Livin' the Dream in Lima

What a great weekend filled with family & friends! My Business Man and I were able to enjoy quality time spent with both of our extended families... some of which we hadn't seen since June! I even got to meet my cousin's little baby boy for the first time.  I didn't contribute much to the food side of Thanksgiving... (kinda hard to do when you're traveling 6+ hours), but I did manage to pull together a pumpkin trifle last minute. With some help from my mama.  We did not  celebrate Black Friday... unless you count creating some masterpieces at Created Just By Me - a paint-your-own pottery & glass fusing studio.  On Saturday, I ran the Folepi River Trail Classic, a four-mile race that I've run every year for the past six years. (More on that tomorrow.) After the race, my BFF Talen came over to my parents' house from her parents', and we got to spend some QT, complete with another run.  And of course, we got to work in the kitchen...

...is Thanksgiving sandwiches. Yes, it might seem weird that I'm talking about using up leftover turkey when the real Thanksgiving hasn't even happened yet.  However, typically I never have any leftover turkey. One of the downfalls of traveling for the holiday. So this is a first! We've got loads of turkey. (I'm definitely going to be freezing some so I can make some easy dinners during the month of December.) Have you ever seen the episode of Friends -  The One with Ross's Sandwich ? Ross took a turkey sandwich to work... and someone ate it. But it wasn't just any  turkey sandwich. It was a Thanksgiving leftover turkey sandwich. Specially made by Monica. With a moist-maker  -a gravy-soaked slice of bread in the middle.  If you haven't seen this episode, you must ASAP. Here's a link to a clip of Ross's hysteria: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrnCsrjysxI  . In fact, it might be a good idea to go and watch all the Thanksgiving episodes from ...

Yesterday, we got together with some friends of ours here in the Bean Town held a 'Friends-giving' Celebration. Basically an excuse to have a preview of the real Thanksgiving coming on Thursday. And thank goodness for Thanksgiving. (Can I get an amen for a 5-day weekend?) I volunteered to take bird duty, and we hosted it at our house. I'm no stranger to cooking turkeys... back in college, we held an annual 'Thanksgiving Extravaganza' for our cross country team. I always made the bird (sometimes even two!), and everybody else (25+ people) supplied all the sides and desserts. It was always a great time. Thanksgiving Extravaganza circa 2009 Things always got a little crazy. Back in college, I didn't really focus on preparing a delicious, beautiful-looking turkey. I just wanted it to be edible and not make anybody sick. (And when you're cooking for college boys, they don't really know the difference between succulent, moist turkey and plain o...

So, as you all know, last week I was privileged to attend a Taste of Home Fall Cooking Show. (See the recap here . By the way... whenever you see "TOH" that means Taste of Home. Just so ya know.) Ever since, I have been inspired to kick my game up a notch in the kitchen. Lately, I have begun to rely on the same quick easy meals. (Grilled cheese & tomato soup, BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, Tacos...) Also, my Business Man and I had a rare weekend in the Bean Town with not much planned. So why not devote my whole Sunday afternoon to cooking a scrumptious meal? We decided that we'd have our own mini-Thanksgiving. Minus the turkey. (Neither of us is the biggest fan of turkey. It always seems to be dry or tough.) On the Menu:      Spinach Salad with Cranberries & Feta      Pear-Stuffed Pork Tenderloin (from the TOH cooking show)      Green Bean Casserole with a Twist (a TOH recipe)      Cranberry Sauce      Golde...