Hi! How’s it going? I’ll go first – I’m doing really well. I have spent the last few weeks being really present in my life. It’s exactly what I need right now.
After pausing everything, I did a “media cleanse.” There is a book The Artist’s Way from 1992 that has 12 weeks of exercises to help tap into your creativity. Week four is reading deprivation, where you don’t read anything all week long. I didn’t read the book (lol) but from what I read online about it: you get bored, sit with your thoughts, and create things that are true to you because you have no outside influences. Well, it is not 1992 and we have many other ways to intake media. A more modern version that I have seen a few people do is no reading, no TV, no social media, and no podcasts. Listening to music is 50/50, some people say yes and some say no. I tried to go as long as I could without music too because I wanted to get really bored.
I thought I was going to have a hard time with five days of no media but it was surprisingly easy. I actually loved every second of it. The last time I took a break from social media was when Myspace was phasing out and I was too young for Facebook. I didn’t have the urge to open the apps once, really. Of course, I am totally addicted again but it was great while it lasted.
The hardest part was the time after dinner when Marco and I usually watch a show together. My first thought was to go into the other room and read while he watched Survivor but I couldn’t read. One night I put noise-canceling headphones in and colored for two hours while I listened to What’s Going On and Purple Rain from start to finish. Another night we took a night walk and walked for an hour and a half with flashlights. The best night was when we did a sound bath in bed for an hour until we both fell asleep.
Want to know something incredibly bizarre? Driving in silence. What a concept! I was extremely aware of everything going on around me, which is GOOD. It made me realize how scary driving is when everyone else isn’t 100% present on the road.
Anyways the week was great and I highly recommend everyone unplug for a little. My hope going into it was that I would be able to write as much as possible but I didn’t write once. I didn’t have any urge to and I leaned into other things that interested me more. So it’s all good. Hey, my house is spotless from the hours I deep cleaned it in silence.
Let’s talk Thanksgiving! I love Thanksgiving, you know this, and I have two recipes that I wanted to send out this year. They are not traditional in any way but so so tasty.
I came up with these last year but on Thanksgiving and obviously, it was too late to share them. I kept my notes and worked on them again this year. It’s all the flavors that go into stuffing turned into a cornmeal batter and cooked in a waffle machine. Mmhm.
I’ll keep it 100 with you – they are incredibly impractical for feeding a crowd on Thanksgiving. You can make them in advance and reheat a whole batch in the oven but they will never be as good as they are crisp out of the waffle iron. They are however excellent for a small group or the next day for a leftovers breakfast/lunch situation. Just make them one day for fun, they are really delicious.
Yes, raisins. I know it sounds weird but it works. I have made this salad for a handful of people now (Shabbat dinner) and everyone is surprised by it.
Here are the pros to making this recipe on Thanksgiving:
It is served cold. You don’t have to worry about oven/stove space or timing everything perfectly. Just pull it out of the fridge and place it on the table.
You can make it hours in advance. Even the day before. Again, when dinner comes, pull it out of the fridge and place it on the table.
It’s a vegetable and you don’t get a lot of veggies on Thanksgiving.
Herbs and acid brighten up the meal. Things tend to be heavy and rich on Thanksgiving, and that’s great, but some acid and fresh herbs can help balance out the meal.
The only cooking in this recipe is blanching the green beans. Blanching is cooking a vegetable in boiling water for just a minute or two then plunging it in ice water to stop the cooking. The green beans will be cooked, bright green, and CRISP. No limp beans here.
Once you dry them off they get tossed with chopped dill and parsley, feta cheese, raisins, and a mustardy dressing. That’s it, baby. Again if you don’t make this for Thanksgiving, just make it one night for dinner. We have been eating it a bunch and are really into it.
I have a collection of other recipes from the last few years. Below you will find a little recipe index with some of my favorites. The links will take you to printable PDFs or past newsletters with all the details you need.
🚨 BUT before we get into that, I want to help you have the best, most relaxing, and tastiest Thanksgiving yet. So I am here to help and answer all of your Thanksgiving Qs. You have three ways to ask me questions this year…
The first is to download the Substack App and join our Thanksgiving Hotline Chat💬. This is a new feature from Substack where I can create a chat room for us to CHAT. It’s giving AOL vibes and I love it. Plz come join me over there!!
Second, you can leave a comment at the bottom of this post.
Third, send me an email replying to this post.
Oh, and my DM’s are always open on Instagram.
Have the most wonderful Thanksgiving with your friends and family. Please let me help you in any way I can. Most importantly report back and send some pics if you make any of my recipes. Nothing brings me more joy than hearing from you and seeing your food pics 🥹. Love you, bye!!
Xx M
Make a damn good Cheese Plate with these tips!
Pecan Pie with Gluten-Free Crust *You can use normal crust with this recipe too!
Swap turkey for chicken and make a Pot Pie! This is my GF recipe. Skip making a crust altogether and lay a sheet of puff pastry on top! Eggwash it before it is baked for a beautiful shiny crust.
Don’t forget Marco’s killer cocktail, La Moro! He developed this recipe last fall and we sipped on it all winter long. It’s made with mezcal and fresh blood orange juice. So think of a warm smoky citrus party in a glass. Cheers! 🥃