Football has been a part of my life since I was a small girl. My first football memories are watching the Pittsburgh Steelers games with my dad and nibbling throughout the day on the “football food” that my mom would prepare (a “make your own taco bar” was a personal favorite!). Over the years dad started to dabble in the kitchen and would prepare our game day fare — elaborate veggie platters with dip (each vegetable was cut into perfectly sized pieces), shrimp cocktails, mini bagel dogs, chicken wings, pickled herring, and guacamole with pretzels. This unusual assortment of goodies was just to whet our appetite for the main game day attraction – Dad’s Ribs. These legendary ribs are eagerly anticipated throughout our family and friends. The process starts the night before by soaking hickory chips in water — this will ensure that the chips will not burn when they are placed around the charcoal. To prep the meat before smoking, my Dad removes the rib membrane (skin covering the back) – his secret to ensure that the hickory penetrates the meat and rib bone. The ribs are then smoked for 2 hours in a kettle grill over indirect heat. After coming off the grill, they are basted with a tangy barbecue sauce that makes these ribs irresistible.

And now that I’ve hosted a few of these game days myself, I would like to pass along to you my winning game day picks.

PreGame – Guests Arriving

• Chips and salsa (I usually serve two types of salsa TSG Black Bean and Corn and a homemade version)
• Hummus and pita chips
• Crudité platter with assorted olives, cheeses, and flatbreads

End of 1^st Quarter

• Buffalo Chicken Dip (made easy with TSG Brazen Buffalo Blue Cheese Blend)
• Quesadillas – try the TSG Mango and Chicken Quesadillas or Tangy Quesadillas

Half Time

• Assorted Mini Sandwiches
• Thin Crust Pizzas

End of 3^rd Quarter

• Ice Cream Brownie Sundaes (made even easier using TSG Breathtaking Deep Chocolate Brownie Mix)

And don’t forget to offer assorted frosty beverages – Go Team!!

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But if you aren’t that fortunate, we have found some help.  At My Fridge Food, you can actually click on your favorite ingredients and it will pull up recipes for you to choose from.  I put in cheese, salt and pepper, eggs, milk, pasta and chicken and it pulled up nearly 100 recipes ranked by the percentage of required ingredients I had on hand.  It also gives the number of ingredients, time and number of calories in the dish.  Truth be told, I probably had the missing ingredients in most cases…..but it’s fun to see what creative things you can make with so little!

 Tell me, what’s in your ‘fridge and what do you do with it?

At the end of the holidays, I don’t know about you, but my fridge needs a good cleaning – so I can see the shelves again.  If you feel the same after weeks of  treats and leftovers, you might enjoy this. On the lighter side, here is a photo essay on what your fridge says about you!  For a good laugh and some self awareness!

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We’ve made it through Christmas and New Year’s is upon us.  We celebrate and vow to do things better in the New Year.  We get to start with a clean slate!

 New Year’s Celebrations Around the World

When we were living in different countries, one thing I learned is that New Year’s isn’t always on January 1.  In one year as we moved from Europe to Asia, we were able to experience at least 7 different New Year celebrations – we started with ours in January, with our favorite bubbly and good cheer.  Then there was Chinese New Year in the beginning of February with its fireworks, gifts and dragon dances.  Nyepi in primarily Hindu Bali where noisy celebrations scare away the evil spirits followed by a day of silence. Songkran in Thailand where we were soundly doused with water to wash away the past.  Hari Raya in Malaysia, although not technically the Islamic New Year is a great  time of celebration at the end of Ramadan.  Rosh Hashana with good friends in many countries.    Deepavali (Diwali)Festival of Lights.  Each had it’s own sights, sounds, traditions and foods.  Yum!  We had a lot of fresh starts that year!

Dragon Dancers for Chinese New Year

In fact, that is one of the great lessons learned from our travels – whatever our celebrations, we are much the same.  Whether it involves new clothes, cleaning house – sweeping away the old – new year’s is much the same.  Everyone gets a chance for a clean slate and to start anew.

Granted my history with resolutions isn’t very good.  I make them (usually to lose weight, see Diet and Exercise  (next week)) and then need to start over again a few months later. Instead of feeling guilty about making and breaking New Year’s resolutions, I prefer to think that I start every day with a resolution

 At least I know this is a universal trait of all people – we are just human. You don’t need six new years celebrations to get it right.  Resolve to make each day a little better than the last.. Make everyday New Year’s Day – embrace the future and start to make it a little better.

Happy New Year!

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Be prepared for unexpected holiday guests, have some extra snacks!

Well, it’s official, we are again in the holiday season.  Lights are up and expectations are high to be jolly, happy or oozing with extra good cheer – it’s enough to make you crazy.  As  a  Mom, you feel like the happiness of everyone around you is dependent on what you do!  But give yourself a break – if you are not happy, neither will anyone else be.

There are now three days before we leave to visit my mother for the holidays.  I’m a little stressed.  So I will do what I always do – make lists.  If I can take a big task and break it down into little ones, I feel much more successful and things will get done. I will make Christmas lists, and hit the internet.  I will make shopping lists and store them on my phone.   I will make packing lists, so that I can keep things in one suitcase – and I will put them all on the calendar so that as I get closer to THE DAY, the list will shrink instead of grow and I will feel better not worse.

But more importantly, I need to realize it is not my job to make everyone happy.  True, it’s easier now that the children are grown and I can realize that much of the struggle we had during those teenage years was as much my problem as theirs.  They were trying to show me they were responsible for themselves, and I had to learn to let them be responsible. 

This year my family is beginning to scatter around the U.S. as we become part of other people’s families and celebrations.  They each have a desire and responsibility to contribute to everyone’s happiness – and they want to.  The joy of making others happy is now the gift they have to share -  that and a few recipes from home. Let me know how you and your family share the holidays.

Still there is that central role you have to play – so make it easy for yourself, at least on the food front.

5 Steps to Making Holiday Cooking Easier

1.  Put out a plate of fresh, ready to eat fruit for the day.  Let them help themselves.  In many European countries it’s a tradition that they put out a plate of food for the 12 Days of Christmas – one for each day.  It includes dried fruit (like apricots), cheese, nuts, fresh fruit (like clementines and grapes) and some wrapped candy. 

2.  Prepared food is good food.  –  Make a pot of soup – only twice what you would normally prepare – freeze half for the day so that you’re ready for guests coming at odd hours or those running late. If you don’t have the extra time now, a roast chicken from the grocery store is a great, warm dinner.

3.  Keep It Simple – As much as I love to cook, I am always humbled by the fact that the family seems to love easy comfort food as much if not more than things I slave over.  We had a week full of delicious dishes – but my son, Scott was happiest with the easy mac he made for himself. It was inexpensive and easy, and reminded him of being a kid again.

4.  Let People Help!!  -  I’m always guilty of this one.  I invite people over, they say “what can I bring?” and I say “Just Yourself!”  What was I thinking?   I am learning to say, “Thank you, yes” and everyone feels better.

5.  Keep some “extras” on hand! – The one thing I have trained the family to do, is put something on the grocery list when they use up the last one.  Particularly around the holidays, there should be some no thought food around.  For a late night meal, I take a can of tomato soup, add a can of minced clams and a little milk and I have a wholesome meal.  When people drop by, I have some mini-bagels,  frozen pigs in a blanket, TSG Cheeseballs or a jar of Sweet and Spicy Pepper Jelly over cream cheese – and everyone is happy!

If you are relaxed and happy, so will be those around you.  Give up control and enjoy the holidays.

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We’ve had lots of help over the past year, beginning with our PartyLite Consultants– thank you Gina Fletcher and Tammy Martin for being our pilot Regions. And in the PartyLite Home Office – thank you Karen Conkey, Liz DiPaolo, Joyce Elven, Mary Brunelle, Christa Silvieus, Debbie Holmes, Dana Harrell, Marye Cozzens, Rachel Kane, Cindi Ford, Kim Beson and the rest of the U.S. team for taking me under their wing and adding Two Sisters Gourmet into their product line.

Now it’s up to you to find you favorites and send me feedback for the future shape of this collection. Become a PartyLite Facebook fan and see if you can win TSG product!

 You’ll notice in the new catalog that there are four tasty new offerings: Swirled Cheddar Merlot Cheese Mix, Sun-Roasted Red Pepper Seasoning, Bursting Blackberry Cabernet Preserve and Ripe Pear Chardonnay Preserve. These were designed to bring the feel and freshness of wine country to your table.

When you have TSG in your pantry, remember to check out the recipe box for mouth-watering ideas on how to use each item at least three different ways! TSG brings extra excitment to your everyday cooking and helps you prepare dishes that are quick, easy and delicious.

I had a great time tasting and refining products with you.  My tasting cart is becoming a welcome sight here at the office. We’re currently finalizing the new items for the next catalog – plus, I can’t wait to get new ideas at the Fancy Food Show in January!

Please share your favorite TSG items and how you use them. I know a lot of you are just as excited as me, spread your enthusiasm and write a guest post for the blog.  
 

Thank you for welcoming Two Sisters Gourmet into PartyLite and now onto tables nationwide!

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The Working Girl posted an article, “10 Things Cooking Taught Me About Life”  by Kim O’Donnell that not only touched her, but resonates with the cook in all of us. BSVCZRN9VZA6

What Cooking Means to Me:

It made me reflect on what cooking means to me.

1.  I find it therapeutic. If I’m cranky I will chop a little harder.  If I’m moping around I can conjure up smells that take me to the happiest of times – a fresh apple pie to remember apple picking afternoons filled with smiling faces.

2.   Cooking connects me with  the cycles of nature. Think about the  day-long pot of spaghetti sauce project necessary to soak up that whole case of tomatoes from the farmer’s market (what was I thinking!).  The trip to the Farmer’s Market was a delight – a warm sunny Saturday, pouring over fresh produce, seeing friends and neighbors, and knowing that the piles of tomatoes will bring summer memories during a cold evening.

3.  Cooking gives me time to step out of my daily routine and think. When I get to cook on one of these leisurely sessions, I turn on classical music and contemplate the more important things in life. I’m frequently thinking about the kids visiting  for a holiday, when I can see my Mom 2,500 miles away and how lucky I am to have family who loves spending time  together.

4.  Cooking let’s me show I care. To me and to many, cooking is a universal display of love and concern. Sometimes words just aren’t enought.  There’s always the “cheer you up from the lost game” dinner or a “friend hurt your feelings, so here’s comfort food” dinner.  One of my favorites is “let me fix your favorite meal to bribe you to come home” dinner.  The fact that they come and are cheered up are my greatest rewards.

What have you learned about life through cooking? Or describe whose life you have touched with your cooking. After all, cooking is all about bringing friends and family together!

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Thanksgiving dinner is the one time no one in the family will ask me “What’s for dinner?”  Like families all over the country, we have a ritual dinner.  Every year I am tantalized by all the great and interesting recipes in the food magazines that find their way into my mailbox, but I am NEVER allowed to indulge in them. The only time I get to vary the menu is when we open our doors and include traveling waifs who can’t go “home” for Thanksgiving.  We want everyone at our table to have something that reminds them of home, so I get to expand.

Thanksgiving may be officially the fourth Thursday of November, but in our house, and I believe many houses, it’s really at least a four day affair.  This year, we will be having Thanksgiving at the beach, which sometimes means that all the Edwards gather and we have a large and noisy bunch. That’s when I get to try different things, we have multiples of everything, turkeys, stuffing , potatoes, pies – you name it.

Origins of Thanksgiving Dishes and Wishes

This year will be a smaller, quieter retreat.  The older the family gets, the more connections we have to other families, and the more we share the people, the customs and the time.  Traditionally, most Thanksgiving foods are those native to American soil.  Turkey is ubiquitous – over 91% eat turkey on Thanksgiving. They say if you look at your Thanksgiving table you can tell where your family originates within the U.S.

Click on the foods for some great ideas:

Sweet Potatoes – from the South

Corn Bread Stuffing – The South and New England

Creamed Corn – Pennsylvania

Dungeness Crab or Shrimp – The West Coast

Mole and Roasted Corn,  - Hispanic Americans of  Mexican heritage

Lefse and Green Beans – Midwesterners of Scandinavian  heritage (lefse is Norwegian  potato flatbread)

On our Table for Thanksgiving – In addition to the Cornucopia!

1. Shrimp Cocktail and Fresh Hot Rolls
2. Black Olives – lots!
3. Fresh whole Cranberry Sauce (is your family whole berry or strained?)
4. Turkey (don’t forget the Butterball Hotline!) link to other post.
5. Aunt Ida’s Sage and Sausage Stuffing (not sure who Aunt Ida was)
6. Giblet Gravy ( we had to wait till they were a little older for the giblets)
7. Mashed Potatoes
8. Pumpkin and Minced Pie

My Thanksgiving Wishes

What I love about Thanksgiving is that it is the most American of all holidays – everyone within our shores is invited to the table to celebrate.  It’s a day of peace and promise as we gather to be thankful for the blessings we have. It’s a little island of calm before the holiday rush. Food is one of the most fundamental ways of connecting.  I know at our table we will be thankful for family and friends (including those we don’t know yet).  We wish the same for you at this time and hope you will share the season…

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But there’s an easy solution! Make it a “scoop and nuke night.” What’s that?…. Here’s the easy recipe:

• An easy, no fuss, semi–nutritious meal. It’s so quick that I had time to prepare it before the after school frenzy.
• One pan cooking. After all, no matter what time I get home that pan will be waiting for me in the sink.
• Make a lot. I always planned on leftovers, but never got any.
• A meal that everyone will eat!

My family isn’t picky too about food, but like everyone their appetite depends on the day.  My daughter couldn’t eat a heavy meal before dance, but my son was famished.  My husband still thinks he plays college varsity soccer and I require just one dish–fast.

Ideas for What to Put on the Dining Room Table:

• Soup with fresh bread – Make a pot of whatever is left in the refrigerator from the weekend – add  broth.
• Chicken stroganoff. A little heavy for the dancer, but one of her favorites and she could have some before and after class.
• Spaghetti. If I boil the noodles and mix with sauce before leaving for my meeting (one pan remember?)
• Tacos. Smorgasbord of cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes, except for the meat with sauce which can be “nuked” as needed.

Or ask friends! Our all time family favorite is an Indonesian spicy rice dish called Nasi Goreng (fried rice).  You might think we picked this up when we lived in Asia, but no, we never do anything the easy way.

We first heard about this lifesaver on a ski trip with our best friends, who are Dutch. Apparently, Dutch cooking is replete with Indonesian and Malaysian influences, as they were a global trading power in the 1600’s. In fact, the rijstafel (rice table) is a frequent Malaysian occurrence – an assortment of Asian dishes, largely including or served over rice and named by the Dutch.

Anyways, we stayed in a rental apartment and everyone was tired from skiing all day.  Yvette, my friend, was graciously in charge of feeding the troops that night. The pot filled with Nasi Goreng must have been as big as one of the best lobster pots, but 30 minutes later it was empty.

Nasi Goreng Recipe: Try it with your family!

• Spice mix. I found the Dutch store and bought the Nasi Goreng by Conimex packets. For added interest you can also purchase Ketcap Manis (something like sweet soy sauce), to be truly authentic.
• Cook rice. Mix with spice, add onion and chicken (optional). Then it’s ready to go!
• Or you can make it from scratch (but not on a scoop and nuke night!)

Low and behold, a few years later my family was transferred to Asia. The first day there, my son saw Nasi Goreng on the menu and was thrilled to see something he both recognized and loved!

Well, let me tell you – the original native is not what comes out of the bag. After the first bite, and many tears of disappointment, I had to find the closest Dutch store and revert to our mix.  We still horde it in our cupboards!

Share your scoop and nuke meals–and how they save your family!

Want some history on the Dutch East India Company? Makes for interesting dinner table conversation!

Nasi Goreng Ready to Go!

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Who doesn’t love Halloween and pumpkins? It gives us adults an excuse to pretend and have fun!

Scary Carved Pumpkins

What my Family Did for Halloween:

When my children were little, this season was all about the family trip to the pumpkin patch and finding that perfect Halloween costume. 

As the kids became “too cool” for Trick or Treating, they turned their attention to scaring the neighborhood kids with our haunted hallway. The whole family got in on the fun. When the doorbell rang, the  spooky music started, the hallway was foggy from a cauldron of dry ice and strobe lights flashed to complete the eerie feel. The children still got to dress up to hand out the goodies!

Then as the children grew even older and time more scarce, we planned one night together to carve an elaborate jack-o-lantern. Soon our pumpkins became the talk of the neighborhood.

Ideas to Celebrate Halloween and National Pumpkin Day:

1.  Printable pumpkin carving stencils:Stencils help those of us who cannot really draw a scary face. We love black cats.For scary printable pumpkin carving stencils click here .
2.   Child Friendly Pumpkin Decorating:For little ones, who you don’t want to arm with a knife or other carving implement –there’s an equally fun alternative. One of my favorite home movie moments is of my daughter, Laura, age 4, decorating the pumpkins, armed with toothpicks and a farmer’s market full of vegetables. With spinach hair, radish eyes, cucumber ears, a carrot nose and black olive teeth she learned about vegetables, ate and laughed for about an hour.  Then that pumpkin was ready to turn heads! Show off their proud creation right on your front doorstep. These were done at a local fall fair.
   

   Kid Friendly Pumpkin Decorations

3. Pumpkin Muffin Recipe:For a pre or post Trick or Treat pick–me–up, you can make some  delicious pumpkin muffins.  Check out how to make our great pumpkin muffin recipe from TSG Apple cake.

4. Pumpkin Roll Recipe:For those feeling more creative, prepare a delicious pumpkin roll

5.Heat up some cider laced with cinnamon and have a warm October evening full of memories that will be sure to give you goose bumps!

One of my favorite sources for quirky facts and the history of food is the Nibble, an online magazine, where I found today’s cause for celebration–National Pumpkin Day!

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Laura and Deb on Campus - before cooking

 Just before Parent’s weekend, she sent me a text saying, “the H1N1 virus has hit my school!”  After last spring’s media frenzy, she is worried about getting this virus. For my advice, I retreated to a standard “Mom formula” – eat healthy and get plenty of sleep. But who am I kidding? In college, no way!

 If I’m lucky, she gets one nutritious meal per day in the dining hall usually consisting of salad or pasta. There’s a hefty amount of branded coffee in her diet too, which by the way means the same calorie content as milkshakes. Many schools are trying to prepare healthier dining hall meals, but that doesn’t affect the students eating habits!

How to Cook with Just a Microwave and a Refrigerator:

This got me thinking, how can you eat healthy with an electric kettle, a microwave and a refrigerator (without the freezer mind you)?  Gratefully, food choices have improved since I was faced with the same problem years ago in my college days. I’m sure guys will resort to ramen noodles, but that gets old after a while. And I would say girls are more particular so I asked my daughter to brainstorm some ideas.

Dorm Room Cooking Essentials:

Here are my daughter’s staples:

1. Tuna packets (with salt, pepper, and olive oil)
2. Microwavable steamed vegetables (both frozen and non frozen brands)
3. Cereal
4. Oranges and bananas (no mess or dishes to clean up)
5. Smart-ones frozen dinners
6. Yogurts (The yogurts in the bottles are really good on the way to class because no spoon)
7. In the university dining hall, I’ll get a wrap and put a salad in it from the salad bar along with some deli meat, just as healthy but way more interesting than plain salad

8. Tea!

Easy Recipes:No Cooking

They can track down the pre-packaged and pre-cooked aisles in the grocery store. Get a bag of pre–packaged salad, followed by pre-cooked chicken. Sprinkle grated cheese on the chicken and top it all off with your favorite dressing. Voilá you have a great meal! (Add a dash of TSG Outrageously Garlic or Tearless Onion and Chives on everything!)

As for the rest of staying healthy, I suggest:

• Bottle of hand sanitizer
• Tea mixed with honey and lemon
•  Chicken noodle soup
• Vitamin C

And if all else fails – call home to mom.

If you want a teen’s perspective on what’s healthy and what they like, check out this post from Radical Parenting   

For dorm room cooking 101, click here

College Student Holiday gift ideas:

• Everything College Cookbook by Rhonda Parkinson
• Healthy College Cookbook by Alexandra Nimetz
• Complete Idiots Guide to the College Diet by Shelly Vaughan James
• Cooking Outside the Pizza Box by Jean Patterson

Get involved! Click here and read how colleges can participate in local sustainable food projects.

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