Hello! Let’s address the obvious…this newsletter, The Kitchen Club, and Marcella Cooking Stuff as a whole have had a facelift! I wasn’t planning on switching things over until the new year but I woke up yesterday and just said why not. I’m still playing around with everything so you might see some small changes here and there but for the most part, this is the new look. I had some help from the wonderful and talented Lizzy Joelson who designed my logo and all the fun design elements you’ll start to see popping up. Lizzy also writes a rad newsletter, Club BodyTalk, which is all about our bodies, minds, and sex. Make sure to check her out!
This is the last thing I will say about Thanksgiving and then we are moving on. You know, I felt so weird about it being just Marco and me. I deeply miss hosting and a house full of people but I have to admit we had a really wonderful day together. We worked on projects around the house (new closet install for both of us), we cooked, and we ate. I smoked my turkey in my Egg and the grilling gods were on my side all day. My Egg stayed at 250 degrees without much manipulation from me. We ate an absurd amount of cheese for lunch but that is my favorite holiday meal. Then the world got a little bit better when we experienced the cornbread stuffing waffle. I cook a lot of tasty things but these waffles fall in the category of “I can’t believe I cooked something this good.” So good that I made them again on Friday!
I also tried out cranberry relish inspired by this Epicurious article I linked last week. I forgot chives so I threw some scallions into my mashed potatoes and we thoroughly enjoyed them. I played around with a mushroom gravy. Last-minute I decided I needed some pumpkin dessert and made a garam masala pumpkin tart with a pecan crust, which was a big winner. We can’t forget the pecan pie brownies I made inspired by Melissa Clark.
With the pressure of developing and performing gone, I was able to relax and tap into my creativity. Everything I played around with was excellent and we were stuffed with food and cleaned up by 5:50 pm. Now I’m extra prepared for next year’s recipes 😉.
Last but definitely not least—Happy first night of Hanukkah! Last week I sent out my favorite Hanukkah recipes to help you get ahead of planning. Here they are again if you missed them. I’ll be hosting a Hanukkah dinner on Friday and I simply can not wait. I love Marco’s latkes more than any other!
La Moro (Marco’s Cocktail)
Making waffles is one of my favorite kitchen activities. I used to do it as a kid and now as an adult, I do it shockingly often. I also LOVE a savory waffle, like my Sour Cream & Onion Waffles. You need a waffle Iron!!
Wednesday is December 1st and we are jumping into the holidays headfirst in The Kitchen Club with a cookie recipe.
Marco and I are headed to chop down our tree this afternoon and then we will light our Hanukkah candles at sundown. Two wonderful things!
Talk to you next week, M
The Weekly Recap #77
The best of both… celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah!