Who would have thought that fresh fruit could have such a Thanksgiving theme! We found this idea in in the Dole Pinterest stream and couldn’t resist making one ourselves. In fact, it’s a great project to keep the kids busy on Thanksgiving.

Ingredients Per Fruit Turkey:

 
You can make and enjoy this fruit gobbler for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacking throughout Thanksgiving weekend. Consider adding a side of yogurt or cottage cheese.

Photo courtesy Michelle Furlotte | Dole | Pinterest.

THANKSGIVING FRUIT & VEGETABLE GIFTS

Looking for something very nice and also very good-for-you? Turkey-decorated cookies may be cute, but premium produce is more considerate, not to mention more welcome during this calorie-packed season.

Melissa’s, America’s premier purveyor of fine fruits and vegetables, has an e-store that makes sending healthful gifts a snap.

You’ll find everything from traditional and organic deluxe fruit baskets to organic vegetables, including several varieties of Organic Purification Boxes and options that include specialty foods and wines.

Gifts We’d Like To Receive

For Kids & Adults

 
These are only the tip of the iceberg. For your perusing pleasure, check out:

Caviar chocolate isn’t for anyone. But here’s a bar with more universal appeal:

The PMS Bar from Lucas Candies. P is for peanut butter, M is for milk chocolate and S is for salted potato chips.

It’s so creamy, with a light potato chip crunch, and nifty looking with a semi-sweet chocolate drizzle. At $4.00, it’s a great stocking stuffer.

We were also fond of the newest Lucas candy bar creation, the Haverstraw Bar, made with milk chocolate, toasted coconut and toffee chips. The confections are made fresh by hand daily.
The Lucas family has been making chocolates since 1896, when five Lucas brothers emigrated to the U.S. from Greece and settled on the Hudson River in Haverstraw, New York.

Back to the chocolate: Today the store, in its original location, is operated by the fourth generation of the Lucas family. The same recipes that came with the family from Greece in 1896 are still made, along with some new ones like the PMS Bar and Haverstraw bar.

Historical note #2: Peanut butter was introduced to the masses in 1904 at the Universal Exposition in St. Louis, but it was a while before it was commercially produced and became a staple in American households. Krema Products Company of Columbus, Ohio began selling peanut butter in 1908 and remains the oldest peanut butter company still in operation today.

The first shelf-stable peanut butter was invented in 1922. Here’s the history of peanut butter.
  

Good things come in small packages. In the case of Petrossian’s new Caviar Chocolate, the package is small but the flavor is huge, and the memory will last a lifetime.

Petrossian has partnered with the great French chocolatier Pralus to create (to our knowledge) the world’s first caviar-studded chocolate.

For that select group of people who love both chocolate and caviar, you couldn’t find a better gift. “Even we were amazed with the result!” says Petrossian, describing their reaction to what Pralus had created.

The silken white chocolate and slightly salty, crunchy beads of sturgeon caviar are a marriage made in heaven: the highest form of salted chocolate. The cost of four small pieces: $29. The experience: priceless.

Petrossian doesn’t rest on its laurels as the world’s most prominent purveyor of fine caviar. The creative minds there are always trying to do more.

Recent innovations include caviar cream, caviar powder, Papierusse (“Russian paper”)—sheets of pressed caviar that look like Japanese nori—and caviar cubes for garnish.

Just imagine a gift basket with all of these wonderful products—and some fresh Petrossian caviar! Can we send you our address?

One of the new styles—we have it in front of
our kitchen sink! Photo courtesy Wellness
Mats.

In the search for holiday gifts that will be used and treasured, we recommend WellnessMats.

Anyone who spends a lot of time standing on a hard kitchen floor will be thrilled. Every person who’s stood on our WellnessMat has expressed intent to purchase one.

The anti-fatigue floor mats are ergonomically engineered and medically proven to provide unsurpassed comfort, safety, relief and support while you stand. If only the Earth were paved with wellness mats: No more back pain, leg pain, knee pain, foot pain (at least, for those moments when standing on a WellnessMat).

Mario Batali, Todd English, Guy Fieri, Duff Goldman and Top Chef Sarah Grueneberg are all fans. Even people who are in tip-top shape and don’t spend hours in front of the stove or sink will appreciate the pillowy comfort.

WellnessMats come in just about every size, color and pattern that a decorator could desire. There are also choices for the bathroom, garage, grill, laundry room, workplace and for fitness. There are even mat covers, so you can change the look with the seasons.

Prices vary by size. Our 3’ x 2’ mat, shown in the photo, is $129.95—the best money you can spend for kitchen comfort.

See the choices on WellnessMats.com. You can buy them online for the best selection, and at fine retailers such as Williams Sonoma and Sur la Table. WellnessMats come with a seven year warranty (you can’t puncture them with stilettos), and are 100% made in USA.

Back in the day when we still seriously dieted, we created what we called a luxury salad—absolutely delicious and “luxurious” because the ingredients were relatively costly.

Whenever we’re feeling diet-minded—or simply want to detox from the rich foods we eat all day, we whip one up. If you can get to a club store, artichoke hearts and hearts of palm are more affordable.

Hearts of palm are best chilled or at room temperature, and thus best with cold dishes. Add chopped hearts of palm to:

 
Some people serve hearts of palm on a crudités platter with dip or deep fried with dipping sauce. But that, to us, covers up the delicate flavor of the hearts of palm, which at best need only a light touch of vinaigrette.
 
 
KAREN’S LUXURY SALAD RECIPE

Ingredients

 
Preparation

Just combine and serve!
 
 
WHAT ARE HEARTS OF PALM

Hearts of palm are the edible hearts of young palm trees— the edible inner portion of the stem. Palm branches are harvested and cut; the bark and leaves are removed to expose the tender inner core.

Hearts of palm have a smooth, firm consistency, a snap to the bite, and a delicate flavor reminiscent of artichokes (they can be used as a substitute for artichokes in a recipe).

The hearts can be white or pale yellow, depending on whether the palms are wild or cultivated.

[2] Artichoke hearts. These are from La Tienda (photo © La Tienda).

[3] Marinated mushrooms (photo © Taste Of Home).

Hearts of palm have only 50 calories per cup, are a great source of dietary fiber, and are a good source of protein, ribolavin, potassium, vitamin C, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, copper, and zinc. The only caveat: They can be packed in water with a high sodium content.
 
 
WHERE DO HEARTS OF PALM COME FROM?

Due to poaching in Brazil, Ecuador is now the largest producer and exporter of hearts of palm. Costa Rica is the largest exporter of to the U.S, and Hawaii also produces some palm hearts.

They are also harvested from Florida’s official state tree, the Cabbage Palm.