This week, everyone’s focused on the turkey.

But let us present a crowd pleaser that you can whip up in a jiffy when the turkey’s gone: roast marrow bones.

Marrow bones, you say? Aren’t they a treat for the dog?

Lucky dogs and lucky humans both eat marrow bones. Humans cook them first, and enjoy them on toast points. No less a gourmet than Anthony Bourdain has said that if he could choose his last meal, it would be roast marrow bones.

While we previously thought that bone marrow was pure cholesterol, according to Wikipedia, bone marrow is high in monounsaturated fats that are known to decrease LDL cholesterol levels, resulting in a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease.

It does sounds counter-intuitive! Bone marrow also contains a high proportion of vital nutrients: protein, B complex vitamins, calcium, magnesium and zinc, among others. It was a prized food in hunter-gatherer societies.

How To Serve Roasted Bone Marrow

Serve the bones standing upright on a plate. If you have espresso spoons, they’ll fit more easily inside the bones to scoop out the marrow, which you can then move straight to your mouth. Otherwise, use a dinner knife to spread the marrow on toast.

Another way to serve the bone marrow is as a steak topper. Remove the marrow from the roasted bones and mix it with gremolata, a combination of three minced garlic cloves, 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley and minced lemon peel (remove the peel with a vegetable peeler).

Atop a warm steak, the marrow will melt into the meat and the gremolata will add bright flavors.

Pour some hearty red wine, and you’ll be in heaven.

In addition to buying beef bones for marrow, you should also enjoy the marrow from braised beef shanks. You can enjoy the marrow from any bones. Our dad liked to crunch on chicken bones for the marrow.

Let us know how you enjoy marrow.

Find more of our favorite beef recipes.

Each participant bakes a large batch of a particular cookie recipe, then meets up at the host’s home for a cookie exchange, where everyone trades some of their batch for other participants’ cookies. The parties are also an occasion to share a cup of coffee and tea—or something stronger—and catch up with friends.

Everyone goes home with different types of cookies to serve over the holidays.

The folks at Chex, who introduced America to Chex Party Mix, are looking to save you time (and a sugar high) over the holidays. They’d like you to turn the cookie exchange into a Chex Mix exchange.

We like the idea!

Instead of a holiday cookie exchange,
go exchange crunchy Chex snack mixes.
Photo courtesy General Mills.

 
Hosting a Chex Mix Exchange Party involves minimal planning and preparation. You can find all the information at Chex.com, including invitations, packaging ideas and shopping lists.

Let us know your favorite recipe!

Find more of our favorite snacks and recipes in our Gourmet Snacks Section.

RECIPE: NIBBLE ON THIS! JAPANESE CHEX MIX

Ingredients

 
Preparation
1. In large microwavable bowl, mix all dry ingredients.
2. In small microwavable bowl or measuring cup, microwave butter uncovered on High for 40 seconds or until melted. Stir in soy sauce. Pour over dry mixture, stirring until evenly coated.
3. Microwave bowl of mix uncovered on High for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring every two minutes. Spread on foil, wax paper or paper towels to cool. Store in an airtight container.

Many people shy away from baking acorn squash at home. We don’t blame them: Unless you know how to cut one properly, the prospect of using a big knife to cut open a thick winter squash can be scary. The thick, green, ribbed skin can seem impenetrable.

Yet the yellow-orange flesh inside is delicious: sweet, nutty and simple to bake.

In this video, you’ll see how easy it is to cut and bake acorn squash. Instead of the cinnamon and clove used in the video, you can brush maple syrup on the squash for a different flavor profile.

Acorn squash is loaded with the powerful antioxidant beta-carotene (it’s what gives the orange color to vegetables; the body converts it to vitamin A). A one-cup serving has about 115 calories—less than a cup of potatoes—plus 9g of dietary fiber, 2g of protein, manganese, magnesium, potassium and vitamins A, B1 (thiamine), B5 (pantothenic acid), B6, B9 (folate) and C.

And it’s so yummy!

Get cooking:

Do you know your acorn and butternut squash from your Hubbard and kabocha? Check out all the different types of squash in our Squash Glossary.

It depends. Without spraying, many vegetables would wilt, since, after harvest, they go into a drier environment and cannot replenish water through their roots.

On the other hand, the water spray enables micro-organisms to start degrading the plant tissue.

Below, Dr. Randy W. Worobo, an associate professor of food microbiology at Cornell University, suggests the best way to store your produce once you get it home.

How To Extend The Life Of Fresh Produce

Extend the life of your produce with these
tips. Photo courtesy GrowingVegetables.com.

 
Storing herbs is a bit different.

 
As with all produce, don’t rinse herbs until you are ready to use them.

Try A Freshness Extender

You can buy freshness extenders for the produce drawer that dissipate the ethylene and keep the food fresher for longer. They’ve been a godsend in keeping our berries from rotting!

The ethylene gas emitted by some types of produce hastens ripening—and then, spoilage. That’s why you can put green bananas in a closed bag for a day or two, which concentrates the gas for quick ripening.

Apricots, kiwi fruits, peaches, pears and plums are also good ethylene producers. If any of these fruits are in a closed produce drawer with other items, the ethylene in the closed space will begin to degrade the neighboring produce.
  

It’s a massage oil. It’s a personal lubricant.
It’s Baconlube. Photo courtesy J&D’s.

But they don’t have to make that decision with J&D’s Baconlube, a new, water-based lubricant that the company calls “the McRib of sex.”

It’s a limited edition product: Only 3,000 bottles have been made. Get yours at Baconlube.com for $11.99.

It could be this season’s quirkiest holiday gift.

But our favorite product from J&D’s remains Baconnaise: a bacon-flavored, kosher-certified mayonnaise that lets us make mock BLTs without having to clean up the bacon grease.

We buy it by the case to give as gifts.

Do You Know Where Bacon Comes From?

Yes, it comes from a pig, but what part of the pig? Learn your pork parts in our delicious Pork Cuts Glossary.