Thanksgiving

I attempt to write a food blog and it appears as though thanksgiving slipped right past me. Such is the life of a law student. I cannot wait until next year when I can actually enjoy the holiday instead of going through a to-do list for exams in my head (in past years it was actual information but I am a 3L and that means I am even WORSE than a college senior).

I spent some time the last week of classes browsing through cooking sites and blogs trying to come up with a new twist on our more traditional Thanksgiving. 3L remember? I found  two recipes I thought looked good. One was a total success, the other nearly caused my father to kick me out of the house.

The Good
We always have two cranberry sauces, one plain, one orange. This year we had three. Excessive yes, but it is just SO delicious. Epicurious had this amazing fig and port wine cranberry sauce that was to die for. Seriously, a little sweet, a little tart. I now want to cover everything in it. Goat cheese, ice cream, a pork loin...mmmmm. Sometimes the texture of figs bothers me but this was ok because the cranberries were pretty firm as well.

Photo from Epicurious.com

The Bad
Turkey. Everyone has a favorite recipe. But that can get boring. We have tried the whole fried turkey thing (nearly became a statistic in burning down the house), tried a lemon turkey (no one could eat it, epic disaster), and this year we tried a butter herb turkey. They recipe looked great. Granted, I didn't really read the directions, why bother? I wasn't the one cooking it and I was in class I needed to play on Facebook pay attention. The short story is the turkey took a LOT of fresh herbs, butter and time, and it ended up tasting like, turkey. But not particularly good turkey, just turkey. And the gravy that took 4 hours to make was gravy. Granted it was very, very, very buttery gravy.

Photo from Epicurious.com

The Ugly

Every family has that desert that someone ALWAYS makes. Ours is a bourbon pecan tart. I have made it countless times and for some reason (insanity) I was actually craving it this year (see being a 3L makes you do weird things). About half way through the process I realized I had never actually rolled out a pre made crust made the shell. EPIC FAIL. I had already wasted one pie shell so I just figured I would make a pie version. Not so delicious. Thankfully mom made mini Mississippi mud pies with lots of kaluha sauce and they were delicious. Sadly there is no picture of them as they were devoured immediately. 

Photo from CookingLight.com

Updates!

I am really bad at this whole blogging thing, good thing I only have a few readers (and I appreciate all of you!)

A week or so ago I made some caramel apples (sadly not with the apples we picked) and they were delicious! It was my first attempt at making caramel and I think it was quite successful, so successful I didn't get any pictures. Boyfriend thought the caramel was a little too buttery but I think it went very well with tart granny smith apples. Although,  I will admit that if I was making caramel for the sake of caramel I would reduce the amount of butter I used.

We are coming up on Thanksgiving (one week! eek) which also means I am getting very close, scary close to finals. BUT that also means that the new Harry Potter movie comes out soon! I am debating dressing up for the midnight showing (yes I am going to the midnight show, yes with a group of law students, don't judge).

Thanksgiving also signals the beginning of specialty food. It also signals the beginning of my stress eating. Boyfriend swears by the white fudge covered oreos. I can't get behind those but the gingerbread graham crackers are calling my name.

I will be heading over to my parents to help with Thanksgiving dinner and will try to get some good pictures and recipes. I attempted my first turkey two years ago and it was beautiful if I do say so myself! Granted it looks a little burnt but that just all the buttery goodness.

More later (with pictures, promise)!

Need: Vacation to Recover from my Vacation

This post is well overdue. Our trip to New England was such a whirlwind of activity it took me a while to recover. Here are some of my favorite memories. 

Cheering on Wesleyan Crew at the Head of the Charles Regatta.

Connecticut. 

Picking my first apple!

Beautiful pumpkin.

Some very fun gourds.

Craft beer sampler at the People's Pint.

It is finally getting cooler here, sweaters and boots here I come!

Need: Cooler Weather

Tomorrow is the day! Bright and early Boyfriend and I will be headed to Massachusetts. I cannot wait. Fall weather, lots of friends, apple picking, pumpkin carving, the Head of the Charles, and so much more! Charleston is still averaging high 70’s, low 80’s everyday and that is ridiculous. It is October 20^th, I just want to wear a sweater and boots.

Boyfriend and I stole away a week ago to see the Braves play the Giants in Atlanta. It was very fun but not super relaxing.

Truth be told, I was VERY excited about ball park food. Our seats were on the same level as all the suites so we had some super fancy options. Sadly the only thing I thought to take a picture of was my ice cream in a Braves helmet. Which I saved. Next time I have a party, it is so getting filled with dip, or candy. 

I haven’t been cooking too too much lately. School is really ramping up and I was sick for about a week but I did recently make a new twist on one of my favorite dishes.

  

I stuffed some green peppers with rice and the curry. It was delicious and upped the vegetable ratio.

(I cannot take credit for this idea; it was all the Boyfriend.)

Crave: Comfort Food

Sometimes you just need comfort food. It’s been a cold day, a long day, a hard day. There are plenty of reasons, and everyone’s version of comfort food differs. Here are some of my favorite comfort meals.

Long Day- Annie’s Whole Wheat Shells and White Cheddar 

            Sometimes you just need some mac and cheese. This is one of my favorite instant versions.

Cold Morning- Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

            I prefer steel cut oats but I don’t always have the 45 minutes it takes to cook them or the forethought to soak them overnight. I love to chop up a tart granny smith apple, add butter and cinnamon and cook the mixture until soft. Add the apples to some old fashion oats and finish with a sprinkle of flax seeds for a health dose of omega-3s.            

Hard Day- Ham and Cheese Croissants

            Ok so they are not really croissants but crescent rolls in a roll can be mighty fine. I like to smush (yes smush) two together and stuff with sharp cheddar and honey ham. 

Cabot Seriously Sharp is where it is at.  

          
Roll then bake for (almost) instant deliciousness. 

Need: A Get Away (or two!)

So the monogram post didn’t quite turn out how I wanted, but I guess that is the learning process. Charleston is finally starting to cool down and I am more than ready for the fall weather. October brings many exciting trips and events. This weekend Boyfriend and I are headed to Atlanta to see the Braves face the Giants in the NLDS playoffs. Did you know a Giant’s player wears a red thong for good luck? It should be a fun game, this will be my first major league game in many years, I hope I don’t get too overwhelmed.

Next Boyfriend and I head to Massachusetts to see friends, family and my first New England fall. I want to cram every cliché New England fall experience into three days. We are talking apple-picking, cider, the Head of the Charles (a crew race) and taking pictures of leaves. I cannot wait.

No discussion of October would be complete without discussing Halloween. I LOVE Halloween, like really really love. I am going somewhat out of the box this year for my costume but hopefully it will pan out. Sadly dear readers, I cannot tell you yet but as soon as I get all the pieces together I will do a post.

School is getting crazier but I have some good recipes in the wings and I will get them up pronto.

Until then,

MAP

Need: Monograms

One of my first ebay purchases was a copy of The Official Preppy Handbook. 

Lisa Birnbach recently released a new version, True Prep: It’s a Whole New Old World. I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy of the book. 

Most people wouldn’t characterize me as overly preppy but I do have some prep tendencies. I wear pearls with almost every outfit, Ralph Lauren oxfords are a staple 5 months out of the year and I love monograms. Now I come by the monogram obsession naturally. My mother monograms everything and I mean everything. She once told me that if I stayed in one place too long she would monogram me, and I am pretty sure she was only half joking. As cute as monogram tattoos are, I just don’t think they are very me.

However there are lots of monogrammed items that I have and love. Sheets and towels, of course. (Pictures from Leotine Linens and Pottery Barn)

The great thing about monograms is that the styles range from modern to traditional so they fit in almost any home.

My laptop case.

My market tote for trips to the farms market, the grocery store, carrying food to picnics, or tailgating.  The W is for Wofford College.

Many many Tervis Tumblers. 

Several years ago I had a car monogram that looked much like this one.

Monograms are also great on clothes and jewelry. I wear a signet ring everyday. (This is a man’s ring but it has a beautiful monogram)

I love these Stephen Bonnano monogrammed sandals. 

This gold script pendant. 

I am really craving one of these copper pieces. My good friend Allison recently started making copper jewelry and she is fantastic. Check out some of her other work here. 

I have a great recipe for some almond cookies and hopefully I will whip up a batch tonight or tomorrow and I, of course, will let you know how they came out!.

MAP