Finally Friday Fun

The weather forcast for here in Chicago this weekend is not so pretty. Lots of cold wet stuff, either snow or slush or slushy rain, so we are making plans at our house to do lots of baking.
One of my favorite Christmas cookie recipes has been handed down from generation to generation. It is an odd recipe, but a good one. My daughter and I will be making some of these up tomorrow. . .

CANDY LASSES (Christmas cookies)

Cream: 2/3 cup butter

¼ cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugarBlend: 1 egg
2 tbsp. MolassesAdd: ½ cup peppermint candy canes crushed

Sift: 2 cups flour
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. ginger

Beat well after blending in egg and molasses—then stir in peppermint candy and dry ingredients—drop by teaspoon onto greased cookie sheets—bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

Cool cookies for at least 5 minutes before removing from sheets.

Frost cookies with peppermint frosting.

To make peppermint frosting, add red food coloring, a few drops of peppermint flavoring, and some crushed peppermint candy canes to plain vanilla frosting.

The Strike is Over and I am as Proud as a Peacock

As you may or may not have heard yet, the Stagehand strike that has crippled Broadway for about three weeks ended last night around 10:30 pm. This means that today, the show will go on.

And just why does this make me proud as a peacock? You see, my brother has been working very hard since he was in high school to find his place in the world. He at first, I think, believed he would be a singer or actor. . .and he was good. But over the past few years he has tried his hand at many different things, and seemed to find his niche in being a Company Director. He has continuously worked on his theater degree and dreamed only of Braodway.

Well, my hat is very proudly off to my little brother today, for realizing a dream that he has had for years and followed at deep personal cost! Tonight, my brother has his Broadway debut, and I wish with all my heart that I could be there to see it. Tonight my brother will be the Company Manager of the Broadway musical Curtains with David Hyde Pierce!

It may take years, but following your dream and pursuing it diligently, in almost all cases, does indeed pay off. If you are willing to work tirelessly and give it your all, you will be rewarded. For all of you who are on that long road. . .hang in there! Your own breakthrough may be right around that next corner.

5 Board Games Everyone Will Enjoy

I don’t want to do it, I don’t want to add another gift list, but I have to for two reasons. First, I want to record all my good ideas for myself, and second, everyone I talk to these days is looking for gift ideas. Let’s face it, it is the most important thing on all our minds right now. So, on to the board games.

My husband hates board games, but the kids and I love them. We also find that especially in the winter months, lots of couples like to come over for game night. . .and the food and fun is magical.

So, for those “gamers” on your holiday gift list, here are a few board games that I will be picking up for my friends this year (just so I can use them when I invite them over).

1. Eat It! Snacks & Sweets Trivia Game was feature in the December issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray. Not only does it get great reviews, and include questions about my favorite food group, chocolate, it comes with coupons also. Who wouldn’t enjoy this gift?! ($2

2. I need to add the Jumbo Sequence game to a list for my family, as we play this all the time with friends. It is a team game, and so the competitiveness in us all comes out, but it usually provides hours of entertainment for anyone who likes card games. ($33)

3. We LOVE Cranium. This is the board game that we go back to time after time, and now there is a new version out. I may even put Cranium Wow on my own Christmas list this year. ($30)

4. Another food related game for the magazine above is one called Celebrity Chef the Game. I’ll admit it, there is nothing I like to do better on a Saturday morning than make a cup of coffee, have some eggs, and sit down to an hour or two of the Food Network. This game will at least validate some of my time spent! ($30)

5. And finally, another game we play over and over again at our get togethers is Scene It. If the person you are buying for has an XBox 360, another GREAT game that I can’t wait to try is the XBox 360 verion of Scene It. ($60)

5 Inexpensive Gifts for Kids

I was looking for stocking stuffers for my kids, and some small gifts for nieces and nephews and found some really good ideas both online and the December issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray.

1. My son has had a rough year, and so I have promised his Dad that I will put only coal in his stocking this year, but at least with Christmas Coal, I have found a fun way to do that!

2. I like these little watches for the elementry aged kids on my list. I like that it was designed by a child at St Jude’s and I also like the price.

3. These gloves are just too funky. I plan to get a pair for my dauther and all the girls on my list.

4. Ever since Jeff Foxworthy came on and challenged us to be smarter than our 5th graders, the kids in my house have been clamoring to play a game where they can beat the parents. I am putting this game under the tree, friendly competition never hurt anyone, just as long as the parents win! This website is also nice, as there is free shipping, and the option to choose only gifts made in the US.

5. And although the Wobble Deck is made in China, I think this is too fun to pass up. I think my teenagers will like this, and I am sure their dad will be anxious to show just how young he is with this game.

5 Alternate Activities for Black Friday

I know eveyone is just dying to get out, sit still in traffice, fight for a parking spot, and then fight with all of the other customers in the stores today, but not me. I am looking forward to a very calm day doing some more productive activities.Here is my list of 5 alternate activities to participating in the Black Friday Craze:

1. First, I will be tuning all of the radios and internet sites to Christmas All the Time buy going to WLIT the Holiday Lite, 93.9FM. Their website also has some great holiday ideas for decorating and some amazing recipes.

2. I will put together a delicious lunch of leftover turkey. I found some great recipes on the Food Network website that I can choose from, yum!

3. I will get out my decorations today and slowly over the next few days decorate the different rooms in my house. Last year I found a great bathroom set that makes me smile every morning at the BedBath Store.

4. While I am enjoying the lights and music of the season, I will also sit down and address a few of those holiday cards that I want to send out. I found my cards this year at Red Stamp, they had dozens of photo cards to choose from.

5. After I have spent at least 15 minutes on the Christmas cards, I will put in a Christmas Classics and cozy up with left over pie and tea!

Whatever you do today relax and enjoy this magical time before Christmas, the season that is most filled with hope, joy, love, and peace on earth.

Career Counseling

In a former job, I had college students reporting to me, and I have stayed in touch with many of them, and it distresses me to see so many of them struggling with indecision now that they have their degrees.

 I can relate to this, as I too wonder what could have been if I had been forced to think about what I wanted to do with my life more in high school.

I want to encourage parents to help their kids think through this, so I will post some links below that may be helpful.  If you have or know someone who will be going to college, or is in college, and they don’t know what to do with their lives, please encourage them to really put some time and effort into this and make a plan. 

I love the Wall Street Journal’s site CareerJournal.  It has some really great articles, including some interviews with people about their jobs.

Another great site is MSN’s Collage Grad site. 

And another good idea for all high school aged students is to look through some current job postings to get a feel for what jobs and skills employers are looking for.  I got my last job through a posting on CareerBuilder, so I recommend that one here.

Great Thanksgiving Clips

I have such happy memories of Thanksgivings of the past, both in the long ago past and the not distant past. Of these, there are two videos that help me sum up, with a chuckle, those memories and I plan to share these both with my kids this year.

The first is the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving special. . .take a look.

The second is less appropriate, but I was a teenager when this first came out and I remember watching this with my brothers and laughing well into the morning! Those are very happy memories.

How about you? What fun memories do you have?

5 Things to Do After Thanksgiving Dinner

Holidays are great. My family and I look forward to family coming for Thanksgiving every year. We plan for weeks what we will cook, when we will clean each room of the house, and what projects must be finished before family from out of town arrives. We just about think of eveything, however, we usually fail to plan what we will actually DO while we wait for dinner to cook.

Now, don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with just sitting around and talking. Some may find, though, that the more restless of their relatives may need some activities to get them talking and sharing and opening up. Here are just 5 simple ideas for having some fun, being productive, or simply working off some of that food.

5 Things to Do After Thanksgiving Dinner:
1. When you invite folks, let them know that you will have a place set aside for them to do some holiday cards, and you will have an address swap. Even if you invite friends instead of family, this could be a very productive activity.
2. Another fun thing to do after dinner is to print out those pictures you took before and during dinner and begin scrapping with your family and friends there. I am thinking that the women in the group may especially enjoy bonding over making a momento to take home.
3. Go for a walk. I know simple, but sometimes we forget the simple things. Is there a child or spouse you have not spent much time with lately in all the flurry of activity? Invite them along and talk about the dinner or the day or even swap Christmas lists or wishes.
4. We don’t have many traditions in our family, but one we do have is that every Thanksgiving we pick a movie to go see in the theater. This is a great way to unwind after a long week, and face it, the cook probably needs some time off her/his feet!
5. Another tradition that we have, is touch football. I think this activity is even more fun for those of us who are not usually coordinated or sporty. Anyone can toss a football a couple of feet and run. . .and there is little danger of injury if you stick to the “touch not tackle” rule.

Do you have fun activities planned or have some different traditions? Please share!

Finally Friday Fun

Friday fun for the next few weeks is most likely going to be shopping, and shopping tips. So on this last Friday before Thanksgiving, I am working on THAT shopping list.

Here is my menu for Thursday and some links for the recipes that I will be using.

Thanksgiving Menu:

Brined and Roasted Turkey from Emeril over at the Food Network

Gravy

Rolls

Mashed Potatoes

Brandied Sweet Potatoes from a search done on Family Oven

Pretzle Salad (am changing all references to Strawberry here to Cranberry)

Corn

Green Bean Casserole

And for Dessert:

Pumpkin Bars (will cut then top with a mini candy pumpkin for decoration)

Pumpkin Pie

How about you?

Cafe Thursday

Another week has practically come and gone, and here we are with only some 39 odd days left to get all of our Christmas preparations done. I don’t know about you, but I am already starting to feel the familiar panic setting in. I got even more worried when I realized that Thanksgiving is a week from today.

I am subscribed to the Chicago Edition of Daily Candy, and yesterday they sent this amazing recipe from Moto pastry chef Ben Roche. It has me relaxing and completely looking forward to breakfast with my family next week. Whether you try this recipe or an old family favorite, in the rush of the holidays, don’t forget to slow down for special moments with loved ones. Take a long morning break and have breakfast with your Mom, daughter, sister, friend or make cookies and have tea with friends. Just remember to enjoy the people in your life at some point, and for a least one meal here and there . . . just enjoy your food without counting the calories.

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes with Cranberry Maple Syrup

Makes 12 Pancakes

3 slices prebaked 8-inch pumpkin pie (cut into 8 even slices)

2 eggs

¼ c. plus 2 tbsp. milk

½ c. plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1½ tsp. baking powder

¾ tsp. salt

2 tbsp. brown sugar

½ tsp. powdered cinnamon

½ tsp. powdered ginger

Syrup

¾ c. cranberry sauce

¼ c. maple syrup

1. Roughly chop pumpkin pie, crust and all, into half-inch pieces.
2. Put chopped pie and eggs into blender and blend until smooth.
3. Add milk and dry ingredients and blend until smooth (a little clumpy is okay).
4. Pour batter into buttered pan and cook as you would normal pancakes. When they are a dark caramel color, flip delicately.
5. Blend cranberry sauce and maple syrup.
6. Top pancakes with cranberry maple syrup