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Manon Ringuette/Dreamstime/TNS

Make-ahead cranberry coffee cake a Christmas morning winner

Entertainment / Entertaining /

At our house, and I know we're not alone, Christmas morning goes by in a flash with shredded wrapping paper and bows flying everywhere. And once the gift-giving excitement is over, everyone is hungry and ready for a festive breakfast.

Timing is everything, though. If you start making breakfast at this point, the hangries (where hungry meets ...Read more

Atep Sobarudin/Dreamstime/TNS

5 appetizer recipes for your New Year's party

Entertainment / Entertaining /

For years, our family's New Year's Eve tradition included movies, sparkling grape juice and a spread of appetizers that provided the fuel we needed to last until the Times Square Ball dropped at midnight.

Sometimes the menu included familiar favorites saved for special occasions, like nachos, pigs in a blanket or pizza rolls. Other times we'd ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Fact: Smashed potatoes are better than mashed potatoes

Entertainment / Entertaining /

What can be better than mashed potatoes, swirls of butter melting down their sides? Smashed potatoes, which reign triumphant in this kitchen. Here, you get more of the potato — the skin and bumps — and all the potato flavor. When finished in the oven, smashed potatoes emerge crusty and browned, closer to roasted or fried potatoes, yet creamy...Read more

DREAMSTIME/TNS

Chickpeas are the base for this bold, warming stew

Entertainment / Entertaining /

Lablabi, a Tunisian chickpea soup, is so warming and satisfying, I could eat it every day. During this hectic, bitter cold season, I often do.

It's classic comfort food with plenty of personality, thanks to the addition of harissa. This North African chile paste packs a punch right out of the jar. The soup also gets a boost from tangy lemon.

...Read more

Burt Johnson/Dreamstime/TNS

In the Home: Tips and tricks to hosting family for the holidays

Entertainment / Entertaining /

As it nears Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and other winter holidays, families are preparing to gather. If you’re the host family for this year, having dozens of people in your house may seem daunting. Cooking for your entire family, making sure everyone has a good time and cleaning up after can be overwhelming and tiring.

It’s hard to ...Read more

Looking for an easy holiday nosh? Try these 5 appetizers

Entertainment / Entertaining /

Holidays gatherings are among the best of the year. But because there's often so much other stuff going on at the same time — say, last minute Christmas shopping or kids home from school and suddenly underfoot — it can be a challenge to throw a party together and still feel sane.

One solution, of course, is to ask for help. The other is to ...Read more

Martin Rettenberger/Dreamstime/TNS

The best way to enjoy sweet potatoes? Make oven fries

Entertainment / Entertaining /

First off, sweet potatoes are not yams. Yams hail from Africa, are not sweet or very nutritious. Our growers created this confusion to differentiate the drier, firmer sweet potatoes from the moister varieties they promote during the holidays.

Second, sweet potatoes are for more than Thanksgiving. These members of the Morning Glory family are ...Read more

Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS

Gretchen's table: Texas-style chili

Entertainment / Entertaining /

With the holidays fast approaching, chances are you're going to have a few extra people in the house — kids home from college, grandchildren or perhaps a sibling or two. That calls for something warm and comforting bubbling on the stovetop that young and old can help themselves to when their stomachs start to grumble.

If you're lucky enough ...Read more

Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS

Gretchen's table: Acorn squash stuffed with turkey and mushrooms

Entertainment / Entertaining /

Roasted turkey with stuffing is the quintessential holiday meal, but it also can be something of a pain if you don't have a huge oven or are wary about ending up with too many leftovers.

This meal-in-one is the perfect solution for smaller appetites because it incorporates all of the wonderful fall flavors of Thanksgiving in one picturesque ...Read more

Sergii Koval/Dreamstime/TNS

Turn leftover turkey scraps into crispy carnitas

Entertainment / Entertaining /

Thanksgiving dinner is done, the turkey is stripped of leftover meat and its bones are simmering into a stock. There are plenty of hefty pieces set aside for making sandwiches, casseroles and salads. But what is the thrifty cook to do with all those tasty scraps of skin and dark meat stripped from the thighs, drumsticks and wings? Make carnitas....Read more

 

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