Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire....

...Or a jar of chestnuts purchased from Williams and Sonoma make this soup recipe easy and delicious! The flavors of chestnuts and thyme are prominent and especially 'holiday-like' in that you're reminded of dressing/stuffing! Passed on to me from Tammy who serves this at her thanksgiving every year; I finally served it as a first course for dinner party at our house....with a dollop of sour cream! I should probably buy a proper camera to better photograph my food dishes!

1 Cup chopped onion
2 minced garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dried thyme
2 Tbsp butter
2 cups sliced celery
2 sliced carrots
1 jar Williams and Sonoma whole Chestnuts (or 2 1/2 cup prepared chestnuts)
1 large potato (cubed)
3 cups chicken broth
2 and 1/2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream (to accompany the soup)

Cook onion & garlic in butter
add thyme and bay leaf
add celery carrots broth and water and simmer at low temp for 5 min
add chestnuts and potatoes last and cook until tender

Remove the bay leaf and transfer the soup (in batches) to blender or Cuisinart to puree
return it to the stove or refrigerate overnight
warm the bowls and serve it hot with sour cream and cracked pepper.

Acorns and Cranberries

Still in the organic spirit, I used acorns and cranberries for our thanksgiving dinner table centerpiece. Our friends would agree my husband's lamb shanks and Amanda's Amaretto cheesecake with cherry compote were the real center-pieces, but we sat around these glowing candles I put together with 2 bags of cranberries, totalling $2 in total cost!

Fall Harvest

"Fall-like" yet modern for our loft? I ended up with these mini pumpkins, squash and pomegranates (from the local grocery store) for our coffee table centerpiece. I think it could have been spruced up a bit, but in a small space like ours, I appreciated the clean lines and bright colors. We've already enjoyed one of the pomegranates which, I hear, are packed full of vitamins and antioxidants!

Apple Tea-lights

So I made 15 of these little candle holders in ten minutes, by hollowing out the tops of apples and inserting the tea-light. Just make sure the tea light is perfectly level. I sprinkled the insides with cinnamon, for a subtle apple-cinnamon fragrance towards the end of the evening. I popped new candles in and used them every night for a week! They create a casual warm glow. I found these little apples in a big paper sack at Trader Joes. I'm not sure if they were trying to get rid of them but they were on "deep discount" We've been baking an aweful lot of apple pies lately, and I figure we could save ourselves the extra calories.

Organic Thanksgiving

Acorns-(yes I collected them from under a tree) squash, pumpkins, pomegranates, fresh flowers, apples, tea lights and glass vases from under my sink. I think I'll add cranberries and have a grand time coming up with a fabulous way to use them all. Can you tell I'm feeling especially earth friendly? I was initially mesmerized by the unmatched holiday spirit displayed of our stores and fellow American citizens, but this year all I can see is the mess of christmas EXCESS going up all around me, and it translates in my brain to greed? I'm as guilty as everyone else is and therefore, I've committed to an organic but colorful decorating scheme, well at least for thursday's humble dinner party. Here's the base of what I'll use in some way. Have a happy, healthy holiday, go crazy but think also of planet earth! As I work hard to keep the spare tire off my waist, I realize we could all use a little less excess during some part of this holiday season.

Pumpkin Flower Vase

I turned this little 99-cent pumpkin into a flower vase to hold this bunch of $3.99 flowers from the grocery store. Plump and Lovely... Exactly how I get to feeling with all the fantastic holiday cooking going on around here. Makes a friend smile and it won't break the bank. Took this photo with my phone. I've got to stop doing that!

Lighting is everything

Brittany just threw a fabulous thanksgiving party! Flickering tea lights were dripping from towering manzanita branches and candelabras (with monogrammed coozies)kept every space glowing with the romance of fall. I can't tell you if the ambiance was created by all the people I loved in the room or by the perfectly arranged fresh cut flowers she had placed in every nook and cranny. Her menu was a traditional thanksgiving FEAST!!! She mentioned that a party is nothing without wonderful guests and friends, and this time of year we realize the best part of the holiday is our friends and loved ones I will admit I only took one of these photos and it was with my phone. Oh my! (flowers and photos by Courtney..Britt's sister!)

Ginger Champagne Cocktail Recipe

Pictured above, was my attempt at a recipe from Epicurious! It was fun and festive.

1/2 cup chopped ginger
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
bring these to a boil and simmer to a syrup consistancy then cool and set aside.

dip moistened rim of champagne glass into
sugar mixed with
chinese 5 spice

place ginger crystals
and star anise
into bottom of each rimmed glass

add 1 TBSP of previously prepared ginger infused simple syrup
top with champange- I prefer a dry champagne in this cocktail

Enjoy with friends! I find this especially lovely when served in a variety of champagne flutes from hearty cut crystal to paper thin and fragile to lovely antiques from grandma!

Star Anice

Found on the spice shelf of many grocery stores, Star Anise is used in traditional Thai and Vietnamese dishes. I picked up a large bottle at our local Thai supermarket down the street and what a lovely and fragrant compliment it made to this subtly understated yet spicy champagne cocktail! I find it especially festive during the holidays as it looks like a Bethlehem star and smells a little like licorice!