Planning a Happy Thanksgiving 2018 – 4 Weeks and Counting!

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 23 years, as well as over 100 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.  This week I taped a great episode on The Rachael Ray Show about what you can do several weeks before Thanksgiving.  I believe that will air on November 5th, but I’ll let you know for sure.

My Thanksgiving ebook is now available!  This PDF contains all my Thanksgiving recipes, tips and tricks, in one document!  You will have everything you need to plan and execute your best Thanksgiving ever.  Click here to access the Thanksgiving ebook.  Also, if you take my online cooking classes, the recipes will be the ones I am also teaching in my in-person cooking classes and those recipes will not be in the ebook.  The online class will be taped next week and be available the week of November 5th – plenty of time for you to decide what you might include on your menu!

Let’s get started!

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Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal Recipe

Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal | Pamela Salzman

 

Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal | Pamela Salzman
Photography by Erica Hampton

 

Last pumpkin recipe until next October – I swear!  In reality, I made and shot this recipe last winter, but I felt that my readers wouldn’t find a baked pumpkin oatmeal as appealing in January as they would in October.  The truth is, I eat pumpkin all year long.  I love pumpkin pancakes, oatmeal, muffins, bread, smoothies and smoothie bowls, cake (coming to my classes next month!), cookies, soup, and “truffles.”  Although I much prefer to bring home a sugar pie pumpkin from the market and roast it for homemade pumpkin puree, it’s easy to find organic pumpkin in BPA-free containers all year.Continue reading

Pumpkin Cashew Truffles Recipe

Something that gives me a strangely satisfying feeling is when I am efficient with my food.  I looooove finishing a bag of something or avoiding throwing something away because I was able to use it creatively.  I came up with this recipe last year to use up a small amount of pumpkin puree that was languishing in the fridge.  I usually use up small bits of pumpkin in smoothies, oatmeal, or pancakes or waffles.  But I am pretty obsessed with Bliss Balls (aka energy balls) and I knew I could probably make a pumpkin version.Continue reading

Everyday Turmeric Chicken

Photography by Devon Francis

I grew up with very limited exposure to flavor profiles outside of Italian food and “American” food, e.g. burgers and hot dogs.  I was very interested in learning more, but we didn’t eat out much and I didn’t have too many resources for recipes.  We had a lot of variety in pasta shapes and diversity in pasta sauces though!  I don’t know when I was exposed to Persian food, but I think it was well after I had moved to LA in my early 20’s.  It quickly became one of my favorite cuisines.  I just love the herbs, spices, the color and beauty of the dishes.  And I am crazy for rice!  Once, a Persian friend invited us over for dinner and she made at least two rice dishes, but with enough for 4 times as many people and so, so delicious.  I’ve always wanted someone to teach me how to make Persian food, and finally my prayers were answered.Continue reading

Pumpkin Spice Yerba Mate Latte

This blogpost is sponsored by the National Institute for Argentine Yerba Mate. All opinions are my own.

When I was at Trader Joe’s a few weeks ago and spotted the first pumpkins of the season, I felt conflicted.  Why rush it?  I feel like school has barely gotten going.  To me, pumpkins signify Halloween, which means Thanksgiving is just around the corner and we all know what comes after that!  I can’t deal.  So I am drawing the line at decorating my front yard with pumpkins, and instead embracing pumpkin bread, pumpkin swirl bars, pumpkin stew and, of course, the pumpkin spice latte.  Sort of.Continue reading

Mejadra Rice with Lentils, Greek Yogurt, and Shallots Recipe

Photography by Devon Francis

Rice and lentils are two of my favorite foods, but I love them even more when they’re paired together.  I was on a Mejadra kick the last few weeks and loved every bite. Mejadra is a Middle Eastern-Mediterranean dish of rice and lentils cooked with warming spices (not spicy) and topped with fried onions. I tried two recipes recently, one by Ottolenghi and one in the new Staub cookbook.  The Staub recipe was by far my favorite.Continue reading

Cucumber-Hummus-Turkey Roll-ups

This post is sponsored by Applegate. All opinions are my own.

It’s so nice to be back in a routine, isn’t it?  This time of year for me means regular mealtimes, a little healthier eating (watermelon, olives and rosè no longer count as a dinner), meal prep on Sundays, and making school lunches.  I will admit, school lunches throw me since my son doesn’t eat the classic lunchbox staple, a sandwich.  And many of you often message me asking for new school lunch ideas.  I have a great “recipe” for you that my son is crazy for, and so I am.  Meet the “cucumber-turkey roll-up!”Continue reading