It is with much anticipation, excitement, and pride that I can finally announce that my new book, Kitchen Matters, has arrived!!! Â In my last post, I compared writing a book to having a baby. Â But in reality, this book was brewing for longer than a baby and this book was not for me, but for all of you! Â I absolutely love teaching cooking classes and I wish I could see all of you in the kitchen. Â Since that is not entirely possible, I wrote this book instead!
With Passover and Easter coming up fast, many of my students have been asking me after class what they should make for the holidays and the timing of it all. Â Timing, timing, timing!! Â It seems to be the reason for so much anxiety and I completely understand why. Â Timing is everything! For those of you celebrating Easter, I just cooked a beautiful Easter brunch with Jenni Kayne and she will post that menu on her blog around April 10th.
This is my second time doing Passover, but I have plenty of experience preparing Thanksgiving and multiple other holidays and dinner parties, so Passover shouldn’t be any different.  My husband’s family is traditional and likes to observe two nights, which means two dinners back-to-back. Two years ago, I did both nights, which was great, but it took A LOT of organization.  This year, I’m doing the first night and my sister-in-law is doing the second night.  So here is the menu that I am doing with the corresponding timeline.  If I have a recipe posted, I have linked to it.  If there’s no link, I’m winging it or I just haven’t posted it.
It’s that time of year!  You know how I feel about giving gifts.  Whereas I know most people to whom I give gifts basically have everything they need, it is still wonderful to pick out something special and make someone feel loved and appreciated.  The past few years I have also gifted myself something after Thanksgiving and before I start buying for everyone else. Maybe you noticed my post on Instagram Wednesday. It’s nice to appreciate yourself, too!
My gift guide is based on chatter I hear in my classes (e.g. “I would love this or that,”) products I love, gifts I am giving or have given, and items that I think would be useful in some of the homes in which I teach. Don’t read into this if I teach in your kitchen! These gifts are very food/cooking/home/female-oriented.
This post has been edited from the original which was published on November 17, 2011.
I am going to admit this right off the bat — I am behind on my Thanksgiving planning!  The irony! I think we’re going to be 31 people this year, including my two daughters who will be home from college. I am so excited to have all my kids in the kitchen this year prepping and cooking with me. I had a stroke of genius five years ago, which was to tack my Thanksgiving to-do list on the refrigerator and have everyone sign up for three tasks. Even my husband helps out!
My last class is today, and then our exchange students (yes, I picked up another one last weekend LOL) go back to South Korea on Saturday morning. So I’ll be getting busy on Sunday when I start making applesauce and cranberry sauce. I always plan Thanksgiving day down to the last detail because I don’t like forgetting things and a schedule makes me feel more relaxed, which equals more fun for me! But just because Thanksgiving is the star of the show this week doesn’t mean that I can forget about normal life on very other day. So I think about regular meals and activities, too. Here’s what my schedule will look like from Sunday until we eat on Thursday at 4:00 pm (-ish). This shouldn’t make you feel exhausted, but merely show you what you can do ahead for your own Thanksgiving! The Chalkboard Mag published a really great blogpost this week with tons of tips from lots of food experts (including me!) I highly recommend giving it a quick read.
This post was originally published on November 10, 2011.
Life is unpredictable, but Thanksgiving is not and it is 2 weeks away!  Is the exclamation point there to emphasize panic or joy?  I’m excited!  I’ve been teaching quite a few Thanksgiving-themed classes as of late and I’m feeling spirited.  Don’t let these Thursday posts stress you out.  The whole point is to show you what you can do in advance, not what you must do in advance.  All these tips and strategies are most relevant to the hosts and hostesses who are preparing most or all of the meal themselves and who have a busy schedule leading up to the holiday.  If I didn’t get a lot of these tasks completed early, I don’t see how I could pull off this meal without tons of stress.
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This post has been edited from the one originally published on Thursday, November 3, 2011.
If you followed the advice in my post last Thursday, perhaps you now have a general idea of how many guests you will be hosting on Thanksgiving.  If not, it’s time to get on the phone and do some inviting!  Do you have a good, balanced menu and have you taken guests up on their offers to bring something?  This week we have a few more tasks that we can check off the list.
Here are some questions that will help you decide what size to order:
How many ovens do you have? Â If you have one large oven that can accommodate two turkeys side by side and an extra oven to spare (you’re so lucky!), then you have the option of cooking two smaller birds versus one large one. Â But with two small ovens, you may not want them both being monopolized by turkeys.
Are your guests dark meat-eaters or white meat-eaters? Â You will get more white meat by weight from one large bird than from two smaller. Â Likewise, you will get more dark meat from two smaller birds than from one large one.
How big a turkey should you buy? Â The rule of thumb is one pound of turkey per person. Â So if you are expecting 16 guests, you should order a 16 pound turkey. Â That doesn’t mean that you will have 1 pound of meat per person, though. Â Personally, I think this is only a good rule if you don’t want leftovers, if your guests are not big eaters, and/or you have a good number of dark meat eaters versus all-white meat eaters. Â Two years ago I cooked two 17-pound turkeys for 20 adults and 5 kids and I had just enough leftovers for the five of us for dinner the next day. Â Last year I cooked two 18-pound turkeys for 24 adults and 5 kids and we had the same amount of leftovers. Â My point is that I think 1 1/4 pounds per person is a safer bet.
Do you have a bad back? Â What does this have to do with anything? Â A very large turkey is mighty challenging to keep pulling out of the oven to baste. Â I find two smaller turkeys much more manageable, if you have the oven space.
  
This post has been edited from the original, which was published on October 27, 2011.
Can you believe what today is? It is the beginning of the countdown!! Thanksgiving is 4 weeks from today! No need to panic, friends. We’re going to have some fun over the next month! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I love the traditions, the food, the Macy’s parade on television while I am making my pies, the football games. I love moving the family room furniture after the last football game is over to extend the dining room table. I love hearing everyone share why he or she is grateful. I have cooked every Thanksgiving for the last 20 years, as well as dozens of Thanksgiving-themed cooking classes. I have made lots of mistakes and in the process learned a thing or two about how to execute and enjoy a very happy Thanksgiving. The key is being organized. Every Thursday from today until the big day, I will share my best tips, strategies and a few good recipes to set you up for a successful holiday. Let’s get started!
