YOGURT PARFAIT TRIFLE

I may not be able to catch you in time if you are having guests stay the night for Thanksgiving...but if you are having sleepover guests anytime this holiday season you have to try out this Yogurt Parfait Trifle.
 I love to make yogurt and berry trifles when I have breakfast or brunch guests.  They are so easy to make, they look pretty and everyone usually loves them.  Recently, I saw in a magazine (I believe it was Martha Stewart) where she made a large yogurt parfait but in a large trifle bowl.  Of course her recipe you made home-made granola and a cherry fruit compote....but who the heck has time to make all that when you are cooking for Thanksgiving of Christmas?  Not me!!!!  So I just bought store bought yogurt, granola, and fresh fruit.  I layered it in a clear glass trifle bowl.  I think I made this in about 5 minutes.  My guests and my family all loved it.  I served it with some cheesey scrambled, slices of canadian bacon and toasted bread.  Simple and easy....yet really good!

THANKSGIVING REVISISTED

I usually do not like to re-post my recipes....BUT...since Thanksgiving is coming up and we usually stick to tradition I do not get to creative.  I have included my recipe for The Perfect Fall Salad.  This salad will be a perfrect accompainment to your traditional turkey day menu.  I have also included my Roasted Butternut Squash Soup which would be a great first course.  Last but not least....if you don't feel like making a whole pumpkin pie or if you have so many pies already...try making these awesome Pumpkin Pie Bites.  Just spray on a bit of Ready Whip before you serve and you have a great mini dessert to go along side your  pecan or apple pie!  Also, don't forget about my Perfect Chicken Salad, Italian Loaf w/ Turkey, White Cheddar & Cranberry Sandwich and Chicken Noodle Soup recipes.  Just use some of that left over turkey instead of chicken....a great way to use left overs.

THE BEST EVER - PUMPKIN DIP

At our annual Halloween party this year a friend of mine brought over The Best Ever - Pumpkin Dip.  I don't really even know the true title of the recipe....but I call it The Best Ever...because it is just that....The Best Ever.  Honestly....all you need to do is take one little bite and you will want to eat the whole bowl of dip....with a spoon!  It was a huge hit at my party!  It is a dip that you can make throughout the holiday season and belive me you will want to make it again and again and again!


THE BEST EVER - PUMPKIN DIP 

• 1  12 oz. can pumpkin
• 1 large container of Cool Whip
• 1 large instant vanilla pudding - do not make the pudding, just add the mix
• 1 tsp. pumpkin  pie spice

Mix all ingrredients together well.  Serve with Nilla Wafers and Graham Cracker Sticks.

BRUSSELS SPROUTS BRAISED W/ PANCETTA, SHALLOT, THYME & LEMON

If you are like me you have never really given brussels sprouts a second thought....right?  I mean why make brussels sprouts when there are so many other vegies out there that you could make; carrots, green beans, peppers, etc.  I started to get bored with the same ol' vegies so I decided to add this recipe; Brussels Sprouts Braised w/ Pancetta, Shallot, Thyme & Lemon to a dinner I made a few years back for my husband and sister.  I served this dish along side a Beef Stew w/ Wine & Carrots and mashed potatoes.  I recently made this dinner again for my entire family to help celebrate some October birthdays.  Once you make this brussels sprouts dish you will never want to go back to steamed green beans and carrots.  The pancetta, shallots, thyme and lemon braise together with the brussels sprouts to create a perfect blend of flavors.  It is a hearty dish so I would suggest adding it to your fall and winter menus.  They would go great for a side dish for both Thanksgiving and especially Christmas!

PUMPKIN SPICE CUPCAKES W/ CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

I have to admit, I am not a huge sweets person.  I would much rather have a big bowl of mashed potatoes and gravy than a piece of chocolate cake.  That being said...I just made a dessert for our annual Halloween party that won me over BIG TIME!  I found a recipe in a Taste of Home magazine for Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes w/ Cream Cheese Frosting.  Let me tell you....these cupcakes are heaven wrapped up in a small little package!  In fact, I loved them so much, I had two of them the night that I made them.  Yes, I am pregnant....but I think even if I was not pregnant I still would have had two of these pumpkins.  I then had one the night of our party and then I had one the following night as well.  So the cupcakes won this battle - Cupcakes- 4 , Kara-0!  If you are looking for one must have recipe for the upcoming holiday season please look no further.  You could probably even use the batter to make a cake as well.  I cannot brag enough about these cupcakes.  Make them once and you will be hooked!

CARAMEL APPLE BREAD PUDDING

Here is a little secret....you know those little recipe magazines that you see when you are in the check out line at the grocery store...I buy them!  I buy them all the time.  I am addicted to them.  But I especially buy them around the holidays.  They have the best recipe for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New  Years.  I mostly  buy them for their baked goods recipes.  A few weeks ago I was standing in the check out line and a Taste of Home mini recipe book caught my eye by stating " Halloween: Food & Fun"!  That was all I needed to give in and pay the $4.99.  There were many great recipes in this book, but I found the best recipe of all, and I in fact have made it twice since.  This recipe was the Caramel Apple Bread Pudding. To be honest with you I am not a huge fan of bread pudding...that is until I found this recipe.  Usually bread pudding is thick and dense and heavy once cooked. This bread pudding was ooey and gooey and soft and fluffy and creamy and light in texture.  It was fantastic!  Please...I beg of you...please try to make this for at least one of your upcoming holidays....your guests will RAVE!

DIVITO FAMILY LASAGNA

Every year right around Thanksgiving time I start to crave my Grandma's lasagna.  Every Thanksgiving my Grandma used to make her lasagna as a first course to our Thanksgiving meal.  Yes, that is right....we each ate a huge piece of lasagna before we moved on to the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy and pumpkin pie!   What can we say...we are Italian!  Since my Grandmas passing my family has kept the tradition alive.  This year we will be celebrating Thanksgiving with my husbands family so I know I will be missing out on my large hunk of lasagna.  It was for this reason that I made a huge batch of lasagna a few weeks ago.  To make it a bit easier on me I always  make a huge batch of marinara sauce and freeze it in smaller batches.  When I make the lasagna I take a batch of my marinara sauce out and just add a  1/2  pound of ground meat to the sauce....tadah....I then I have my lasagna sauce.  This lasagna is great!  It has been a family tradition for years and will be for years to come!

What Do We Do With All This Turkey?

So every year like most people we make  a turkey that can barely fit into our oven or roasters.  And every year we have so many left overs we have no idea what to do with them all.  Last year my mom used a William Sonoma recipe and made us the best darn turkey sandwich ever! Just seeing the recipe and picture now makes my mouth water!  I am dedicating this post to some great recipes where you can use your left over turkey without feeling the burden of " What do we do with all this turkey?"

*Photo Courtesy of William Sonoma

Thanksgiving "Do's & Don'ts"

While paging through my November - Bon Appetite magazine, I came across an article on Thanksgiving "Do's & Don'ts. It is written by Andrew Knowlton, a BA Foodist and Restaurant Editor for Bon Appetite.  I would like to share this article with you as it may help some of you make it through this Thanksgiving hosting event!  It is pretty funny and true!

1. "Lovely guest, this is no time to chat with me about little Timmy's academic problems or the Super Bowl.  Most people, myself included, cook best when there's relatively little talking.  Walk into many great restaurant kitchens and, despite what you may have seen on reality TV, it's quiet.  Everyone's head is down, and the cooks are concentrating on peeling the potatoes or mixing the vinaigrette.  You want the perfect Thanksgiving meal?  Go mingle with someone else."
2. "No matter how confident a cook you are, Thanksgiving dinner takes organization.  For example, I rarely make to-do lists.  Around Thanksgiving, I do. (Dressing, check.  Cranberries, check.  Gravy....damn, I forgot the gravy.)
3. "Read recipes carefuly and thoroughly, especially it it's  your first time making a dish.  The first time I decided to serve fried turkey, I did a test run a few weeks before - just to make sure I could pull it off".
4. "A few sips of wine while cooking is part of the experience, but be careful.  A tipsy chef leads to burned rolls and scorched marshmallows".
5. "Delegate.  Run your Thanksgiving as  you would a restaurant.  Ask someone to bring the dessert, someone to set the table, someone to pour the wine, someone to clear the table, and someone to do the dishes".
6. Don't forget to enjoy yourself once everything is on the table.  Take a moment to revel in people's compliments.  And be sure to give yourself a pat on the back. You deserve it".

Your Having A Thanksgiving Sleepover?!?!?!

Phew...you made it through the big turkey day....everyone is fed, dishes are done, time to relax right?  WRONG!  Did you forget that you invited people to sleep over?  No worries....this post is dedicated to the morning after Thanksgiving breakfast/brunch.  I have come up with a few different menus to help your day after run a bit smoother.  Hope this helps!  It has worked for me!

*Photo Courtesy of The Addison on Amelia

You Always Need More Than One Dessert

 So I already did a post on the traditional Thanksgiving menu which include Libby's Classic Pumpkin Pie.  That does not mean that the only dessert you have to serve is the pumpkin pie.  There is an enormous amount of fun desserts that you can add to your Thanksgiving menu along side the classic!  When it comes to baking I pretty much stick to the recipes and try not to get too creative on my own. I am more of a "cook" then a "baker" when it comes to creating my own. This post is dedicated to all the fun and yummy "side-kicks" to the pumpkin pie most of them recipes I have found along the way and one recipe I did in fact come up with on my own.  After all you always need more than one dessert!!

* Photo courtesy of Cupcakes & Sweets

The Tradition of A "Traditional" Thanksgiving

I love experimenting and coming up with new recipes and new concoctions....that is every day of the year except Thanksgiving.  When it comes to cooking a Thanksgiving dinner my family and I stick to the basics.  Granted we do add a first course of home-made lasagna...we are italian after all!  But when it comes to Thanksgiving we stick to the tradition of a "traditional" Thanksgiving meal.  I have included some of our recipes on this post....don't forget to check out our italian addition of home-made lasagna in the upcoming weeks!
*Photo courtesy of Good Housekeeping