Dear Food Network: Thanksgiving Warms My DVR

It's beginning to look a lot like holiday, which means I'm on the verge of lifting the holiday movie ban for the season and my holiday TV staples are emerging from their year-long hiatus to rejoin my DVR. Though not the focus of this article, can we take a moment for the Thanksgiving Day Parade? Seriously, no matter how old I get, that darn thing never gets old in my book.

Always a sap for anything holiday, you can imagine my excitement over not only holiday-themed television, but holiday food-themed television. This week, my obsession with holiday TV ramps up with Dear Food Network: Thanksgiving. Airing each night this week at 9pm on Food Network*,  the celebrity chefs take viewer questions regarding their past Thanksgiving Day disasters and beg for help in making this year's Turkey Day table one for the record books. Not sure if it's my undying love for holiday time or the fact that the chefs are dumbing it down for the commoner, but Dear Food Network: [insert any holiday here] is a staple on my holiday TV schedule. And much to Shaun's dismay, yup I watch it every night that it airs. With recipes like Pear Cranberry Pie, Sausage Cornbread Stuffing, and Cinnamon Apple Cranberry Sauce, how could I not?

Though in more recent times, Food Network has brought on some 'chefs' who aren't exactly chefs, but just people who like to cook and are veritable unknowns in the culinary world. Those-who-shall-not-be-named (you know who I mean) seem to eat up many of the time slots allotted for actual cooking, rather than the travelesque or challenge cooking shows. Call me old-fashioned but one of my favorite weekend activities is waking up to Paula Deen whipping up some butter-soaked anything. During Dear Food Network: Thanksgiving, you can expect appearances by some of my own personal favorites including Bobby Flay, Giada DeLaurentis, Ina Garten, Alton Brown and Tyler Florence.

Am I the only one slightly obsessed with holiday television? Food Network? The Thanksgiving Day Parade for that matter? Are there any FN pundits to whom you feel a particular liking? Talk back in the comments, and happy food watching!

*Check local listings. I'm an East Coast gal, but I realize that not all of my fabulous readers are East Coasters!

Start Spreading the Butter...Pumpkin Butter

Just when I thought my love of pumpkin had come to total fruition with my Ginger Snap Crusted Pumpkin Pie, I dug up this article from Smitten Kitchen. The idea of making my own pumpkin butter had never occurred to me, but after seeing SK's beautiful photos, I could almost smell the simmering fall spices that comprise this fabulous spread. Sure I could head out to Williams Sonoma and snap up this little 13 oz jar of deliciousness for $9.95, but really? It's pumpkin butter. And by making my own I have enough for a small army packed away in my fridge.

Less like actual butter and more like a jam or spread, pumpkin butter is pretty fabulous on just about anything...toast, breads, biscuits, by the heaping spoonful, and I've heard it's pretty fabulous swirled into some vanilla yogurt (the latter is yet to be personally tested). And the very, very best part? It couldn't be easier to make.
Initially adapted from Allrecipes.com, check out SK's recipe along with (of course) my own personal changes.

Pumpkin Butter
Adapted from AllRecipes
1 (29 ounce) can pumpkin puree, approx. 3 1/2 cups (I used 2 15oz cans)
3/4 cup apple juice (I used more like 1 full cup of the stuff)
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (Due to the pungent nature of cloves, I used only 1/4 tsp)
1 1/3 cups brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Juice of half a lemon (I left this out...mainly because when I got all my ingredients out and ready I realized that (gasp!) my fruit drawer had no lemons to speak of)

1. Combine pumpkin, apple juice, spices, and sugar in a large saucepan; stir well. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until thickened. Stir frequently. Adjust spices to taste. If you are in possession of lemon, stir it in to taste.
2. Once cool, pumpkin butter can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge. Though the original recipe calls for actual 'canning' of the pumpkin butter, apparently this is highly frowned upon by government agencies. Not wanting to increase my risk for cancer, nor do I feel the need to learn anything about canning, I'm going with basic storage in the refrigerator.

So what do you think? Pumpkiny enough for you? Have any of you tried store-bought pumpkin butter - or any other butters for that matter - that've rocked your autumn world?

Tales from the Tailgate

On Sunday, I attended my very first Giants game. After years (and years) of attending Jets games with my Jets-fan husband, I finally got to cheer on my team from lower tier seats at Giants stadium, as opposed to from my comfy couch. And of course no football experience would be complete without a proper tailgate. For my first Giants game, we went all out. Here's the menu:

1 six pack Miller Lite
2 bottles water
2 cans diet orange Fanta
2 Yurgers (see recipe below)
2 Nathan's hot dogs
1 bag potato chips
1 bag Tostitos
1 container onion dip
1 container chicken salad spread
Condiments such as ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce
Before we get to the goods, can we take a moment for getting up close and personal with some of my favorite offense? (Though no Brandon Jacobs in this shot...)

Getting ready for the snap...Eli, Smith, Boss, Bradshaw

For the type of tailgate we designed, it required some help from our friends. And by friends I mean fancy tailgating appliances. We learned the hard way that when grilling in a windy parking lot, the charcoal chimney is a bonafide necessity. This little baby was a gift from my father-in-law and since we've added this to our tailgating repetoire, gettin' the grilling done has gone a lot more smoothly. Isn't she pretty? While I'm not sure where ours is from, you can find them on Amazon or at Target, Lowe's, Home Depot.

Of course, what's the point of the charcoal chimney without it's couterpart...the grill itself. Not sure how much tailgating we'd actually do this season, we snapped up this little guy at Target for a mere $29.99. Though a bit low to the ground, this little grill has been the perfect cooking tool for steaks, burgers, and dogs alike, and it's inexpensive to boot. Being as it's made it through at least 4 tailgates this season and still going strong, we've already gotten our money's worth.
Chimney + baby grill = a match made in tailgating heaven, don't you think?

Though I always try to take the reigns when it comes to cooking (because I love it so much), I leave the grilling to my very own personal Grill Master, Shaun.

The finished product. A perfectly cooked doggie with my favorite combo of mustard and ketchup, and Shaun's recreation of the Yurger - apparently a tailgating favorite created by none other than a fellow Giants fan. Though he altered the recipe a bit (no veal for this lady) the Yurgers were soft, juicy and basically the perfect tailgate companion. Check out his alterations below.

And of course no grill or burger would be complete without the perfect barbeque sauce. Though we've tried a few, our favorite thus far is the Olde Cape Cod Black Angus BBQ & Grilling Sauce. A perfect combo of smokiness, savory, and sweetness, this bbq sauce is a must. And no tailgate would be complete without my brandy new Giants t-shirt jersey featuring number 27, Brandon Jacobs.

So that's the tale of my first Giants tailgate. I guess I should mention the actual game while I'm at it. While the game was so exciting and we had a gorgeous night outside, unfortunately the Giants lost in the last few minutes of the game. Huge disappointment for this Giants fan (especially since they've been on a seriously downward spiral in the losing department). But the experience itself? Amazing. So much fun. I highly recommend it.

 Eli plotting his throw...Smith ramping up for a reception!

Shaun's Yurgers recipe:
1 lb ground sirloin
Shredded cheddar cheese (eyeball it)
Minced onion to taste
Chili powder to taste (this gives burger the flavor)
Salt/pepper to taste
Olde Cape Cod Black Angus BBQ sauce

Mix altogether, adding the BBQ sauce a little at a time so the mixture isn't too wet. Ok, it's not an exact science and the measurements are vague. But they came out fabulously! Just add the ingredients to your own taste (my favorite kind of recipe)! For the original, go here.