I know… I know “Jello Salad” is so out dated, but here is a twist to make an old recipe new again! Enjoy!

Your Thanksgiving Day feast will tempt your guests as they arrive to enjoy this harvest celebration. They will be greeted by the aromas of savory roasted turkey, warm butter flake rolls and the hint of spicy ground cinnamon. All will enjoy this nutty Cranberry Salad, enhanced with a surprise taste of homespun eggnog, topped with a cloud of sweet whipped cream and nuts.

Cranberry Salad

Holiday Pecans (middle layer)
½ c. sugar
3 tbsp. water
½ tsp. Karo syrup
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. cloves
½ tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped pecans
Combine sugar, water, syrup, salt and spices. Bring to a boil until syrup spins a short thread. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and nuts. Turn onto a flat surface and separate the nuts. Let cool. Chop into smaller pieces if desired.

Cranberry Jello
3 oz. Vanilla Pudding (cook and serve)
3 oz. Lemon Jello
1 ¾ c. water
1 tbsp. lemon juice
6 oz. Raspberry Jello
3 ¼ c. water
1 c. canned cranberry sauce
¾ tsp. nutmeg

Whipped Cream

1 ½ pints whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla
¾ c. sugar
Whip cream until stiff, fold in sugar and vanilla. Set aside 1/3 of the whipped cream for topping.

Combine dry pudding mix, lemon jello mix and 1 ¾ c. water in a pot and bring to a boil. Add lemon juice and set aside to cool, do not refrigerate yet. In a separate pot bring raspberry Jello and 3 ¼ c. water to a boil. Fold in cranberry sauce and blend well until cranberry sauce melts. Pour into an 8X11 glass dish and refrigerate Raspberry Jello layer. After Jello has set, sprinkle with layer of chopped spiced nuts. Set aside 3 tbsp. to sprinkle on top when serving. Combine whipped cream, vanilla pudding/lemon Jello mixture and nutmeg. Spread whipped cream mixture over the layer of nuts. To serve top with whipped cream and sprinkle with nuts.

Pumpkin Surprise

2 c. canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp. salt
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 c. sugar
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 white or yellow cake mix
3/4 c. of cold butter

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine the first 6 ingredients and pour into a 9×13 pan ( or a 10 inch  deep pie dish as pictured ) that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle the dry cake mix over the top of the pumpkin mixture. Slice cold butter into squares and place evenly over the dry cake mix.
Bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Serve warm.  Top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Sprinkle with nutmeg.

Caramel, White Chocolate & Cinnamon Dipped Apples

As a guest this is the perfect gift to bring to your Thanksgiving Day Gathering. As a host, this makes for a simple yet elegant party favor. This is all you need

10 medium tart green apples
24 oz. white chocolate chips
1/2 c. butter
1 c. light corn syrup
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
10 wooden sticks
wax paper

Clean apples and insert wooden sticks, set aside. In saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup. Stir well and bring to a boil over medium heat. Stir in condensed milk, simmer, stirring constantly, until caramel forms medium firm ball when dropped into cold water. Stir in vanilla. Cool for at least 15-20 minutes before dipping apples. Dip apples in caramel and place on wax paper. Let cool. Heat chocolate chips in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds, for 1 1/2- 2 minutes. Combine cinnamon and sugar and set aside. When caramel apples are firm, hold over bowl of melted white chocolate. With a spatchula cover caramel apple evenly and place back on wax paper. Sprinkle or dust with cinnamon sugar mixture.

Place in cellophane bag and refrigerate until ready to give.

Any size hurricane candleholder will work. Take a large candle and place in the bottom and surround it with fresh cranberries. These will only last about a month but you may find artificial ones at your local craft store.

Apprentices have asked me, what is the most exalted peak of cuisine? Is it the freshest ingredients, the most complex flavours? Is it the rustic, or the rare?
The peak is neither eating nore cooking, but givng and sharing of food. Great food should never be taken alone. What pleasure can a man take in fine cuisine unless he invites cherished friends, counts the days until the banquet, and composes an anticipatroy poem for his letter of invitation?

-Liang Wei, The Last Chinese Chef, pub. Pekink 1925

This table scape was created in celebration of a Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary. The old photographs were reproductions made in different shapes and sizes. As a parting gift each guest was presented with a small bundle of individually wrapped copies of each photo. Using old dishes and candles add to the ambiaunce…. as you create this memory for those lives you want to celebrate. This was a wonderful stroll down memory lane.

Fill your favorite vase or glass container with cranberries. Add water. Cut and arrange white roses tightly together. For a fun Christmas centerpiece, you can omit the white roses and do something green.

Isn’t it magical, after a long Indian summer, the rustle of autumn leaves signals the season of harvest. As day light diminishes and temperatures cool, we retreat indoors intrigued by tempting tastes of comfort foods-soups and chili, warm breads and pies. Thoughts turn to home and nestled in the heart are loving memories. When the days grow shorter we become more grateful for a warm home and close associations. Food can become your Love Language. Let it speak………. by preparing and sharing autumn meals for your family and friends. Bring the Season inside!

Pumpkin, Pumpkin and more Pumpkin!

This recipe combines a few of my favorite things… sweet creamy butter, freshly ground spices, rich dense pure pumpkin, enhanced by the homespun goodness of silky smooth white chocolate all blended together to create this Perfect Pumpkin Pound Cake.

Perfect Pumpkin Pound Cake

• ¾ c. creamy butter
• 1 ½ c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. rich vanilla
• 2 c. flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• ¾ tsp. salt
• 1½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• ¾ tsp. cinnamon
• ¾ tsp. nutmeg
• ½ c. buttermilk
• 1 c. pure pumpkin
• 12 oz. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°. With an electric mixer blend together rich creamy butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add fresh eggs and beat for an additional minute. Fold in rich vanilla. Blend. Shift together flour, salt, soda, pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg and cinnamon. Fold in dry ingredients alternating with buttermilk, add pumpkin and blend completely. Divide cake batter evenly into two small 8-inch bundt pans. Or it may be cooked in 9 inch round cake pans. Heavily spray with cooking spray. Make sure to get all the edges. Top with 8 oz. white chocolate chips on each cake. Bake for 35 minutes. If desired set chocolate aside and melt in microwave for 30 to 60 seconds stirring in between, making sure not to over heat. Generously drizzle melted chocolate on top of cooked bundt cake or 9 inch round (as pictured).

Harvest Chicken and Yams

Festive layers of tender white chicken breast, sweet meaty yams, fresh baby spinach and aged Swiss cheese melted together with a warm white wine cream sauce and fresh chopped chives.

Roasted Barley

Soft barley pearls pan roasted until golden brown, steamed in a a savory chicken broth and finished with fresh chopped basil and tender green onions.

Boston Brown Bread

Wheat, rye and corn flours combine for a satisfying dense bread drizzled with the natural goodness of honey and served warm from the oven with a creamy butter ball.

Steamed Asparagus

Tender fresh asparagus spears steamed and neatly finished with savory sea salt and sweet creamy butter.

Crimson Grape Salad

Crisp crimson red grapes smothered in cool sour cream with earth oven roasted walnuts and rich sweet brown sugar.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Thinly sliced tender chicken breasts layered with aged Swiss cheese, delicate ham slices rolled and finished with a creamy cheese white wine sauce and an herbed toasted topping

Butternut Squash

Garden fresh butternut squash baked to sweet perfection tossed with brown sugar. flavorful minced ginger, creamy butter and a sash of aromatic anise seed.

Honey Glazed Walnut Rolls

Oven fresh home baked rolls topped with a buttery sweet honey glaze of ground cinnamon and crunchy chopped walnuts.

Asparagus Wild Rice

A satisfying blend of nutty wild and fluffy white rice, fresh tender green asparagus tips and sweet creamy butter.

Beet Salad

Sweet pickled beets, crunchy hearts of romaine lettuce and aged Parmesan cheese tossed in a chilled Honey Dijon Vinaigrette with just a hint of fresh garlic topped with freshly ground black peppercorns.

Crispy Chicken Avocado Tacos

Tender pieces of of chicken breast sautéed crisp in a coating of crush corn tortilla chips, served with a generous slice of ripe green avocado and crunchy shredded cabbage in a fresh corn tortilla, finished with a drizzle of Spicy Ranch and a sprinkling of garden cilantro leaves.

Spicy Ranch Salsa

Creamy ranch dressing swirled in a spicy fresh tomato and jalapeño salsa, olé!

Shrimp Cauliflower Salad

Sweet tender baby shrimp, crunchy pieces of fresh cauliflower and crisp green beans tossed in a cool lime fresh dill dressing.

Baja Steamed Rice

Bright red and yellow sweet peppers, tender green onions and plump ripe tomatoes folded into fluffy cumin infused rice.

Cornbread from the Heart

Sweet, satisfying heart-shaped cornbread muffins topped with sugary kernels of lightly sautéed fresh corn.