Family & Home

Last year I decided to approach New Year’s Resolutions in a different way: I would make a list of things to accomplish and to learn. I focused on just a few things that I enjoy, but seldom approach in a dedicated way: crafting, writing and cooking. My list included things I knew I could easily skate through the entire year without actually doing, unless I had something prodding me…like my pride. I printed out my list – in a big colored font nonetheless – and posted it around the house. That list lived above the sewing machine, by my desk and inside a kitchen cabinet door. 

My list looked something like this:

Dye sock yarn with Kool-Aid. Cook one new recipe a week. 52 recipes. Write more. Read more.Finish four unfinished projects. 

 

According to that old chestnut of a Christmas song, everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe help to make the season bright. That is, everybody except those of us celebrating in the Philippines, where mistletoe is a mystery and the fowl most likely to grace a holiday table is a pork-stuffed chicken.

Here, snowflakes are made of paper, brightly colored lights adorn palm, not pine, trees and Jack Frost is probably nibbling on mangoes instead of nipping at noses. Nevertheless, some of the trappings and customs of Yuletide, such as colorful light displays and the exchange of gifts and greeting cards, have been adopted in many parts of Asia. But nowhere else is it celebrated with such a fascinating combination of religious adherence, secular exuberance and multicultural touches as it is in the Philippines.

Right after Thanksgiving, I started to notice that everyone was talking about local gifts. I was too, but being a little slow on the uptake, I felt like everyone had already taken the spotlight. Then I remembered my best resource, the thing that I am most thankful for when it comes to SGT, the bread and butter...the writers. Who was I to try and suggest locally sourced gift ideas when I had a whole cache of brilliant writers brimming with ideas about all things local?

I crafted an invitation (begging really) for them to share their favorite local gift ideas...and with no further ado, here they are:

Kristin Boldon

I try to go double local if I can, by buying local items at local, independent shops. 

Something about the holidays seems to encourage an annual ritual of overeating. Maybe it’s because up here in Minnesota we’re wearing so many layers that nobody will notice the extra 10 pounds we carry over the winter while our bicycles gather dust in the garage. I’d sure hate to spend the winter solstice in the south where you get the mountains of holiday food and can't hide yourself in coats and scarves.

 

As I looked out over the bounteous spread at Thanksgiving this year, I saw all the colors of fall and winter: red, orange, yellow, brown, and white. But there was a distinct lack of green.

Oh, OK, there was a green bean dish on the table, but it was the baked one topped with fried onions, and we can all agree that it doesn't count as a green vegetable, right?

The turkey and all the starches were delicious, but they weighed heavily in my stomach. For December's holiday gatherings, I wanted to put some green on the table, to add color, vitamins, and fiber.

When I tested the first recipe, for roasted Brussels sprouts, my sprouts ended up a little more brown than green in color. I had small sprouts, and left them in a little long. If you're a more attentive roaster than I was, you'll end up with a greener dish than I did.

Food traditions make the holidays. Hosting a big family gathering has been my pleasure for many years. Whether it’s Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, the event is pretty much a collective effort, with each family member bringing a favorite appetizer, side dish or dessert – or two or three. The host is it for turkey, dressing and potatoes. In addition, my contributions typically include a large citrus salad and cranberry relish. 

In the days after preparing (or even just eating) a big Thanksgiving meal, I don't want to spend much time in the kitchen, especially on a weeknight. As I looked ahead to post-Thanksgiving meals, I found a gem in Pam Anderson's book Perfect One-Dish Dinners. (NB: This is Pam Anderson, formerly of Cook's Illustrated, not Pamela Sue Anderson, formerly of Baywatch.)

Header photo of our turkey protecting the drying laundry from flies (i.e. eating the flies that were attracted to warm clothes on a cool autumn day).

When I discovered the "What-If" Food Challenge on the Wedge Co-op's website, I had to learn more. I love the idea of testing ourselves and learning by doing. By the time I even found it, there was only one more post left so there was plenty of reading to do. I read through each post, which painstakingly documents Elizabeth Archerd's daily discoveries while living on a tight food budget.

 

When a friend of mine found a La Pavoni at a garage sale and gifted it to me on my birthday, I took some birthday cash and headed straight out to pick up some espresso swag. I had to have a burr grinder, a tamper and a frothing pitcher. Then I stared at the knock boxes and couldn't do it. I could justify everything else, but dropping another $30-$50 on a knock box seemed like an insult. I'm not sure why. I suppose I just thought I could knock out the burning hot espresso grounds into the sink, garbage, etc.