A Girl's Gotta Eat!

One more today, and then I'm taking a break. I don't know that I've ever made bread pudding for dessert, much less as a side dish. But when we saw Ina Garten's Leek and Artichoke Bread Pudding recently (you guessed it, in FNM), we knew we needed to add it to our mini Thanksgiving menu. We did make a few variations, but nothing major. We used about 3 leeks, but all of it instead of just the white and light green parts. Next time I'd leave the dark green bits out like the recipe said. The flavor was good, but the texture of the dark green leeks wasn't as good as the rest...it stayed tougher instead of getting soft. Also, we used jarred artichokes instead of frozen, and they worked just fine in our opinion. We had the deli cut a big chunk of fresh Swiss cheese as we didn't see one labeled as Emmentaler. I doubt it made a difference at all. Oh my goodness. I don't think I can go back to sweet bread puddings. This was amazing. Rich, filling, but oh so...

Mashed potatoes are one of my favorite side dishes at the holidays. You can enjoy them plain, with gravy, reheated the next day with Cheddar cheese and a hot dog (don't knock it until you try it)… the possibilities are endless. By the same token, though, mashed potatoes can get boring. So when we saw Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes (in the same magazine issue as the Maple Walnut Cheesecake.) There is an option for making it in advance and baking when you're ready, but Mike and I made this the Saturday after Thanksgiving for our "mini Thanksgiving." They were so good, tangy and creamy and so flavorful. We would make them again for sure, but perhaps only half the recipe since there are just the two of us. We don't own a ricer, but a potato masher seemed to work just fine for us. Find the recipe below, or online here . Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes 3 pounds large Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut in 3/4-inch chunks 5 large garlic clo...

I've tried a ton of new recipes recently, but have been remiss in sharing them. This cheesecake caught my eye in the November issue of Food Network Magazine , and I decided right away to try it. The more I thought about it, the better it sounded, so I decided to go for broke and bought ingredients to make it both for the Thanksgiving potluck at work and for dinner at my parents house later that week. It does seem like a lot of ingredients, but it was so well worth it that I would happily make it again. I went home from the work feast with only crumbs in my pan, so I'd say it was a success. You can find the recipe on Food Network website , or I've posted it below. No changes, so have at it! For the crust: 1 sleeve graham crackers (about 9 crackers) ¾ cup walnut pieces (preferably black walnuts) 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg Pinch of kosher salt For the fill...