Happy Thanksgiving

Well instead of writing about what we are having for Thanksgiving dinner, although it will be delicious I thought I'd write about my morning thankful practice.  Everyday when I wake up be it while I'm running or meditating to start my yoga practice I think of 10 things that I am thankful for.  Some may change from day to day, but others like my family will always stay top ten on my list.  I encourage all of you to take a moment out of your day to be thankful for at least one thing, if not more, and hold it in your heart.  This has become a beautiful way for me to wake up and get a great mind-set for the day.  Here is a sample list of today's. 

I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and

as always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

Simple Weekday Birthday

My husband's birthday was Tuesday.  Some years we go out for dinner and others we stay at home; this was a stay home year for our family.  However we do like our traditions and one of them is the birthday person gets to choose their dessert.  My husband's choice is always German Chocolate Cake.   This is just fine with the majority of our family since we are coconut lovers.  This year I knew I wouldn't have time to make the entire cake on his birthday I made it a day ahead.  I do this for cakes a lot.  This way they get the cooling time they need.  One year I didn't and I had melted frosting.  YUCK!  So I made the cake on Monday and we frosted on Tuesday.  My recipe comes from the Cook's Illustrated Best Recipe book of many years ago.  The cake has a great texture from the buttermilk and isn't too chocolaty.  

I wrapped the cakes for the next day.

Finished birthday cake. I'm not much of a decorator.  

For dinner we had sausage mushroom risotto. If there is anything that is a staple food in our house it is risotto.  It's easy to prepare and there are so many varieties.  This recipe uses both porcini and cremini mushrooms to give it an earthy flavor. 

And as always choose  a celebratory wine. My husband enjoys Kendall Jackson Chardonnay so that's what we drank. 

Bon Appétit! 

With love from the Midwest,

Beth 

What's in my Fridge

Well here is my refrigerator.  I love that its the type that opens up so I can put trays on the bottom if need be.   Actually right now it is quite full so the bread is sitting to the right.  Honestly though this really is not a problem.

However you may say that the inside is a mess, but it really isn't.  On the top I have leftover Alfredo sauce that will be used for lunches and diners. I also have ground beef for tonight's dinner. The second level contains the last of the Honey Crisp apples, our family favorite, a large bowl of whipped cream for dessert. I made a pumpkin cake the other day, yogurt for my husband's breakfast and a few other products.  The bottom shelf has the wine.  As I've said we really like the Bota Box chardonnay for our house white.  I also have a foil wrapped loaf of zucchini bread, eggs, beer and bowl of the last of my pear-apple sauce.   The veggie and fruit bins are dropping down from the weight of the last of the carrots, peppers and cabbage.

The side doors open and are full of condiments.  I like to have on hand cream and whole milk.  The whole milk is really great in my coffee and my week-end cappuccinos. I know there is another bottle of wine too.  

This side has our milk from the local dairy and our OJ.  Yes I use the frozen from concentrate since it takes up less space in the freezer and I don't need to have several containers in an already full fridge.  In the middle shelf on the left you'll see my container of yeast. It keeps very well in the fridge.  I also have my bag of flax seed.  I like the flavor it gives off in almost all baked goods, from quick breads to  waffles and on cereals as well. I hope this post makes you realize how much real food you can put in your fridge. I do think with the approaching holiday I do need to do a bit of cleaning...or eating. 

As always with love from the Midwest,

Beth 

Halloween Tradition

I'm not quite sure when this tradition started, but we've been having fondue on Halloween for years.  When my children were younger they thought it was like eating out of a witch's cauldron.  So every Halloween we bring up the fondue pots, make several sauces and enjoy our traditional evening.  I usually serve a variety of proteins (beef, chicken and shrimp) along with several sauces and broccoli.  The sauces were a curry mayonnaise, Asian peanut dipping sauce, melted butter and teriyaki.   Really what ever you think might be wonderful.  The broth just about 8c beef broth seasoned with green onions, garlic, ginger, soy sauce (1 T) and sherry (1 T).  I just bring it to a boil in the fondue pot and then turn to a simmer.  As a tip I always like to have a bit of extra broth in case there is a lot of evaporation.

This year my children also wanted chocolate fondue. So I obliged. There are many recipes so just give a few a try.  What did I serve with it?  Fruit (pineapple is also good), marshmallows, pound cake and graham crackers.

What ever your traditions are, keep celebrating.

As always with love from the Midwest,

Beth