ingredients. Have you bought everything on your list? Has anything been forgotten? Tomorrow may be your last chance to head to the store and get what you need.Also , decide what dishes you're going to go it on your own or who's going to help you. Kids and partners can easily whip potatoes and cut bread along with ladle sides into bowls.  You can work on the turkey and gravy. Most importantly - defrost the turkey NOW. It takes a whole day just to defrost a mere four pounds of bird. You should have the turkey in your kitchen sink right now.

As for the dishes, tomorrow should be the day to bake all the pies and make all the desserts.Again ask for help. Someone can core and slice the apples along with peel them as you make the crust. Also have assistance if you're making rolls or bread.  (although this can be fun for kids of all ages) Just remember if it doesn't come out right , whipped cream can cover  the pie and butter or gravy can easily disguise any misshapen or burnt crusts or dry crumbs. Keep in mind Wednesday is also a good day to chop veggies for stuffings or even salads. Take a break first from the kitchen, with a quick drive through coffee or sitting in the back yard with a good hot cup of tea. Then go back to food prep. Start with washing and chopping the celery, onion and carrots Slice the Brussels sprouts for roasting.  Afterwards store  the veggies in either aluminum foil which is great for keeping veggies fresh or air tight containers to maintain crispness. If you're making devilled eggs, boil the eggs tomorrow night . It's one less chore to deal with on Thursday. You can also set the table tomorrow so there's less worry about it and more concern put on the kitchen.

Thanksgiving will be a success and run smoothly if there's planning and prep beforehand. Be ready tonight and tomorrow. It'll ensure you creating a better holiday dinner on Thursday afternoon.

Italian Beans On Toast

 These days our kitchens and selves  are overworked and over busy, thanks to us cooking at home. There is an easy solution for lunch or dinner however - an Italian version of the English beans on toast.

I adapted this recipe from the great chef Tejal Rao's recipe for the New York Times Food section. Hers is cooking cannelini beans overnight . They're then put on  oven toasted sour dough bread and floated in their own brown and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. I did an easier riff. It was taking Target's artesan bread and cutting it in half. Olive oil was brushed on both sides.

The slices were toasted for four minutes in a 340 degree F air fryer which got them crispy. As for the beans I used cannelini 

I reserved some of the bean water, mixing in a good drizzle of olive oil and different spices.

 A mix of oregano, garlic and onion powder was added in but you can use fresh garlic along with rosemary  instead. Toss in some pancetta if you want or diced salami. Be creative with the beans.  I let the bean mix cook for about two minutes in the microwave. Super easy.It was then ladled on the toast.

A generous sprinkle of Parma Vegan Parmesan cheese was added.

It was a simple and quick supper that went over well in my house. I will definitely make it again , especially on those days when I'll be baking holiday cookies or house cleaning. These beans on toast also make for a simple but filling Saturday or Sunday night supper. It's  easy to whip up and delicious to eat. You may want to make double. Any leftover beans can be eaten cold as a salad or reheated for more toast the next day.

This is the meal you make when you've had a busy day.It's tasty but better yet it's so easy to create . A few minutes  and you have a warn and filling dish , that has crunch and a lot of flavor. Try it for lunch or dinner.

Celebrating Our Native Foods

 Thanksgiving is a time of celebrating what the indigenous people have given us. We need to acknowledge their contribution to this great table of ours. We can use these ingredients and recipes in our own holiday dinners as well.

The New York Times Food section touched upon this Wednesday. Brett Anderson wrote about this after witnessing a buffalo hunt on fort Peck Indian reservation Montana. The indigenous tribes always thank what they've killed or picked , making sure others have food as well. That was probably the idea of what we know as the "First Thanksgiving." it was probably more of a harvest festival in 1621 in which the belief of giving back was established. Thanks to the various tribes throughout North and South america, we have a variety of different foods. The Pilgrims probably received the Three Sisters, squash, beans and corn from the Wampanoag tribe. These can easily be incorporated into our modern day dishes. squash is a no brainer. acorn squash is a nice side and can easily be microwaved if you don't have room in the oven.You can add a mix of butter and brown sugar for the hollowed middle. Squash can be easily pan roasted too. Beans can be used as an extra in salad or as a tasty hot side.Baked beans are a no fuss make and can be cooked in a crockpot. Corn is another side that will compliment the turkey. You can easily serve ti hot or cold as a salad, mixed with chopped peppers. Of course it is good , being one of the main ingredients in cornbread.

The indigenous tribes fo Mexico and Central America gave us some of the best and most famous ingredients. Without them we wouldn't have tomatoes or potatoes. Tomatoes have been gracing American salads for generations but they're also good Provencale style, sauteed in a garlicky mix of olive oil and butter and topped with heaping amount of breadcrumbs and herbs. Potatoes are another Thanksgiving veggie that have often been the shining costar. Many have them mashed but they're truly delicious Hasselback style, sliced through to form crispy chips and seasoned with oil, salt and whatever  minced herbs you'd like to flavor them. You can even top them with turkey gravy if you'd like. Sweet potatoes are another indigenous tuber from Central and South America. They  too, are great roasted Hasselback style, especially when they're sprinkled with cinnamon or honey mixed with butter.Many home bakers will also bake them into pies and even tarts.For something a little different and easier, try them in small individual galettes spiked with cinnamon, cardamon and nutmeg. 

Celebrate and use these indigenous North , Central and South American ingredients in your Thanksgiving menu this year. They are delicious but also a reminder of what was given to our ancestors. It was the tribes way of including us on their shores.

Fortify Yourself This Holiday Season

 Thanksgiving ushers in the season of eating - badly. We glut ourselves on rich main courses and party foods, finishing off with richer desserts. Yet , eating badly can make us sick and even vulnerable , especially during this holiday season. We have to eat better. We have to eat with our health in mind and not our taste buds.

After a spectacularly lousy year we feel that we want to treat ourselves with all sorts of goodies. Who wouldn't? However Covid-19 is roaring back with the speed of a bullet and the ferocity of a wild beast. It's time to fortify ourselves with the right foods and beverages. First of all  we should limit the amount of salt in our diets. Cut back on those chips and dips. You can still have a fun plate of crunchies and dip for movie night or your Zoom holiday parties. Just make them  unsalted or homemade tortilla chips and a fresh made salsa. Chop up some tomatoes and onions and add  equal dashes of cumin and chili powder for a more authentic flavor and bite. Guacamole also can be made healthier (although it is to begin with ). Mash avocados with minced red onions and jalapeno for a zingy and delicious dip. Another salt free party snack is herb popcorn. This is mixing the classic with rosemary, and thyme. Using it will make the herbs stick better to the kernels. Also cut down on such salty sauces as soy and packaged and jarred gravies. As yourself if your dish really needs them. You could switch to a low sodium version or just skip it completely. Adding water or olive oil can moisten a dish.

Sugar is another bad ingredient, yet it's really the star of the season. How do you not serve pie this Thursday or bake a ton of cookies for Christmas? Surprisingly enough you can bake a healthy pumpkin pie. It's just replacing sugar with maple syrup ,a  natural sweetener. Also use coconut sugar instead of brown and almond milk instead of whole dairy. Is there a healthy pie crust? Yes, if you use whole wheat flour instead of refined white and coconut oil instead of lard. You may want to skip the sugary sweet pecan and opt for a healthier apple one. There are some good apple pie recipes that require spelt flour for the crust and way less sugar. That all important cookie season is just around the corner. How do you make a sugar cookie without the chief ingredient? Add fruit which has natural sugars. You could sub in bananas for sweetening along with natural apple sauce.There are other sugar free versions of classic holiday cookies such as gingerbread and rolled cookie cutter cookies. If you're wondering about icing the cookies, then think of all natural Swerve, made from stevia. You can also use it for cake and cupcake icing too. If you're making the last , go easy on the sweet decorations. Use shaved dark chocolate instead for a fancy look.

We need to eat healthy this holiday season. We just have to cut down or cut out the bad stuff and sub it in for good.It'll be your best protection in being just a bit more healthier and resilient during this holiday season

Little Chefs At Thanksgiving

 Any home chef needs help in the Thanksgiving kitchen, Now with the holiday winnowed down to immediate family, it'll get even crazier. Yet if you have kids, you have help. Any age can help you and can delight in creating a tasty and memorable holiday dinner. They'll think of it as fun too. 

Melissa Clark wrote about this in her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Food section. She , herself, is putting her own twelve year old daughter to work, mostly as a diversion. As with other kids across the country, she won;'t be able to see her grandmother or play with her cousins. Thanksgiving will be a remote activity this year for  her. It applies to tweens and high schoolers where  Thanksgiving football games and dances were always the highlight of the season. Yet cooking is fun and tasty. It allows kids to become deeply invested in the process, along with experiencing the joys and flavors of holiday cooking. She gives three recipes which can involve all ages, even three year olds. What about clean up, some worried parents may fret. Cleaning as you go is as vital as properly holding a knife according to Ms. Clark.  Yet kids will be messy. Her advice? Let them. Just take a deep breath and let them drop a Brussesl sprout  on the floor or splash gravy on the stove top. There are two useful tips - one, have a damp cloth at the ready for wiping up splatters and spills, and two, use trash bowls that are easy to reach.

Ms. Clark gives recipes that even adults would love.  There is a scallion cheddar cornbread stuffing, a traditional one zinged up with a topping of grated sharp Cheddar and Parmesan. Little ones - and bigger ones can easily crumble stale cornbread into big crumbs for the base.  Supervised older kids can saute the veggies such as celery  and scallions on the stove top , Tweens will love making sweet potatoes with sour cream and pecans. This is cutting the potatoes into wedges, like those popular potato wedges most restaurants serve. It's then mixing with garam masala and coconut oil. They're then roasted in a 350 degree oven for half an hour. a mix of sour cream, lime juice and salt is drizzled on top and them finished with a sprinkling of toasted pecans. The dessert is a tasty kid and adult friendly  pumpkin fudge torte. The base is a deeply rich cocoa torte that also has pumpkin puree added along with brown sugar. It's topped with a pumpkin cream  which is blend of pumpkin puree, confectioner's sugar, ans heavy cream. The kids can easily make the topping, then serve it over the torte. It's finished with a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon, which even little ones can do.

This Thanksgiving will be different for the kids.  Make it fun by getting them involved in holiday cooking and baking. They'll enjoy it as will you.

Ina Baugarten Why We Need Her Now

 Is there was any popular cook than Ina Garten? She has a large cult following that includes  Jennifer Garner, Taylor Swift and Katie Couric, the last her neighbor in East Hampton New York. The question is why is she and her cookbooks so popular and why do we need her especially during this fraught holiday season?

Julia Moskin answered this question in today's New York Times Food section. She went to Ms. Garten, also known as The Barefood Contessa, after her famed deli in her posh Long Island town.The reason for the big fan base is because she is like us. Ms. Garten states that she finds cooking hard and is not a trained chef. She just loves it, which most of us do. Yes it can be a challenge and a chore - and she definitely understands that. She brings that knowledge and a bursting enthusiasm to the screen which makes her identifiable. However she is not your  go-to television chef for ordinary recipes. It's more upscale bistro food for those with disposable incomes. Yet she still remains the darling of the culinary world, especially when she opened up her pantry on Instagram during the pandemic. It came with the question "Does anyone have something they don't know what to do with?" In March she gained a million more followers. It was the first time she invited regular contact with her followers. Through them, she learned no one was using dried beans and sourdough was over quickly. The need for her baked mac and cheese recipe crashed her website. On April 1st she posted herself making a Cosmopolitan That got her three million more fans. They love her, probably because she has a fondness for fats, heavy cream and pancetta, lush ingredients that make any recipe sing. Surprisingly she started out as an analyst in the Carter White House of Office of Management and Budget. she left to start her celebrity loved deli The Barefoot Contessa in East Hampton, New York.

Ms Moskin includes Ms. Garten's favorite recipes. There is the flavorful cacio and pepe cheese puffs, the perfect hors ' d'ouevres for any dinner,These are cheesy biscuit  like balls, about the size of Hershey's kisses. They're zinged up with Pecorino cheese and freshly ground pepper. The recipe is rife with five (!) eggs , butter and whole milk. A great side dish for next week is pureed potatoes with lemon. These are Yukon Gold spuds cooked with two whole sticks of butter and a cup of whole milk. To balance out the richness is a tablespoon of grated lemon zest. Another would be perfect side is Ms. Garten's recipe for charred carrots with orange and balsamic vinegar. It's a colorful dish of rainbow carrots oven roasted and drizzled with a mix of orange juice and zest mixed with balsamic vinegar. Of course the star is the turkey breast roulade with garlic and rosemary. This is a riff on a Florentine pork roast. There are ingredients not usually associated with turkey, like fennel seeds garlic and rosemary. The only traditional herb is  sage.  The breast is butterflied and stuffed with prosciutto and an herbed onion mix. It's basted with a mix of dry white wine like Chablis and water. It's cooked for about one and a half hours until the skin is golden brown in a 350 degree F oven. . It's then tented with foil and cooked for fifteen minutes more.

Ina Garten will continue to be our go to chef for well after the pandemic. She is one of us , but with tasty  upscale recipes that she urges us to make. We can all give these delicious recipes a try for Thanksgiving and other holiday dinners.

A Burger's Best Friend Burger Buddy

 Eating a hamburger can be a messy affair.Grease drips out , lettuce or tomato can slide onto a clean short or worse pants. Not only that fingers can become grimed with everything from special sauce to juices. Luckily burgers now have a best friend in Burger Daddy. This is a big innovation in hamburger history by the innovators at Burger Buddy, namely Ismael  and Mohammed, who were hamburger affectionadoes themselves. They wanted something cleaner than a napkin that was  also environmentally friendly and reusable. How could they  make the burger experience neater? the answer was the Burger Buddy.

This is a two silicon semi circles attached by an accordion like strip that stretches depending on the width of the burger.

It makes it perfect for holding a Big Mac or Whopper, holding everything in, from the veggies to the cheese and bacon - and of course the burger. Also it''s perfect for larger sized rolls like Kaiser rolls, expanding to fit larger sizes.What happens when you get to the bottom of the sandwich? Just gently tug the ends of the holder and the sandwich pops up, ready to be finished.

I loves these,because it made devouring a Gardein Burger that much less messier and also easier. The plastic absorbs the heat so fingers stay cool. There was no drippy melted spread dripping all over me too. Burger Daddy can also be used for breakfast sandwiches and even doughnuts! Another plus is that it's very easy to clean and wash too. Burger Buddies can also be put into ovens up to 450 degrees Farenheit.They're easily stackable and packable so you can bring them to your local hamburger joint and eat your favorite burgers safely and less sloppily in the car. One is $13.59 at Amazon and makes a great present for any hamburger lover.

Burger Buddies are the neatest way , both figuratively and literally to eat a burger , doughnut or bagel. Buy a few today and save yourself and your clothes the mess. Good bye stains. Good bye greasy fingers. Hello a nice clean way to enjoy your favorite foods.

Huel Chili Cold Weather Fuel

 We need nutritious and tasty food  to get through this season. Luckily Huel has come along with its' Hot and Savory line. These are nutrition packed instant meals that can be cooked with just hot water or microwaved.I thought I'd give the chili a try.

Huel is known for its' bars, ready to drink and powders. These are chock full of proteins, perfect for those on a diet or just want to eat better. The new line is perfect for providing the body with the important ingredients. There are three flavors, the Mexican chili, rife with quinoa, rice , peppers and beans, the tomatoes and herbs which mixes in lentils and onions and green curry, a blend of peppers, sweet corn and scallions.

The bags contain a whopping one pound of mix.

and each bag contains seven servings. a scoop is given for scooping out the mix and a cup to mix.You can see the different mix of grains, beans and spices.

since I was making it for dinner, I doubled the amount to four to five scoops and about a cup of water.

It was then cooking it for six minutes. You can use less to make a hot, satisfying lunch with it. 

It's a very thick mix , thicker than home made  thanks tot he rice and quinoa. You can thin the chili with a tablespoon or two of tap water.

It was fiery and super spicy. I feel I could its' spiciness can be cut with more beans but it was flavorful. I like how it could also be served with cornbread or polenta. A small serving is only four hundred calories, good for those on before holiday diets.

Huel Hot and Savory is the perfect cold weather meal for lunch or dinner. Try any of the three flavors for the maximum amount of nutrition. It's tasty and good for you during these hard times.

Balthazar Bakery - The Best Baked Goods Ever

 New Yorkers will tell you - Balthazar Bakery is one of the best in the city, It has everything , from crusty baguettes to buttery galettes and shortbreads. Yet there was always one problem with this gem of a bakery - it was only for Manhattanites. Luckily , there is a solution - its' wholesale out let in Englewood, New Jersey.

The outlet store is located at 214 S.Dean Street in this historic town , just outside of New York City. This location provides bread for all the local restaurants but the public can also buy here. Due to the virus, only six customers are allowed in at a time. 

You walk in and there are baked treats everywhere!

It was so hard making choices, 

Their breads are legendary , ranging from simple sourdough loaves to fruit and veggie infused breads. I had to buy their butter croissants which are just flaky , buttery crusts. Yum.

This was truly le roi - the king  -of croissants. Beautifully baked, airy , and with the right amount of layers. Then there was their shortbread - 

These were homemade and perfect. a smooth textured shortbread, perfect with their creamy, buttery flavor. These are excellent with a good hot cup of tea or coffee on a chilly fall night.

Keep in mind that, although this is a New Jersey store, the prices are typical Manhattan. Two croissants and a bag of shortbread was $16.00 which was a lot. Their Thanksgiving menu is equally expensive. An apple pie laced with Calvados is a whopping $42.50 Pumpkin pie with a gingerbread crust is slightly cheaper at $32.50. Even their stuffing mix is dear. A large bag is $20. Get the mixed dinner rolls that are $6 a dozen. The mix contains petite pain, multigrain, picholine olive and potato onion rolls. Still any of their baked good and goodies are worth the steep price.

Please visit the Balthazar Bakery outlet in ENglewood this holiday season You're sure to find the right dessert , bread or cookie for your table. They're all delcious. They're all perfect.

A Buttermilk Brined Turkey

 Thanksgiving turkey always comes with a lot of questions. Should it be brined? Roasted? Deep fried?  Should you just serve the breasts or the whole bird? What's the tastiest way to cook it? There is now one definitive answer  -brined in buttermilk.

 Famed chef and cookbook writer Samin Nosrat wrote about two different kinds of turkey cooking methods in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. She is known for her buttermilk brined chicken and has gotten many requests for a turkey version.it This three ingredient wonder is the star of her cookbook, Salt.Fat.Acid, Heat. She finally gave in and experimented with it to produce a tender , tasty bird with darkened skin. She also gives recipes for chicken and turkey breast also brined in the famed buttermilk and sea salt mix. The chicken is a perfect sub in for those celebrating with two or three people this year. There's the delicious main course without the large amount of leftovers. This also applies to turkey breast, another good ideas for those celebrating small this year. The key for all to be successful is the amount of sea salt used. You should use about seven tablespoons which is about 128 grams.  The turkey breast and chicken  only needs about two tablespoons of salt. What you use is up to you, Sea salts vary. You can experiment with different kinds to get the right flavor or a flavor that your family likes.

The star of the recipe however is the buttermilk. Ms. Nosrat uses three quarts of it for the turkey, two cups for the chicken and turkey. Again what brand you use is up to you. marinating times vary. The turkey will take two days while the breast takes twenty-four to thirty-six hours. The chicken takes the least amount of time - twelve to twenty-four hours. The last is perfect if you want to free up the refrigerator for sides or dessert. The turkey is spatchcocked or butterflied. This is simply removing the backbone and flattening it out.Why do this? it reduces the cooking time in half along with ensure a bird with a lovely, golden skin instead of a blackened one. There's a greater surface area for browning then. Spatchcocking also streamlines the entire brining process too. without its' spine a turkey can be easily folded in half and slipped into a two gallon zipper top. bag. It also makes for easier roasting in the oven too. The turkey is cooked for about an hour and forty minutes  If you're using a ten to fourteen pound bird. A three to four pound chicken takes about an hour while two and a half pound breast takes about forty minutes for a boneless one and fifty minutes for a bone in breast.

What is the best method for the tastiest turkey? Brined in buttermilk and sea salt. It'll give you the perfect flavor that delicious and memorable.

Three Years Without The Master Chef

 It is now three years without the Master Chef, my Mom in my life. I can't believe that even during this year time has gone by so quickly. I wonder what she would have made of this pandemic.

Actually I do know what she would have done. Stocked up and worried that what she had bought was not enough. I know she would have bought essentials like pasta, knowing it would keep for long periods of time. We may have had one too many dishes of spaghetti and penne over the weeks. She definitely would have made an excess of pesto for us and for family and friends. As far as frozen food, the freezer would have been well stocked and even organized. There would be variety too, with everything from frozen spinach to squash to peas. She may have even thrown in some pints of ice cream (real ice cream, what we eat now - the oat and almond milk types would have made her gag). As far as baking - maybe. We were never big cake and pie eaters. She may have tried baking a sourdough loaf - just to try it.  As far as eating out, which was her favorite past time in later years, that would have bothered her to no end. She loved going out to any kind of eatery - fast food, diner , restaurant.It wasn't just for eating but to try new dishes and talk with people. Staying in for six months would have done her in. We would have probably wound up in a lot of parking lots , eating from containers.

The pandemic would have definitely brought out my Mom's generosity. She was famed for it, inheriting it from her parents. She would have cooked whole meals plus desserts for friends who were sick or went through loss. Recipes would have been doubled or even tripled just so those close to us wouldn't have to go out and get their own meals or do their own food shopping. As far as shopping, no, we would do that. Surprisingly she never liked food shopping. The lines were too long. It was too tiring at times. She would have let her kids do all the work, worrying about us like crazy. She may have used services like Stop & Shop's Peapod or Amazon Prime's Delivery. She may have gone with Target's too, making sure we had more than enough staples plus toilet paper. (that would have gotten her going on some funny riffs). I'm sure she would have over ordered from these places as well, giving the extra to family and friends so they wouldn't have to go to the stores. 

My Mom would have been a pro at this pandemic, It would have worried her  - never scared her. Our kitchen pantry would have been filled. Our fridge stocked, and us well fed. She was a master chef but also a master planner too.

Winnowing Down Thanksgiving

 Yes, this will be a different Thanksgiving this year. The holiday table will be only three or four people at the most,thanks to the virus flaring up again. Luckily the traditional dinner can be whittled down . There can still be delicious dishes and traditional flavors but done a bit differently.

Melissa Clark wrote about this in today's New York Times Food section.it's what's been written about before here. Some of her suggestions are similar to what was written here a week or two ago. You can have a smaller bird, but you can also opt for either serving all dark or all white meat. She chose thighs which are a lot easier to deal with than breasts. However Ms. Clark suggests that if you like white meat more along with having leftovers then go for the breasts. Her recipe has the meat paired with quick pickled onions and cranberries for a different spin. Of course there's stuffing,The amount just have to be halved or quartered , depending upon how many will be at your table. You do want to fill the stuffing up to the top of the pan so you have that famed crusty top She gives a recipe that has not too crusty white or whole wheat bread baked with turkey, chicken or vegetable broth and a variety of fresh, soft herbs such as parsley, chive tarragon, mint basil or cilantro. Choose three You can also go for sage which is the standard herb for stuffing. Scallions are also added. Gravy has to be served too.Just remember to halve or quarter the measurements (unless you want a lot for leftovers).

What about the classics? Do serve mashed potatoes, Just halve or quarter the recipe. They do have one flaw - getting cold very quickly. Make them before you sit down or pop them into the microwave to keep them warm. Should there be a casserole on the table too? Yes, according to Ms. Clark. There's a choice of green bean, sweet potato, spoonbread or mac and cheese.Just whittle down the amounts again and keep in mind the depth of the pan used is less important. You'll still have a crunchy top with a soft middle. You can serve vegetable sides too. Ms. Clark gives the recipe for a zingy maple roasted squash with sage and lime. Cayenne cooked with maple syrup livens up ordinary squash during baking in a 425 degree F oven for fifteen to twenty minutes. As far as pie, Ms Clark is a fan of baking an entire one, enthusing about having the leftovers for the upcoming days after. Yet for those who feel that a pie many be too much, she gives the recipe for pumpkin sticky toffee puddings. These are a spin on the classic British Christmas classic, complete with chopped dates and brown sugar. The spin comes from adding pumpkin puree (and not filling which is already spiced). They're topped with the traditional brandy and bourbon , again with pumpkin puree , heavy cream and butter. You can add whipped cream and sea salt for more flavor.

Thanksgiving will be a very small affair this year. Yet you can still have the same delicious flavors, just cut down on the amount. It will still be big on flavor but little on servings.

Happy Veteran's Day to all those who have served. My admiration always.

Pie Variations

 It's pie season and many home bakers will turn to the traditional for their Thanksgiving desserts. Yet it's the same boring kinds, apple  pumpkin and the occasional pecan. What can be done to make them more exciting? Vary the recipes

Apple pie almost cries out to be something different.You could start out with the crust, adding a teaspoon of cinnamon or cinnamon and nutmeg combined. Another idea is sprinkling brown sugar on the crimped edges for a crunchy and sweeter pie. A really decadent idea is using cinnamon bun dough for the crust. This also includes using the icing too. To balance out this sugariness, use tart Granny Smith and Honeycrisp apples.Caramel and the fruit go perfectly together. Salted caramel works well because of the underlying current of savoriness in it. Do you go with a store bought sauce or make it yourself? A homemade caramel sauce is nothing more than granulated sugar , butter and heavy cream cooked together. It produces a nice  thin sauce that you can use  later on cakes and even pancakes and waffles.A chewier version would be adding nuts, namely walnuts. These can be whole or halved. They can also go on top as part of a streusel topping. Streusel is an easy make, combining dark and white sugar with flour and various spices like cinnamon and ginger. Butter is added for more flavor and to bind the other ingredients. It's then scattered op top of the pie and baked with it.

There's not much you can do with pumpkin pie. A different way of making it is in a galette This is a free form pie that baked on a cookie sheet. It makes for a lighter slice with less filling.Some home bakers add a layer of sweetened cream cheese to give it some zing.You could also make just the filling in mousse form. This is an airy version made with eggs for binding and the same spices. It's the perfect dessert without the soggy crust. Another idea that's completely fun are pumpkin pie shots. This is layering the filling over cinnamon and crushed graham crackers in shot glasses. Top with whipped cream and cinnamon. Some home bakers are combining this pie with another Thanksgiving classic - pecan. Yes, they can be combined, although pecan is better on its' own.It's layering the two fillings with the pecans being placed on top. You could easily make a traditional pecan pie however it may be too sweet. Think about adding dark chocolate to counterbalance it. Ditch the corn syrup which can be tooth achingly sweet and sub in maple syrup instead. Use four ounces of eighty-five to ninety per cent dark cacao. Bourbon pecan pie is a Southern specialty. Two tablespoons of bourbon will do it, giving the super sweet filling some strong zing.

Pies do rule for Thanksgiving. Yet the same ones , apple, pumpkin and pecan can be ho hum. Liven them uo with different variations for a unique holiday dessert.

A New Kind Of Thanksgiving

 Unfortunately this is not going to be an easy Thanksgiving. Many of those big , family ones from years past have to be cancelled and rethought. There is a plus in this - less cooking. That means that elaborate dinners will be postponed and smaller ones will be cooked. That also means easier recipes made in half the time.

Of course turkey will always be the main attraction. Select a smaller bird - namely a four to six pound one. Cooking time will be a lot less. Usually bigger birds take anywhere from four to five hours to thoroughly roast. A smaller one will only take an hour and a half.You could make a homemade stuffing and be prepared for leftovers (which do work the day after paired with gravy and sliced turkey). A more simpler way is getting Stovetop Stuffing which would considerably cut down on prep and cooking time. It's just a quick mix of butter, margarine and water and then cooking for only twelve minutes.There probably won't be any leftovers too.What about the sides? You can nix the traditional drenched in mushroom soup green beans and just try the more refreshing string bean almondine. This is a zingy lemon drenched veggie dish  , decorated with slivered almonds. Should you serve sweet potatoes or yams? Yes, but think about roasting four of them for the family. Again, this is a better version and tastier too as it's not covered in marshmallow goo. If you want to make a small green salad, go ahead. If you want to cut down and serve just the turkey and salad, that's fine too. As for the cranberry sauce, why not put dried cranberries like Craisins in the salad for a twist on tradition.

Thanksgiving means pies too. Yet  is it worth making a whole pie for just four or five people? An easier idea is a galette.It's baked on a cookie sheet and has an easier to make crust.It's usually made with fruit such as seasonal apples or pears yet you can also make a pumpkin pie one. This is a rolled out crust with a thin layer of pumpkin filling spread on top. The dough ends are then folded over and the entire pie is baked at 400 degrees F for only half an hour. You can serve the slices with a dollop of maple syrup infused whipped cream. Another easy idea is individual desserts. Think apple crumble in ramekins. It's layering apples with a streusel topping of rolled oats,light brown sugar, walnuts and butter and then baking them in a 375 degree F oven for half an hour to thirty-five minutes. The mix is good for six ramekins , Don't worry about it being too much for four people. Guaranteed, there won't be any leftovers. Have the family top the crumbles with whatever they want, creme fraiche, vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Pecan pie is another tasty Thanksgiving dessert however a whole pie is too much. Think turning this popular treat into bars.It's a buttery cookie bottom topped with the mouth watering blend of brown sugar, heavy cream and pecans.It's the perfect weekend snack too, especially for movie night.

Yes, Thanksgiving will be different this year. It will be smaller but easier to handle. The food will be a snap to cook and bake. That means more time , spent with family and enjoying the day.

Kinder Times Hopefully

 With the Biden-Harris victory there should be a new era of kindness rushing in. The problem is it may take a while to get to the food and wine industries. There still will be hatred and harassment of women, and minorities. Can we make it change?

This question comes in light after The New York Times cracked open a case about male sommeliers sexually harassing female contenders for their positions at the Court of Master Sommeliers. Regular contributor Julia Moskin wrote about this in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. Nine men were accused of sexual misconduct towards women considered candidates for the court's top title of master sommelier. These men already hold that title and wield a strong amount of influence for the women to advance. An apology from the twenty -seven women in the 165 member court has been issued.Supposedly relationships between male and female members are common yet those liasons escalating into something bitter are rare. Yet this also extends to the food industry as well. We've seen it with the charges against Mario Batali and Ken Friedman , owner of Greenwich Village's Famed Spotted Pig. It should have been a wake up call for other for other chefs and restauranteurs around the world. Hopefully it will.

 With a new administration bent on healing and equality, America could lead the world in treating sexual misconduct and racial inequality in the  restaurant and wine industries. It starts with supporting businesses as small as a food truck pushing bulgoki to up and coming wineries and vineyards.It also starts with thoroughly investigating claims  about prejudice regarding hiring as well as in house promoting. Luckily , it hasn't hit the supermarkets (unless it has and all the big chains are adept at covering up scandal).Sadly it does occur in the fast food business and whatever problem is usually resolved - mostly with some kind of reparations. However it shouldn't happen in the first place. Another must change is promoting more minorities in the fast food industry. Wendy's, despite some gaffes in recent years (namely the symbol of white supremacy Pepe the Frog in a Wendy's jumper and red braids) has a good reputation of promoting Black and Latinx in more managerial positions. McDonald's does not have this reputation. In fact a few weeks ago Black franchise owners sued the chain for placing their franchises in high crime areas where they had higher operating cost, high employee turnover and lower sales.Burger King is the better of the two this way. They haven't had anything like this happen.

The Biden-Harris administration will bring a sense of freshness and unity in an already torn and shredded world. Hopefully this will apply to the food and drink industry. In the end , kindness will prevail.

Nacho Bowls Layers Of Flavor

 Pati Jinich's New York Times Food  nacho article inspired me to create my own nacho dish. Her bricklayer nacho dish gave me an idea. Supposed the nachos were layered in individual bowls with  the meat and veggies cooked and the rest of the ingredients put on in bright tiers? I gave it a shot.

Bricklayer's nachos have three kinds of meat, I made a vegan version using Morningstar Farms, vegan beef crumbles.

It was just skillet sauteing them with about two to three tablespoons of olive oil. It was then adding the holy trinity of Mexican cooking.

Heady dashes of onion powder, chili powder and cumin were sprinkled in along with garlic powder.

It was then adding one  chopped yellow pepper.

along with one  sliced vine ripe tomato.

Cook all this for a few minutes then start layering.

It's first taking the nachos. I used Late July's . They don't have an oily aftertaste like some other tortilla chips and they are extra crispy.

Layer these evenly, then spoon on the meat and veggies.

Another layer of chips.

Then it's the toppings.

I used Acme's brand of salsa, the mild O Organics and Go Veggie Mexican soy cheese mix. You can add what you want here to suit your tastes.

                                          Sliced avocados topped this. You can also add jalapenos and sliced                                                        black olives too if you want.

I loved this version of bricklayer nachos. They're a fun crunchy dinner, stacked with all sorts of flavors and textures. I would definitely make this again. It's that good. Variations abound here. Use real meat whether beef or chicken. Top with bacon crumbles or use salsa verde instead of the tomato salsa.

Nacho bowls are a fun dinner. They 're filling while being healthy and delicious. The flavors and textures are the perfect antidote to livening up the week or weekend.

Lentils The Truly Versatile Legume

 Lentils are one of the most basic legumes. They're also one of the most versatile, lending themselves to all sorts of dishes. Home chefs can try them with a variety of different recipes, all good for you and good tasting.

David Tanis knows this and loves them so much they were featured in his column in yesterday's New York Times Food section. He gives such diverse recipes as lentil loaf a type of bread along with a smoky lentil stew with leeks and potatoes and spaghetti with lentils, tomatoes and fennel. What is interesting is that there are many different kind of lentils, He suggests that if the meal is heading into the Spanish direction then use Pardina lentils, a small brown variety good for stews, soups and salads.For an Italian based dishes use Castelluccio ones from Umbria, Turkish dishes need split red lentils which are also the base of the Indian daal. There are also yellow ones ones and black or Beluga lentils that resemble caviar roe.Lentil soup requires a sturdier kind, namely the Lentille de Puy or French lentils. These are a greenish blue color and have a thick skin which makes them pop in the mouth when bitten. This also makes them ideal for hot soup, because they don't become mushy.  Keep in mind that olive oil brings out the flavor of any kind of lentil so drizzle extra fruity olive oil on the dishes.

One of the most intriguing dishes Mr. Tanis gives is the lentil loaf. This is made with red lentils along with sauteed onions  which are mashed in a food processor. Eggs and rolled oats are also included to give the loaf shape .It's a flavorful one , zinged up with cayenne, garlic and cumin along with cilantro. Cucumber slices in sour cream are the side dish with it to cool off the heat from the spices used. A different dish and perfect for the fall is the smoky lentil stew with leeks and potatoes. The Spanish Pardina lentil is used here cooked with potatoes and leeks along with onions and garlic . Saffron and pimento dulce or sweet smoked paprika give it a Spanish vibe. Also adding to this is canned chopped tomato with  its' juice, There's also sherry vinegar to give it some tang. Another idea is putting the lentils into a pasta sauce. Mr. Tanis has them boiled with a Parmesan cheese rind. For the tomatoes, you can add passata - an uncooked tomato puree that's been purged of skins ans seeds or crushed canned ones. There's also fennel bulbs, fronds and crushed seeds added as well as a small onion and red pepper flakes. The pasta used is spaghetti and its' cooked al dente for some texture.You could also use the heartier bucatini, the thicker drinking straw kind too.

Lentils are perfect in any dish. Try it in a loaf for an entirely different spin or in traditional stews and pasta sauces. They are flavorful and versatile, the perfect ingredient for any kitchen.

The Thrill Of Pure Nachos

 Who doesn't love nachos, especially with hot gooey cheese on top? it's one of the best snacks out and definitely fun and delicious to make at home. There are so many variations to choose from  , all tasty.what's best is that the base, tortilla chips are easy to bake at home.

Famed Mexican cook and writer , Pati Jinich, star of the PBS show Pati's Mexican Table wrote a very informative article in today's New York Times Food section. Nachos are not an ancient Mexican dish going back centuries but rather a post World War II Mexico creation. The border city of Piedras Negras in the province of Coahuila, is their birthplace, across from a military base in Eagle Pass Texas. The wives from the base often went across the Rio Grande to shop and eat. They stopped for a drink and a bite at the Victory Club where the maitre' d'hotel , Ignacio Anaya was working. Unfortunately there was no one in the kitchen so Ignacio or as he was known Nacho (which is a nickname for Ignacio) created a quick appetizer with what was in the kitchen at the time. There were corn tortilla chips or totopos, government issued Colby cheese and jalapenos. The wives loved it so much they asked for seconds and it became a standard at the Victory Club. Fast forward to the Seventies where Frank Liberto, a Texas businessman took the dish to the masses thanks to an emulsified cheese sauce. It stayed liquidy without being heated up and an easy to assemble pump for dispensing. They were quickly sold at balls games and malls, Now there's even a Nacho Festival where the requirements are the basic ingredients.

Nachos are a fun dish that's easy to interpret. Ms. Jinich includes the recipe for homemade tortilla chips.It's a simple make whether baked or fried. You just need  about thirty fresh corn tortillas and sea salt to bring out the flavor. Each  tortilla has to be cut into six equal pieces and either deep fry or bake. Just use your air fryer for a much easier and less messier method. The original recipe calls for shredded Colby cheese which has the appropriate bite and pickled jalapenos.Ms. Jinich also includes the recipe for these too.They're sort of like a fiery giardineria with the inclusion of carrots and pearl onions. Brown sugar is added for some sweetness along with two kinds of vinegar to balance it. Then there is the bricklayer style nachos. This is almost like a casserole thanks to the different layers. .Ms. Jinich combines bacon with Mexican chorizo and layers this mouth watering mix with beef sirloin and Roma tomatoes.This is layered over the chips like mortar over bricks. A melty cheese like Moneterey Jack or Oaxaca is then crumbled on top. You can even use mozzarella too if these aren't available. It''s then baked in a 400 degree F oven for eight to ten minutes. You can add sliced avocado crumbled queso fresca and scallions. Black olives are also a good topping too.

Nachos are a fun, tasty dish that work as a snack or as a meal. Make the original or the bricklayer's version for a flavorful combination of tortillas, cheese and jalapenos. Then enjoy this well loved classic!

Stress Eating Done Right

 Tonight is a night for stress eating. Anything and everything is being popped into our mouths as we await the election results here in the States. To be honest the whole year has been one series of stress snacking and drinking. The problem is we're stress eating all wrong.

What most people do in stressful situations , pre-pandemic was head out for something that appealed to our savory or sweet side. Eating unhealthy favorite foods was preferred over grabbing a  slice or a floret of fruit or veggie. Many will say that they left work after a stressful meeting to grab chicken at Popeye's or a chocolate sundae at Dairy Queen.It was a chance to get away while enjoying a treat. It was a bad habit but it didn't happen that often, Now with almost everyone working from home , snacks and junk food abound. we can sneak leftover Halloween candy during a Zoom meeting , balance grades and our kids' schooling while enjoying chips and a soda. We can even escape into the back yard with a bottle of wine just to get a buzz on. It's all fine and well, yet it's not the best direction for us or our bodies. All that sugar and transfat will eventually lead to the "pandemic pounds" - weight gained while in captivity. Can we break it? Yes, if we wean ourselves off the unhealthy stuff and reach for healthy and actually delicious snacks. The key is to having a "clean kitchen" free of any junk food temptations. If there's ever a time to clean your kitchen it's now before the holidays come.

Clean kitchen mean clean food too. You can still stress eat but do it with fruit and veggies.A fun and healthy snack is a bowl of apple slices dipped in cinnamon. Apples are good for losing weight as well as keeping diabetes at bay. They also promote good bacteria in the gut as well as preventing certain cancers.Cinnamon (and nix the sugar here) is loaded with antioxidants along with preventing cancer and heart disease. It's aroma and taste trigger many happy memories for some, so it's the ideal comfort food. Pears are another good snack for stress eating. There are so many different types and the flavors vary depending on the type. Of course veggies are the perfect nosh for stress eating. Try baby carrots to gnaw on tonight. You get that crunch factor , perfecting for relieving that tenseness in the jaw along with getting a good dose of the all important beta-carotene. Broccoli and cauliflower florets are also good for easing anxiety, especially when served with a tasty dip., Again make the dip healthy by adding herbs and spices to Greek yogurt. Nuts like almonds and pecans are good for snacking as those classics - pretzels. Nibble on a few pretzel sticks as you watch the election returns. Serve these with hot chamomile tea which can relax you for a restful sleep.

This is the night for stress eating - and drinking. Try to make it a healthy nibble. The better you eat, the less stress you put on your body.

The Season Of Kindness

 This is All Soul's Day, a day when most Christians memorialize those we have lost - and this year we have lost many. Yet we also need to honor and help the living. It's time we come together to feed and nourish each other during what will be a difficult holiday season.

Again, it's so important to contribute to various food drives and food pantries right now. If you can, please  help those who are solely giving out food parcels.  This could be packaging or helping to hand out. It could also mean helping to shop and gather important foodstuffs such as cans of beans and veggies as well as containers of milk and orange juice. Another way of helping is financially contributing. If you don't have the money , then consider a pot in which family, friends and neighbors can put as low as ten dollars. You can easily raise $200 to $300. Also pay your local restaurants to supply dinners for those in need. If you live in or near Red Bank and  Toms River,  New Jersey there is Jon Bon Jovi's JBJ Soul Kitchen where you can volunteer to serve delicious food to those who need it. Donate enough to pay for a dinner out for a family or couple who needs a day or night out. Other restaurants are doing this too in your area. Find out where they are and contribute financially.

Many are also going to be alone this  holiday season, whether for Thanksgiving or Christmas. You may not be able to include them physically yet there are ways to share. One is sending over a portion of your dinner and then Zoom eating with them. It's a way of being inclusive without being in the same room or house. another is making an entire dinner for them. Include their favorite dishes too, whether it's cornbread stuffing or pumpkin pie. Christmas is the same idea too. share part of your ham or turkey dinner with them. Include their favorite or family dishes in your meal plan as well. If they want to contribute, let them. It's always fun to try new dishes and flavors. Again you can share all this on Zoom. The same applies to Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.  For Christmas Eve, remember to include a plate full of homemade cookies. Ask what the person's favorite cookies are and make them. Toss in some  candy canes and chocolate kisses too in the platter for more fun and flavor. For New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, bring over a bottle of champagne to make the day festive. Again remember to include the person on Zoom.

Make this the season of kindness. Cook and bake extra for those who need it. Contribute financially to food pantries and restaurants who help those in need. We're all in this together. Let's unite over a good meal , good drinks and good talk.