Christmas is coming....

...the goose is getting fat!  (Or as I used to sing happily when I was little: "The Goose is getting laid!")

As Andy Williams says, it's the most stressful wonderful time of the year!!!  In all seriousness, I am incredibly excited for Christmas this year, as last year I was pretty much Ebenezer Scrooge from Black Friday until Dec. 26th.

I already kicked off the season early with a Starbucks snowman cookie (seriously, they're fucking delicious-- yes, it deserved the "F" word!), Williams-Sonoma hot chocolate-- made on the stove with milk, thank you very much-- and cinnamon marshmallows from Atwater's Village Bakery and Cafe. 

We traversed over to The Americana at Brand where you can visit Santa in his house, stroll around beautifully decorated grounds while listening to classic Christmas tunes, savor the 100ft. tree, or chase the suds they call "snow" at designated times. It's a blast!

 

 

Plus I added to my holiday movie collection with this beauty:

It's cute but "The Thin Man" is still my favorite film to watch this time of year.

In honor of the Holiday Season, I'll be posting more recipes and product reviews for gift ideas this year. Not to mention I'll have a few movie posts reviewing some of the latest releases (anyone else excited for "Les Miserables" and "The Hobbit?!"), as well as awesome/cheesy/terrible holiday films.

What are some of your Christmas traditions?

Gobble Gobble!

I love Thanksgiving. The entire purpose of the holiday is to gather with loved ones, eat a hearty meal, and express gratitude for the people in our lives and the daily blessings bestowed upon us. 

And if that isn't a reason to celebrate, I don't know what is.

While I wholeheartedly embrace the spirit of the Christmas season, the hustle and bustle (and expense) of the holiday season often wears on many of us, so much so that by the time December 25th rolls around we're exhausted and glad the holiday is over.

I guess you could think of Thanksgiving like the deep breath before plunging head first into raging waters.

Once again, my husband and I remained in LA for Turkey Day and, unlike last year, we decided to park our butts at home and make a Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings.

So we tried an organic, free range turkey (pricey but delish) covered in Michael's legendary butter paste. This paste-- an unsalted butter mixed with shallots and fresh herbs-- drips down the entire turkey, ensuring a gorgeous browned skin and flavorful drippings.

 

He also fills the turkey with lemon, shallot, onion, and apple wedges for moisture.

As Ginger-- that's what I named our turkey-- roasted away in our volcanic oven, I prepared stuffing, potatoes, and gravy. Normally I make scratch gravy, but I kept hearing about the amazing Williams-Sonoma gravy base... so I tried it.

While not bad, it lacks a punch of flavor (so I added wine, but I'd recommend dry vermouth) and is a bit salty for my taste. Michael loved it and since he's the gravy fiend, that's all that mattered.

This was also my best stuffing yet! I'm pretty confident stuffing is in my top foods because it's so diverse, easy, and quite simply delicious. 

Yes, I put my homemade cranberry sauce on the turkey-- it's incredible if you haven't tried it!

I am thankful for being able to have such a bountiful meal, I'm thankful for family and friends, for life and the chance to live it, and for all of you, readers, for continued support of my ramblings.

And most of all, I am thankful for pie with homemade whipped cream (recipe to come).

Happy Birthday, Grandma Young

Grandma Young-- my great grandmother on my mom's mom's side (got it?)-- would've celebrated her 104th (I think) birthday today, probably with a big family gathering at the Rose Garden in Elk Grove Village, IL and a large cake from the family bakery.

An immigrant, Grandma came over from Austria when she was 4. She married Grandpa Young and they lived together in the same bungalow (kitchen from said bungalow pictured below) for over 70 years.

They also raised 2 children, one of whom happens to be my grandma, and together the families expanded into even more generations of well-humored and loving people.

How to describe Great Grandma....... She loved dirty jokes, Manhattans made with Vermouth, and music. Grandma had a sharp mind all throughout her 98 years, always smiling and laughing. When the store had a sale on round steak, she made Rouladen for all of the families and sent my grandma around to distribute everyone's portions.

Great Grandma's joy in life came from family, food, and fun.

On one of her birthdays, my mom and aunts and grandma drove all of us young great grandkids into Chicago to pick up Grandma Young and take her out for lunch. When we arrived, the bungalow smelled of German sausage and sauerkraut. Apparently the grocer had a sale so Grandma decided to cook lunch for all of us instead. It was wonderful.

Mother's Day, May 2007 was the last time I saw Great Grandma Young. In our final conversation, three months before my wedding, Grandma was all smiles wishing me joy in my marriage and was thrilled that I was happy. Somehow Grandma Young knew she wouldn't make it to my wedding and I think she felt bad about that: when she was in the hospital those last few weeks, she told my mom to be sure and tell me she wished me joy.

Even when her heart was growing tired, Grandma's spirit remained strong, and is, I believe, still strong watching over our family.

I was visiting my husband's family in Wisconsin, in the car about to go to the mall, when my mom called with the news of her passing. I was fine on the phone, hung up, sat in shock for a moment... then cried.

I miss Great Grandma Young every day. Our spirits were connected and I always felt close and proud to be her great granddaughter. Even though my parents raised me to be grateful, even though I thanked Grandma for every gift, every $5 pack of McDonald's coupons, and always hugged and kissed our "hellos" and "goodbyes," I still would love one more chance to say thank you to Grandma Young.

Monster Trail Mix

 

Recognize the label? If you shop at Target you just might since Archer Farms is one of their grocery owned brands. Archer Farms is a "pretend farm." It makes the superstore corporation feel homey... or whatever.

Anyway, Target Archer Farms sells all kinds of food from different vendors. You may or may not like certain items, but I had a craving for trail mix and picked up this large jar full chocolatey peanut butter nutty goodness.

Looks good, right?

It's homemade.  Wait... what?!?! 

That's right. Yes, I had a craving for Monster Trail Mix and yes, I bought a jar from Target. But then I thought to myself: why don't I just make my own? A jar costs around $8 + tax. 

If you buy the ingredients at a grocery store that doesn't overcharge you will end up paying $12-$14 for double the amount. And if you use generic EVERYTHING you'll save even more money. Hit the sales and you'll end up getting almost quadruple.... you get the point.

Sadly, while I love the fancy meat & cheese, and produce at my grocer, they overcharge for groceries, so I ended up spending about the same as I would've for 2 jars. However, I got Reese's Chips-- which are WAY better than the ones in the Archer Farms mix.

I highly suggest you make this snack at home.

MONSTER TRAIL MIX

1 jar dry peanuts

1 bag plain M&M's

1 bag Reese's peanut butter chips

1 bag milk chocolate chips

1 box raisins

Mix together and enjoy.

Food, Glorious Food!

As I've mentioned before, my husband and I LOVE food. So much so that I'm becoming one of those people that needs to photograph every dish ordered at every meal. 

I promise I'll try to stop it. 

For our "6th year of being together" Anniversary, we ate at a local sushi joint in Glendale: Octopus. In the past we've celebrated at Cheesecake Factory because that's where our first date in Chicago took place.

Geisha Punch and a Side Salad that's incredible.

Michael and I had known each other for a year before dating. We met at Bible Study in college during my sophomore year, his freshman year. Michael went to school later in life since he was the drummer of a band signed to a label & toured right after high school. I know-- sexy.

He was quiet and serious, I was oblivious and absorbed in studies.

Miso Soup and Tempura Shrimp with jalapeno cilantro sauce.

After receiving an invite to his surprise birthday party upon entering my junior/his sophomore year, we connected and I saw the funny, playful side of Michael.

We split a Tomikawa Deluxe Entree: Chicken Teriyaki, Shrimp & Veggie Tempura, Sesame Chicken, edamame, cucumber salad, Spicy Tuna Roll, and assorted Sashimi.

After the party, Michael called me up and invited me to his apartment for coffee, to watch movies with friends, and lent me a CD of his music in the band. 

To be continued....

Another great restaurant, though a bit Hipster, is the Viet Noodle Bar in downtown Atwater. We decided a Vietnamese breakfast and coffee would hit the spot. The food is unbelievable.

Vietnamese Coffee (best on the planet) and a Rice Noodle Omelette.

Michael hung out in my dorm one afternoon, we talked, laughed, and had a great time. I thought we were good friends, but my roommate-- bright gal that she is-- insisted he liked me.

Seed. Planted.

Turmeric Fish and Rice Noodles

After Campus Crusade's Friday night service... thing, a group of us went to Michael and his roommates' place. I cannot confirm nor deny that I did a little flirting and wore a short skirt. 

He asked to get together on Sat., Oct. 29th-- but I said no. 

What? I had a Halloween party to attend!

Jackfruit Noodles with Tofu & Peanut Sauce.

I was planning a group trip to evening church on Sunday night the 30th and Michael showed up an hour early. He suggested we go get dinner. I thought that was odd since we'd be late for church...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................then I realized it was a date.

I'm not sure what came over me, but I called a friend and had her take over the field trip. Michael took me to the Cheesecake Factory at the base of the Hancock building and literally put down his menu, looked me in the eyes, and said "I like you. I want to date you. And I don't want to date anyone else."

I thought that sounded like a good idea.

Disney is taking over Star Wars: CALM DOWN

I was going to write about this then decided against it, but now I've changed my mind. This is what makes America grand: choices.

Anyway, not sure if you've heard but Disney bought Lucasfilm (or Lucas Film, I can't decide). In case you don't know what Lucasfilm is, it's George Lucas's production company. If you don't know who George Lucas is, he is one of the creators of a little known Sci-fi film saga called "Star Wars." If you don't know about Star Wars... stop reading because this blog isn't going to make much sense.

Disney says they will release three more movies in the Star Wars series (competing with Star Trek much?) related but unconnected to Episodes 4-6.  There's been a lot of whining about this whole thing, mostly people asking Disney not to ruin Star Wars.

BECAUSE GEORGE LUCAS DID SUCH A BANG UP JOB WITH EPISODES 1-3, RIGHT?!

Who can forget the lovably racist Jar Jar Binks, the stunning performance by Hayden Christensen, or such witty dialogue as "Ani, I'm so in love with you." "No, I'm so in love with you." Never mind the fact that 4-6 were ruined with extra CGI cutscenes and sparkly explosions with rings around them for God knows what reason. Need I remind you of Lucas's contribution to the Indiana Jones series in the form of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? Ugh.

*deep breath*

As you can see, the bar of expectations has been lowered almost to the floor for these films.

Another complaint is the concern that Disney will make Star Wars more for kids or more childlike.

*clears throat*

1. Pretty sure all 6 Star Wars films are family friendly. Pretty sure I remember watching them when I was kid.

2. Disney makes films for grown-ups. Ever see anything by Touchstone Pictures (Pretty Woman, Con Air, The Royal Tenenbaums, Calendar Girls)? They happen to be owned by Disney.

3. A children's Star Wars animated series (that wasn't very good) already came out in 2008-- there's no harm in another one.

4. While Disney is known for commercializing the hell out of everything they do... too late. Star Wars has made bank off action figures, costumes, collectibles, video games, etc etc for DECADES.
In terms of Disney, George Lucas already took care of that years ago when he allowed Disney to build Star Tours, a Jedi Training show for kids, the Indiana Jones stunt show, and an Indiana Jones ride. So it's business as usual over at the Disney company.

Many people are scarred from the Michael Eisner let's-make-a-sequel-to-every-classic-animated-film" reign at Disney (or as I like to call them "The Dark Days"). And to be honest, I really liked Cinderella 2 and The Little Mermaid 3: the stories were good. Hey! Don't knock it til you try it (except drugs-- don't try those).

Even after The Dark Days, Disney has released its fair share of crap-- like any major film studio-- but there has been a collection of entertaining films as well. Besides anything by Pixar, I thoroughly enjoyed The Princess and the Frog, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, POTC: The Black Pearl, and A Christmas Carol, to name a few. And you already know how much I adore the Tinker Bell films.

The final thing I want skeptics to remember is the success of the Marvel purchase. While I haven't loved every Marvel film (okay... I HATED Wolverine-- but the video game was solid), they're far better adaptations of the comic series than the DC Comics films I've seen (excluding Batman-- simmer down).  Let's not judge until we see something. Disney knows how to do adaptations and with the detailed Star Wars mythology, I think this will be a successful film venture.

Food Adventures in Atwater

Temperatures turned cold last week-- in LA terms "cold" means "the 60's"-- and while these frigid fall days cause many Southern Californians to bundle up and take shelter, Michael and I emerged from the safety of our air conditioned apartment to take long walks over to downtown Atwater Village.

To illustrate how long it's been since we visited that part of our neighborhood, we went to this brand new restaurant (at least we thought it was new) and it turned out they'd been serving the citizens of Los Angeles for at least the last 3 months. What can I say, we don't like warm weather.

That restaurant was Bon Vivant, a quaint market/cafe/restaurant with a French-inspired menu featuring impressive cuisine. I, of course, knew none of this and just thought the place looked pretty so it must be safe to eat at right?!?! Fortunately, the food is TO-DIE-FOR and, in traditional California fashion, made of fresh local ingredients. The mediocre desserts come from a shop in Culver City so I won't count them against BV.  Also, they have almond milk for every manner of latte you desire! 

Check out my stereotypical food pictures:

Smoked Duck Salad with cucumbers, mango, oranges, and a light vinaigrette.

 

Double Shot Almond Milk Caramel Latte and the Duck Egg Burger (so messy but soooo tasty)

 

The place has a cool barn feeling with incredible Halloween decor.

Since we moved to LA, I've wanted to try Indochine Vietnamese cafe conveniently located across the street from Bon Vivant. Atwater is a plethora of International Cuisine! 

Anyway, this was my first time trying Vietnamese food and I was not only impressed with the flavors, but also the price. Another excellent find.

Left: Black Thai Iced Tea which might as well be crack as it's so good. Right: Shrimp and Chicken egg rolls.

Pho Tai - beef and rice noodle soup (it's HUGE)

Pho Bo Xao-- basically it reminded me of Pad Thai. It wasn't on their normal menu, it was a special.

Finally, we headed over to Sweets for the Soul, a tiny bakery two doors down from Bon Vivant, for their legendary iced shortbread cookies. The cookies are buttery & crumbly complimented nicely with an icing that I believe (though it hasn't been confirmed) has almond extract.

While the iced cookie is worth $3.25, in my humble opinion, the rest of the goodies don't live up to the steep price tags, especially given the portion size but also the flavor. They're just not that good.

Perhaps I'm being picky because I come from a bakery family, but I still haven't found a solid bakery in LA. What's also frustrating is they require a $10 minimum on credit card purchases, so you must have cash if you want to pop in an grab a small treat. Annoying. And the customer service isn't great..... but I will forgo all of that for those cookies-- I'm HOOKED!

My pumpkin has a mustache.

I suppose I should get back to cooking... but can you blame me for dining out with these restaurants nearby?!