Heather says: It’s time to make your Thanksgiving Day Dinner shopping list. I know that Thanksgiving is still two weeks away, but this will hopefully give you time to take advantage of some sales and spread the cost over two grocery runs. In many households this makes the expense a little easier to absorb. Unless …
Heather says: There’s no heavy lifting today, only some more planning. Grab your Thanksgiving Day menu from Monday and another sheet of paper or some index cards and head into the kitchen or wherever you store your serving dishes. How are you serving your meal? Will it be family style with everyone seated around the …
Dear Home Ec 101, What is the point of tenting a turkey with aluminum foil? I’ve followed along with your Countdown to Turkey Day posts, and I’ve seen you mention the technique a couple of times. I just don’t get the point. Signed, Turkey Talker Heather says: Heat is transferred by several methods when cooking: …
Heather says: Let’s make sure everyone is on the same page. We’ve found the dining room table, made a guest list (and invited them), we have made a soft menu plan, and if you’ve never even roasted a chicken that’s on the to-do list, right? Also, if you’re anything like me, you may need to …
Heather says: The Sunday Confessional here at Home Ec 101 is a chance to quit hiding our imperfections. No one is perfect, no matter what the media wants us to believe. I have a few this week. I went to bed early last night, determined to catch up on sleep. Yes, I know you can’t …
Heather says: How is your Thanksgiving preparation going? Are you staying on top of the weekly chores? Is your dining room table still clear? No? Fix that, I’ll wait. On Tuesday we talked about putting together a tentative guest list. It’s time to go invite everyone formally. I’m not talking about embossed, fancy cards, but …
Heather says: Food prices fluctuate all the time. How can the average American (sorry Canada and Europe, I don’t have a frame of reference for you) estimate what they will be spending on food from month to month? The USDA publishes a monthly food price index based on four spending levels: Thrifty, Low-Cost, Moderate, and …
Heather says: Yay! Another pen/pencil and paper exercise or maybe if you’re wired weird and serving a bunch of people it’ll be a Google spreadsheet. I’m still being teased for that, if you must know. Today’s exercise is not the final menu. Divide your sheet of paper into three columns. Label them: My ideal menu …
Heather says: Today there are three things to do. First, if you’re hosting Thanksgiving dinner it’s time to decide: who, when, and where. Sometimes work schedules just don’t agree with the holiday calendar sometimes family obligations override how we would like to celebrate. Don’t forget many people would enjoy a Thanksgiving gathering on the following …
Heather says: Thanksgiving is my favorite time of year. I’m a firm believer that we all have two families, those we are born to and those we create; Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate with both. This year, I’ll be posting: recipes, shopping lists, a break down of how to get things done in a …