A Very Happy Thanksgiving

I just wanted to pop in early to say Happy Thanksgiving.  I want to say thank you to all of you for following me along and encouraging me everyday, it truly means the world.  We are off to Boston to see my family, but before the festivities begin, I am running in a 10K, so there will be not guilt in indulging on my favorite holiday.  

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Fall Entertaining Essentials:: Thanksgiving Edition

I have only cooked one Thanksgiving so far and there were so many moving parts that by the time we sat down to our late dinner I was almost to exhausted to eat.  This year I will be playing sous chef/kitchen help/lead baker and I will focus more on setting the table, something that I love to do just as much as being in the kitchen. I am envisioning a setting with flowers and flickering candles, an over-flowing cheese plate and hints of gold here and there. Here are some of my picks to create this setting.

Porcelain Pie Plate / Oxo Wire Dough Pastry Blender

Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons / William Sonoma Mulling Spice

Dean & Deluca Cinnamon Infused Maple Syrup / Marchesa by Lenox Gold Flatware

Brooklyn Slate Company Cheese Board / Nielson Massey Tahitian Pure Vanilla Extract

Marimekko Luminary Napkins / Handmade Beeswax Candle / Fall Copper Cookie Cutters

Black Bottom Oatmeal Pie {From Four & Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book}

Black Bottom Oatmeal Pie, need I say more?  Let me tell you, if you are looking to impress your Thanksgiving dessert table, I recommend that you make this pie, my second recipe from the new Four & Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book. It is a slice of heaven because it basically fuses two different varieties that are loved during the holiday season, pecan pie (but without the nuts) and chocolate ganache pie to create something that is truly out of this world.  There are a few easy steps to this pie, the first being that you toast the oats to give them a wonderfully nutty flavor, followed a sublime gooey layer that incorporates the oats and then finally a decadent layer of rich chocolate ganache that lines the crust that when served at room temperature is just like pudding.  On another note, looking very forward to the short week this week, I am eager to head up to Boston to spend the holiday with my family. Do you have any exciting plans for Thanksgiving?