RECIPE: Goat Cheese Sweet Potato Parfait Appetizer

If you run with a gourmet crowd, here’s a suggestion for a first course that’s easy to make, yet impressive and unique. It is especially elegant when you use a ring mold to create a free-standing tower. However, an easy alternative is to layer the ingredients in a dessert glass or juice glass. You can…
Continue reading “RECIPE: Goat Cheese Sweet Potato Parfait Appetizer”

TIP OF THE DAY: Pumpkin Risotto

Pumpkin Risotto. Photo courtesy Zabars.   The Italian mother of a friend always serves pumpkin lasagna and pumpkin risotto at Thanksgiving, along with the turkey. In addition to combining traditions, they offer a bonus: enticing vegetarian options for people who won’t eat the turkey. This pumpkin risotto recipe is from Zabars’ late, great creative director,…
Continue reading “TIP OF THE DAY: Pumpkin Risotto”

PRODUCT & GIFT: Zhena’s Pumpkin Spice Tea

EDITOR’S NOTE 2020: Alas, this wonderful company disbanded operations in 2018. Instead of a chocolate turkey party favor, this year we’re sending our Thanksgiving guests home with a tin of pumpkin spice tea from Zhena’s Gypsy Tea. Zhena blends caffeine-free rooibos tea (pronounced roy-boss) into a warm, soothing cup that mimics the flavors of pumpkin…
Continue reading “PRODUCT & GIFT: Zhena’s Pumpkin Spice Tea”

RECIPE: Butternut Squash Mashed Potatoes

Combine butternut squash with mashed potatoes. Photo © United States Potato Board.   What do you get when you combine Roughly mash potatoes with mellow butternut squash and finish with fresh sage leaves crisped in brown butter? A hit! This combination will be a crowd pleaser at the Thanksgiving table, as well as for family…
Continue reading “RECIPE: Butternut Squash Mashed Potatoes”

TIP OF THE DAY: Pumpkin Layer Cake Instead Of Pumpkin Pie

An impressive pumpkin layer cake. Photo and recipe courtesy Driscoll’s.   Few desserts are more impressive than a towering triple-layer cake. This beauty is paired with raspberries and brandied whipped cream. While Thanksgiving menus tend to favor pie (apple, mince, pecan, pumpkin, sweet potato) rather than cake, if you set a fancy table, this cake…
Continue reading “TIP OF THE DAY: Pumpkin Layer Cake Instead Of Pumpkin Pie”