Howdy Pilgrim

I love Thanksgiving turkey.  It's the only time in Los Angeles that you see natural breasts.  
~Arnold Schwarzenegger  

It's empowering carving the turkey!  I've carved lots of roast chicken, but youtube helped me with the big bird.  Tip: Invest in kitchen shears.

Martha Stewart's recipe for Lemon-Thyme Potato Gratin is the most irresistible potato dish.  It disappeared once my family got a taste. This comes from a girl who eats mashed potatoes with everything. Get the recipe here.

Christian Louboutin's red soles make me feel festive!

Basting the most delicious bird ever.  I did a chipotle rub with cilantro, thyme, flat leaf parsley, & chipotle peppers.  Cooked at 350 for 3 hours.  Perfect.

Did I sneak a slice while carving?  Possibly.

It's an intense undertaking.

Dressing, green beans and salad, check.  @Robertd3 is looking at me like, "hurry up."

Dad smells something.  He's been known to sneak a bite too.

Aren't the turkey and the potato gratin gorgeous?

Every cook's favorite part (aside from someone offering to do dishes) is serving everyone.

When my family chows down without talking to each other, it's a sure sign they like the food.

Gotta love it.

Happy holidays all.

My Mexican-Southern Thanksgiving Menu

White dishes and linens and a piece of plywood.  Perfect for a backyard or a beach house.  I admit I love the look.  The gorgeous arrangements make the table look chic and crisp.  I am getting so excited to roll up my sleeves and get cooking this Thanksgiving!

My final menu~

Chipotle Rubbed Roast Turkey
Tequila Infused Cranberry/Clementine sauce
Aunt Diane's Southern Chicken and Dressing
Baked and Buttered Sweet Potatoes with Brown Sugar
Garlic Roasted Green Beans wiith Shallots and Almonds
Lemon-Thyme Potato Au Gratin

 

Seriously.  How could I not make Martha's Lemon Thyme Potato Au Gratin after seeing this photo?

Oh and Cactus Margaritas.  Can't wait!

Top pics from Sunday Supper

My Thanksgiving Menu

Ever wonder where I get my je ne sais quoi?  That certain something comes from my mother.  This Southern belle was Homecoming Queen, in the Glee Club, a cheerleader and moved to Los Angeles after graduating from high school.  She met my dad at the drive-in and married my Mexican/Portuguese daddy because he didn't look like any of the boys from back home and he was a charmer too.

When it comes to Thanksgiving, momma rules the roost.  Don't worry, when Christmas rolls around, I'm all about tamales, tres leches and all of that latin flavor!  Sadly, there aren't enough Southern restaurants here in LA and it's the epitome of comfort food.  There's a reason when I met Paula Deen I felt like I was running into a long lost relative.  She acted the same way.  LOVE Southern hospitality.

Here's my working menu for next week.  Input is welcome.

• Roast Turkey
• Aunt Diane's chicken and cornbread dressing  (this is non-negotiable.  best stuffing/dressing ever)
• Cranberry Sauce
• Mashed/Scalloped Potatoes/Potatoes Gratin... which?
• Homemade or Instant rolls, depending on the time I have.
• Baked sweet potatoes with brown sugar and butter
• Pumpkin Pie.  Always.
• Turnip greens/sauteed spinach or gasp! green bean casserole

I never tried green bean casserole until a few years ago.  My mother always turned up her nose to "entrees" fixed with Cream of Mushroom soup.  I had green bean casserole at a boyfriend's house and thought it was the most delicious thing I had ever tasted.  You should've seen my mother's face.  Priceless!  But I still love it to this day!

Ok, what am I forgetting?  What are YOU serving??

Best of LA: Pumpkin Pie

It isn’t Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie. If you’re not making your own, who offers the best pie in the Southland? Look no further. I’ve done the research for you with fork in hand and a hearty appetite. After my culinary journey, I’ve made a list of the most unforgettable pumpkin pies in LA and my first pick is offering free slices of their incredible pumpkin pie all weekend!

Maison Richard ($24)

This charming French bistro offers the most elegant and scrumptious pumpkin pie I’ve ever tasted. It’s almost like a pumpkin mousse and I could've polished off the entire thing all my myself. You have a chance to try it yourself this weekend, because they're offering...

Free slices!
11am-4pm
Sat. Nov. 20th & Sun. Nov. 21st

Maison Richard
707 North Stanley Avenue
Hollywood
(323) 655-7777

Did your pumpkin pie make the cut?  Click here for the full list on CBS!

Thanksgiving Tabletop

Here's a sneak peek at my look for Thanksgiving, inspired by this photo.

I couldn't resist a mockup on my dining table, even though I'll be cooking and serving dinner at my parents' home.  My mother's dining room is pale green (like mother, like daughter) and I think I'll have to steal this look for my home too.

Aren't these flower arrangements insane? @JRummerfield worked her magic and made these fabulous creations.  The orange just sets the table on fire!

New Home, New Traditions

My parents have been renovating for months and recently moved into their new beach house.  Last night we installed new cornice boxes (my husband made!) to set off my mother's gorgeous new drapes.

Don't you love the sweater?  $27 at Forever 21.  So anyway, my mom is just starting to decorate and I'm cooking Thanksgiving dinner at her home this year, so I want to bring a color scheme to the table that feels elegant and warm, yet fitting for the beach.

Tip: Never drink wine and drill at the same time.  Not my glass people!

Onto our beautiful decor choices...

Aren't plums, grapes and greenery gorgeous?

This monochromatic table has hints of rusty orange.  Maybe a twist of both?

Photos from Better Homes and Gardens

Orange Pomanders

Orange pomanders are easy to make.  Just buy oranges and whole cloves available at all supermarkets.  Create any pattern you like!  The scents of citrus and clove are delicious and they're the perfect start to my fall centerpiece. 

Our Holiday in Pictures

Here's some photos from Thanksgiving. I made the most of every minute!



Woke up early to start the bird cooking. Don't know if I got the thermometer in right. I need a trim.

Doesn't the table look festive? The candied yams, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, pumpkin pie, rolls & cranberry sauce were delicious. The turkey and stuffing were a bit dry, but if I ate them in the same bite as the green bean casserole they tasted moist!


That dinner was more work than I imagined, so immediately after the meal, I laid on the couch with Simba & let the tryptophan kick in.

AgAfter my power nap & a shower, I changed into this cute dress from H&M. I'm still a bit groggy at this point.

Robert isn't. He's ready to go to grandma's house. He's holding Sabrina, our 3-legged Halloween cat.

After a trip to grandma's house, Jaime & Dana came over.


We love to take pictures. They even brought a polaroid camera. It was so much fun.

A View from El Lay

I know many of you log on from all over the US and the world. I love that! So I thought I'd share a bit of home with you. Here's how it looked this afternoon in Hollywood, they day before Thanksgiving. It's our busiest travel day of the year, because people travel to be with relatives.

The first photo was taken around 3:30pm at the Beverly Center. Traffic was growing by the minute. It's been really foggy too.

The second photo is from The Grove. It was built a few years ago, and some people make fun of it for looking a bit Disney-ish, but I love it. It does look a bit like Main Street USA doesn't it? Oh well.

I love to walk and windowshop at malls. It makes me feel better for avoiding my treadmill. Ok, so one or two more photos. This is Anthropologie's store windows at The Grove. I snapped this llama or alpaca surrounded by paper snowflakes.

I'm taking on the turkey tomorrow, so I'll be back after I recover from the holiday with an update. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Thanksgiving Countdown

I bought the amber glass turkey tureen on sale for $19.99! I blogged about it a few posts ago. My next step was linens. I found these cute napkins (with the birds on them) at Pottery Barn yesterday. I bought red placemats to go with them, even though an oval shape looks best on our round table. Hey, beggars can't be choosers when you shop last minute.

By the way, I first stopped at Anthropologie and everything was still way too summery. I was a bit disappointed.

So here's my menu. Not necessarily the official names:

Roast Turkey that won the Most Votes on AllRecipes.com. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Henrietta's Southern Cornbread Dressing - my mom's recipe. fingers crossed.

Russet Mashed Potatoes - potatoes, butter, half & half... not much else. pretty easy and delish

Hot Candied Yams with Marshmallows - One of my favorite flavors. I love yams

Cranberries from the Can - both jelled & whole berry. Mmmm. The fresh stuff never does it for me.

Campbell's Green Bean Casserole - I can't wait to make this. My family never had it growing up. I tried it at a friend's house once & LOVED it. I wonder if I still will?

Mrs. Smith's frozen Spiced Pumpkin Pie - I'm not about to make it from scratch after everything else. Plus it tastes good.

Oh yeah & the vino. I bought a bottle of Chalk Hill chardonnay. My mom says after drinking this, it will be hard to drink any other chardonnay. It's a bit expensive for my budget, but I love a nice glass of wine & after all.. it's Thanksgiving! Did I tell you how excited I am?

I bought my usual La Crema & Kendall Jackson chardonnays in case the food takes too long to cook or friends stop by. I hope they do!

Turkey Tureen

I am going to celebrate Thanksgiving at home for the first time since 1999. I just learned this great news & I'm a bit stunned and unbelievably happy!

I love Thanksgiving, but I always have to work holidays, because when you're in the media, that's what you have to do.

Last year, I did a story on a military family celebrating Thanksgiving & they left a seat open at their table for their soldier who was in Iraq. They even placed all of his favorite foods on the plate. That was the best part of the day, but later, when it was time to eat, all of the restaurants were closed except for Del Taco (which I don't like) so I had a watery burrito.

I just got lucky this year. Who knows if it will happen again, so I'm going big, baby.

I want with this Turkey Tureen from Williams-Sonoma. It's Amber glass & would be great holding my cranberry sauce. Straight from the can!

I am all about homemade for (most of) the rest of the meal. I'll blog on that later.