BeeZee

salted plum? BTW, having eaten a whole bunch of white chocolate (filled with raspberry jam) recently...the salty element sounds awesome How about thai peanut (ie sate)? could be worked in with the coconut

Generally we will make sure to go to a restaurant which isn't offering a "special" menu. One enjoyable meal was a neighborhood Italian restaurant which dimmed the lights and sprinkled the tables with rose petals for the holiday, but nothing else was changed. It was kind of fun because it was unpretentious. We generally plan on gorging on chocolates, anyhow.

Last night we had a mini-Thanksgiving redo for 4 people. 12lb turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed redskin potatoes, sugar snap peas and gravy. The turkey was the freebie I got from the supermarket after Thanksgiving. It cooked up perfectly, must be because of the smaller size. Saved the carcass to make soup, and leftovers will be enjoyed tonight.

Ann_T, that is a spectacular photo. Like artwork.

when the hoummus gets kind of stale, my husband likes to eat it on flatbread topped with salsa. TJ's artichoke and red pepper "tapenade" makes a fine topper, also (and the flavor profile meshes better in my opinion). Plus it adds a bit more oil.

NJ Monthly Magazine just ran this article online today: http://njmonthly.com/blogs/soup-to-nuts/2015/1/12/a-better-school-lunch-made-by-moms.html?utm_source=New+Jersey+Monthly&utm_campaign=1f8dbf757b-Side_Dish_issue286&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_206acb9213-1f8dbf757b-72348969&ct=t(Side_Dish_Issue_286) A Mom in Northern New Jersey decided to start a business making healthier lunches available by subscription.

dark chocolate mini tart shells with white chocolate mousse

I got a selection of interesting teas from Teavana, various seasoning blends and flavored salts, and blood orange infused olive oil which should make a nice salad dressing.

after finishing the container of salted caramel gelato, I'll give it thumbs up. Not really "true" gelato since it has egg yolks, but it kept quite well in the freezer for 2 weeks as I worked my way through it. Unlike other TJ's products, I agree with the stated 8 servings per container.

I make turkey (only) meatloaf and keep it moist by adding cooked, finely chopped mushrooms and onions to the meat.

well, after buyer's remorse for picking up 2 pies (apple and blueberry crumb) for what is now going to be dinner for 6...tradition for my family seems to be an excess of desserts.

Taco salad sans tortilla bowl (so it actually retains some healthy qualities) - chopped romaine, top with a drizzle of buttermilk ranch type dressing, cooked black beans, chopped up fajita seasoned chicken, pico de gallo (phooey on winter tomatoes), corn salsa, and a big spoonful of guac or diced avocadoes. Squirt lime all over the top.

I found something similar to what Crepes mentions...I had slightly elevated trigylcerides and cholesterol (my diet is generally low fat, primarily vegetarian, but I used to eat a lot of simple carbs) and by focusing on adding fiber and watching the refined sugars/simple carbs I lowered my total cholesterol by 25 points.

I don't think my parents forced us to finish everything on our plate, at a certain point where you are sitting there with congealed bits that you obviously are not going to eat...they would just release us from the table. My sister went through a stretch where she didn't like a lot of vegetables (ironically, she was vegetarian for much of her young adult life...) so my parents allowed her to eat pickled beets as an alternate. Nobody else ate them, just kept a glass jar in the fridge. I always liked veggies, except maybe lima beans. Mom made one meal for the family (meat, veg, starch). That's probably one thing that got drilled into me, meat/veg/starch. When I make a meal that is just meat/veg, I feel like I did something "wrong" or that the meal is incomplete. Although I'm perfectly fine just eating veg/starch as I do most of the time now. Unrelated to food, but related to the table...when I was mad at my sister and it was my turn to set the table, I'd lick her plate before setting it down when nobody was looking!

Co-worker gave me some green tomatoes and little eggplants he picked before they got killed by frost...so I made eggplant and chickpea curry. Also has some chard which I needed to use up. Color not too attractive, but tasty.

"Best" is subjective. I live in NJ and in fact could walk to the named "best" pizza joint, DeLorenzo's. It is excellent thin crust pizza. But if you like a thicker/chewier crust, you wouldn't agree. So how can they say that a specific style/type is superior?

Huiray, those red carrots are just lovely...do they fade in color when cooked? I'd imagine them to be on the sweeter side when raw?

Have a cold, so reheated leftover turkey chili retrieved from freezer depths...didn't look like enough so also cooked some lentils to add to it, threw in a small can of fire roasted tomatoes, and made farro to serve with instead of brown rice. Couldn't taste much, but the burn at the back of the throat felt good

Well, if you set aside the usual suspects (turkey, stuffing, potatoes, gravy) the one non-negotiable for my husband is jellied cranberry sauce straight out of the can. He pouts if I suggest skipping it in favor of homemade. So we usually have both.

they sell precooked rice cups that you just microwave to heat up, don't remember if it was Minute brand or Uncle Ben's, I have used them at work for lunch, quite acceptable. A little pricey, of course, you pay for the convenience, I only buy them if on sale.

I had some of those Thomcords this summer, don't know if it was the bunch I had but they were kind of unpleasantly soft textured. Very sweet, though.

stuffed cabbage (or other veg if he's adverse to cabbage)...cabbage rolls in sauce freeze great, built in portioning, and easy to reheat. You mentioned freezing twice baked potatoes and they actually do reheat OK, I've done it.

Paula, are these typically eaten as a snack or breakfast item? They sound like a delicious type of coconut crepe (but thicker)!

Anna, I like how the design of the plate looks like a sunburst "featuring" the tomato toast!

I made poached pears and saffron was part of the poaching liquid, that was a pretty tasty one and gave the pears a nice golden hue. Looked good with vanilla ice cream.