Thanksgiving Looms!

Oh, yeah! It's time to start preparing for my favorite holiday! You just have to love a holiday that doesn't focus on anything but gratitude, food, football and fellowship!! No gifts to buy, no elaborate decorations are necessary (but they are nice if you like to do that sort of thing) and nothing to worry about but the kind of pie you'll have for dessert...gotta love that!

Here's a recipe that I found in Susan Branch's Autumn From the Heart of the Home cookbook. If you're not familiar with Susan Branch, check out her site and think about ordering her books. I got mine from Amazon last year, and they weren't at all expensive...I can't remember how much I spent, but I know for sure it wasn't much or I wouldn't have ordered them. I like them as well as the Gooseberry Patch books, which you all know I am crazy about.

I think I'll make this for our Thanksgiving celebration this year...it just sounds so good and fall like to me.

Warm Salad of White Beans, Sage and Garlic
9 oz small white beans (dried)
1/4 c. minced fresh sage
1 tsp. minced garlic
3 Tbsp. minced flat leaf parsley
1/3 c. olive oil,
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Arugula leaves

Sort, rinse and drain beans. Bring them to a boil in 4 cups water; reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let sit 1 hour. Rinse beans and return to pan with 8 cups fresh water. Simmer 20 minutes so beans are tender but not mushy. Rinse again in hot water and drain. Put in bowl. Mix together sage, garlic, parsley, oil, vinegar and salt and pepper. Pour over beans, stir gently. Let sit 1/2 hour. Add celery and taste for seasoning. Serve warm or at room temp. It's pretty on a bed of arugula.

I have to be honest...I'll probably use canned beans, drained and rinsed and warmed. But doesn't that sound good? It's all the flavors I put in my dressing. It sounds like a great side dish for a grilled chicken breast too. And you know, don't you, that beans are full of fiber. A surgeon friend of ours told me once that the reason so many people have colon related problems is because the typical American diet is too low on fiber and water. So drink up and eat bean salad!

Keep watching for more Thanksgiving related posts in November...tis the season!!

Thankfully,
Cathy

Scarecrow re-do!

Did you notice the new header picture? I don't really like the way it doesn't completely fit the space, but I'll work on that when I have more time! But isn't he the cutest scarecrow you've seen today?

I picked him up at a yard sale for...are you ready for this? $5! Honestly! $5!

Here he is before I took a Sharpie marker to him:



And here he is after! I'd planned to completely repaint him, and I may still, but not this year. I have too much other stuff to do. I am going to make him a cute little vintage looking banner to hold for the Boo!Bash2, and then he'll have some pumpkins and hay to keep him company for Thanksgiving and the rest of fall. I just love him!

I think we'll call him Henry. He looks like a Henry to me...look for Henry again soon!

In the mood!

I am in the mood for Thanksgiving! Now that I've got Halloween under control (she said sarcastically), I'm anxious for my favorite holiday of all...Thanksgiving! Several sitcoms have had Thanksgiving episodes on lately, and it really makes me ready for it!

I love Thanksgiving. I used to always use the Friday after as the day I started decorating for Christmas. However, several years ago after Lynn's grandfather passed away, I inherited Thanksgiving dinner for his side of the family. Since most of us have other obigations on the actual Turkey Day, we decided to make the Saturday after our Thanksgiving Dinner day. That meant that I wouldn't decorate for Christmas until we were done with all the Thanksgiving festivities. For all my holiday goofiness, I am a bit of a purist...I like my holidays one at a time! So, that first year it was difficult, because I was itching to decorate for the holidays. But as the years have gone by, I've embraced Thanksgiving weekend as just that....a whole weekend to celebrate with family and friends and, most importantly, thank God for our blessings.

An added bonus is that I can usually get most of my dinner supplies on sale the day after Thanksgiving!!

So, don't be looking for colored lights and HO HO himself at our house until at least the Monday after Thanksgiving..he'll be too busy eating turkey and dressing and pumpkin pie!

Hope you have a wonderful fall!

Cathy