Miscellaneous Monday: Post Thanksgiving Turkey Nap

Aaaannndddd, we're back! Please forgive me for the prolonged hiatus, but Thanksgiving absolutely wiped me out.  I looked a little something like this:

I like to eat Turkey and take a Nap!

My apologies to any family this photo may embarrass.

But not to fear, I've been baking and cooking and shopping and prepping for the holidays and I have plenty of things to share.

One: Gifting and Shopping

We are well into the holiday gift buying season.  However, with the economy in its current state, it can be overwhelming to balance your need/want to buy gifts for Christmas or Hanukah with your budget.

My favorite tip for buying holiday gifts is simple:  Buy less, and think more, i.e. concentrate on buying one meaningful gift.  For so many years the holiday shopping season has seemed to be more about quality than quantity.  However, if you focus on buying one gift that is extremely meaningful, price and quantity won't be something the gift receiver is thinking about!

Presents. for me?

At this point, there are still deals everywhere even though Black Friday and Sand Cyber Monday have come and gone.  However, just because Small Business Saturday is over doesn't mean you have to restrict your shopping to the local mall.

Do a little research, head out to your local downtown/uptown shopping area and give your local merchants a try! Not only will you help stimulate your local economy, but you're also likely to find more unique, one of kind, and hopefully more meaningful gifts.  If you live in Cleveland, check out this guide for a way to find out about all the great local business here in Northeast Ohio.

Two: Soup Soup Soup

The holidays are a busy time and often the last thing you are planning is what you are going to make for dinner.  In order to keep from blowing all of my money (instead of using my budget for gifts) I try to make foods that are plentiful in leftovers.  Below are recipes for two soups, both tried and tested by Tim and me, which make for a few good meals and help answer that age old questions, what are we going to have for dinner!

Lentil Soup (Recipe courtesy of Food Network and Giada De Laurentiis)

Quick Note: Tim made this soup and it turned out wonderful!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 14 1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes

1 pound lentils

11 cups low-salt chicken broth

4 to 6 fresh thyme sprigs

Parmesan for Garnish

Delicious Lentils, Packed with Protein!

• Start by chopping up the onion, carrots, celery and garlic.  Make sure you vegetables are chopped in roughly the same size to ensure they cook evenly.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium head.  Add the onion carrots and celery and stir.  Wait one minute and add the garlic, salt, pepper and saute until the vegetables are tender, about 12 minutes.  Add the tomatoes and the liquid from the can.
• Bring the veggies and tomatoes to a simmer until the juice evaporate and the tomatoes break down, about 10 minutes.
• Add the lentils to the vegetable mixture incorporating them with the vegetable juices.  Add the broth (make sure you have a large pot, 11 cups of a chicken broth is a lot!)
• Next, add the time and bring everything to a boil over high heat.  Cover and simmer over low heat until the lentils are tender, roughly 30 minutes.
• Ladle into bowls, add salt and pepper to taste.  Sprinkle grated parmesan cheese on top and enjoy!

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup (Courtesy of Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa)

3 to 4 pounds butternut squash peeled and seeded
2 medium yellow onions
3 Macintosh apples, peeled and cored
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 to 4 coups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon good curry powder

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Cut up the butternut squash, onions and apples into small, but not tiny, equal size chunks.  Place them in a bowl and toss them with the two tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.

There will be a lot of squash and veggies.  You may be able to get away with using one sheet pan, if you have a large sheet pan, but you might need two depending on the size of your squash.  They key is not to overcrowd the sheet pan and make sure all the veggies are in a single layer.  Roast the vegetables for 35 to 45 minutes, stirring/tossing occasionally until the vegetables are very tender.

So much squash!

NEar the end of the cooking time, heat 2 cups of the chicken stock to a simmer in a large pot.  Once the vegetables are done, you can either 1) put the veggies through a food mill or 2) use a food processor.  I selected the food processor method because I don't have a food mill.  Use some of the chicken stock when pureeing the veggies in the food processor.  Add the vegetables that are mushed into the pot with the chicken stock, and add the curry powder.  You can adjust the consistency of the soup with the chicken stock.

If you want to add some garnish, try green onions, toasted coconut or crushed roasted peanuts.

Three:  Christmas Tree Safety!

This week Tim and I put up the Christmas tree!  It's so nice to have it on in our little apartment, but it's important to keep in mind a few safety tips

What a lovely little tree.

• Use indoor lights indoors, and leave the outdoor lights outside.  It seems obvious, but  there are nearly 250 fires each year related to Christmas trees, so someone is certainly not using their noggins.
• Make sure your tree is at least one foot away from any radiator/furnace/heat source.
• Don't forget to unplug the tree lights when you leave home for the day.
• Make sure your artificial tree is labeled as fire-retardant.

How are your holiday preparations coming along?  Looking forward to a wonderful Tuesday!