Best of CHG: November 2009

As to be expected, November ’09 was a tad Thanksgiving heavy, but it was also notable for some pretty solid recipes, a gaggle of informative posts, and uncharacteristically restrained Yankee bashing. So … without further ado, here’s a third baseman on steroids.Er, I mean November’s highlights.NOVEMBER RECIPESBasic Tomato Soup Butternut Squash GnocchiGrandma’s Apple PieMaple-Ginger ApplesauceRoasted Winter Squash and KaleSlow Cooker Pork Chops, Apples, and Sweet PotatoesSourdough Sausage StuffingVegetable Lo MeinNOVEMBER ARTICLESWe asked the internet: what about Eating Healthy at Conferences? And for that matter, Wedding Beer?Whether you're a Kosher vegan or diabetic Muslim, you might have found Dietary Restrictions 101, Part I: Allergies, Diabetes, and Beyond and Dietary Restrictions 101,...

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Posted in: Links

Basic Tomato Soup: Like Sands Through the Hourglass

Today on Serious Eats: Meringue Cookies, fat-free sweets for under a buck per batch. Mama likes.When I was little, there were two kinds of sick days. The first involved contracting some hideous childhood disease, toughing out the equally traumatic remedy, and missing seminal chunks of my education. (See: third grade chicken pox, oatmeal baths, and long division. I only learned what a remainder was yesterday.)But then there were the other kind of sick days. The good ones. The ones when you’d puke once, and then never again. The ones when your parents couldn’t send you to school in good conscience, even though you felt fine thereafter. Those kind of sick days ruled.I remember Lin would pick up assignments from my teachers. Ma would stay home...

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Posted in: Soups and Stocks,Vegetarian

38 Cheap, Healthy Recipes for Thanksgiving Leftovers

This post was originally published in November 2008. Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!Every year, I suspend my healthy diet for one heralded November day. No, not Election Day, during which I’m usually too queasy to eat – but that most glorious of bird-based holidays, Thanksgiving.Then, 24 hours later, I enter an equally magical shame spiral, since I’ve just consumed enough calories to keep me alive for eight years without ever having to eat again.This year, I’m going to desperately try to avoid all that, hopefully by using at least 25 of the following 38 inexpensive, frugal leftover recipes. (Well … okay, 24.) I found them via a thorough, highly scientific search-and-paste process, not unlike previous Beef, Party Food, and Salad Dressing searches. In this case, here’s what determined a dish’s...

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Posted in: Mains,Meat and Fish,Sides,Vegetarian

Happy Thanksgiving

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What We Have in Common: An Unremittingly Warm and Fuzzy Post of Thanksgiving Squishiness

Liberals avoid fast food and love ethnic dishes.Conservatives choose fattier meals and don’t eat much fruit.While these statements may sound like stereotypes, they actually come from “How Food Preferences Vary by Political Ideology,” the results of an eight-month survey conducted by Hunch.com. Thousands of self-identified left- and right-wingers participated, answering questions about everything from pizza toppings to apple corers. And with few exceptions (hot dogs: uniters, not dividers), findings were pretty much what we’ve been conditioned to expect. Essentially, conservatives appreciate traditional, mainstream, and unhealthy foods, while liberals love them some arugula.Here’s the thing - if the survey went beyond diet soda and bacon cheeseburgers...

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Posted in: About Cheap Healthy Good

Veggie Might: Grandma’s Apple Pie

Written by the fabulous Leigh, Veggie Might is a weekly Thursday column about all things Vegetarian. It's a little early and slightly unhealthier than usual because ... well, hey ... it's Thanksgiving.This Thanksgiving, I’ll be making my first real apple pie. It’s a dessert I’ve never attempted because a) it seemed too hard, and 2) my Grandma made the best apple pie ever. But, it’s been at least 20 years since I’ve had my grandma’s apple pie, and that’s what I want for Thanksgiving dessert, so I called my mom for the recipe. My maternal grandmother, or Plain Grandma, as I called her to distinguish her from my Great-Grandmother, was not at all plain.  She was a sports fan and a lover of games, a whiz in the kitchen, and a vision in perma-crease...

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Posted in: Desserts and Snacks,Vegetarian

Dear Diary: Sourdough Sausage Stuffing

Today on Serious Eats: Sausage, Apple, and Cranberry Stuffing. Because you can never have enough stuffing. And you can never say the word “stuffing” enough times in a blog post. (Also: stuffing.)This year, in preparation for our Thanksgiving posts, I cooked and ate two 9x13 trays of stuffing, all by myself. It was grueling, tongue-bending work. But somebody had to do it. And somebody had to keep a diary of the ordeal.DAY 1Dearest Diary,Thanksgiving is nigh! Oh, such joy and contentment the holiday brings to myself and my kin! What delightful provisions shalt we partake in this annus mirabilis? I do find stuffing particularly pleasing, and a lighter, savory recipe would create much huzzah-ing amongst mine hallowed guests. Let it be done, then!...

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Posted in: Meat and Fish,Sides

Top 10 Links of the Week: 11/13/09 – 11/19/09

This week, it’s the dangers of fruit juice, a raw food experiment for the ages, and lots of stuff about this obscure eating day scheduled sometime next week. I think there are pilgrims involved? And maybe a cranberry or something? I’ve never heard of it before, so …1) New York Times: 101 Head Starts on the DayMark Bittman compiles over a hundred make-ahead recipes for Thanksgiving, once again trumping every other Turkey Day post in the blogsosphere. Polenta and cranberries? YES, PLEASE.2) Casual Kitchen: The Raw Foods Trial ArchiveDan went on a raw diet for a full week and blogged every meal of it. A lot of smoothies and avocados were involved. No one got hurt (except maybe a pineapple.) This is his story.3) LA Times: It's time fruit juice...

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Posted in: Links

Veggie Might: Thanksgiving Tips, Part II—The Sides

Penned by the effervescent Leigh, Veggie Might is a weekly Thursday column about the wide world of Vegetarianism. Last week, my CHG lovelies, we discussed hosting and main dishes for a vegetarian/vegan-friendly Thanksgiving. This week it’s all about the Side Dish. The side dish is a vegetarian’s best friend. When you’re just starting out on the veggie path, loading up on sides is an easy way to eat out or eat at someone else’s house with minimal hassle. And at Thanksgiving, let’s be honest, the side dishes are the best part of the meal.So let’s take a look at a few classic Thanksgiving sides and how easy it is to make them vegetarian or vegan—and healthier too! (Most of the recipe renovations below are vegan. You can sub dairy butter or milk...

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Posted in: Sides,Vegan,Vegetarian,Veggie Might

Cheap, Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes: 38 Dishes for a Stellar Turkey Day

Ahhh …. the Great American Day of Eating is once again upon us. And ye gods, what better way to celebrate than three-dozen of CHG’s favorite holiday-appropriate recipes? Finally, my secret, somewhat disturbing love of sweet potatoes serves a purpose: to warm the innards of others on Thanksgiving. Besides those beloved yams, there’s a gaggle of veggie dishes (with an unexpected focus on Brussels sprouts), a coupla saucy offerings, and enough dessert bettys, cobblers, and crisps to rock your face right off. Plus, as always, each recipe is inexpensive and nutritionally sound. So, without further ado ...APPLE and CRANBERRY SAUCESAll Night Apple Butter Chunky ApplesauceCranberry Sauce with Grapefruit and MintSpiced Slow Cooker ApplesauceVEGGIESGarlicky...

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Posted in: Cooking,Desserts and Snacks,Sides,Vegan,Vegetarian

100+ Thanksgiving Recipes and Links: The Only Turkey Day Post You’ll Ever Need

This was originally published in November 2008. The links have been updated for 2009.Thanksgiving is upon us, and I don’t know about you, but I’ve read approximately 40,000,000 blog posts and magazine articles dealing with next Thursday's dinner. And that’s just this morning.Yeah, Turkey Day can overwhelming, and with so many experts on the subject, sometimes it’s difficult to find information on any single aspect the holiday. And that’s where CHG comes in. What follows are more than 100 links, organized by the following subjects:Appetizers Turkey Sides Stuffing Pies & Desserts Drinks General Menu Planning Affordable Thanksgivings Healthy Thanksgivings Vegetarian Thanksgivings Seating & Tablesetting Troubleshooting Leftovers CHG RecipesWith the exception of the CHG section, each link...

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Posted in: Buying Food,Cooking,Frugality,Health