Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™

The longest year on record…

…or at least it feels that way.

It’s December, usually one of my favorite months. My birthday, the holidays, all those Christmas movies! This year I’m very nervous about Covid getting completely out of control while simultaneously happy to celebrate the bitter end of 2020.

I also wanted to follow up on the new recipes I tried out this year for Thanksgiving. I am thrilled to report I have found the recipe for the best dinner rolls I’ve ever had! One of the reasons I selected it was that it only made a dozen, and we were only 3 people. They were gone by Black Friday and no one complained about the leftovers. Unfortunately, you need a subscription to access the recipe (they are offering a 2 week free trial) and it’s called Fluffy Dinner Rolls from Cook’s Illustrated. There is a video on YouTube:

There are also people who have posted the recipe online which I feel funny about doing so I’m not, I’m just letting you know it’s out there.

I dry brined the turkey this year and it was way easier and just as good as the wet brine I’ve been doing for years. We’ve been on a Thanksgiving leftover parade for days and enjoying every minute of it. I think the last of the turkey is for dinner tonight. I really love stuffing that is made in the turkey because the flavor is incomparable. But to be safe, I’ve learned to take it out while the turkey is resting. I put it in a casserole dish, dot with butter, and finish cooking in the oven until it reaches the required temperature. The top gets all crispy and really turns this humble dish, a combination of dried sourdough bread, onions, celery, mushrooms, and butter, into something extraordinary.

For dessert, I tried something new – Marbled Pumpkin Gingersnap Tart from Deb Perelman at Smitten Kitchen. It was really good if you like pumpkin pie and cheesecake! My marbling didn’t come out as nice as the pictures on Pinterest, but I used organic pumpkin and the color just isn’t as vibrant. I made the crust with a combination of Trader Joe’s ginger snaps and cinnamon graham crackers, and it was phenomenal. Now I’m trying to think of other pies I could make in that crust. I think if everything is back to “normal” next Thanksgiving, I’ll make my usual pumpkin pie but in this crust. I couldn’t find the recipe on the Smitten Kitchen site, but again it’s all over the internet, including in this article: Marbled Pumpkin Gingersnap Tart, A Perfect Holiday Dessert

Last Thanksgiving pictures, I promise!

I had to take some vacation time or I was going to lose it, so I was off for about ten days. Ten long days. I couldn’t go anywhere or do anything, so I cooked and baked and read. Ten books or so. I should have written some reviews but I also got lazy!

I started Barack Obama’s book, A Promised Land, and I am loving it but it’s slow going. I forgot how beautifully he writes! But at 780 pages he could have used a little editing (I heard that he fought to keep every word.) For example, he starts by writing that he isn’t going to write about his community organizing days because he has already written about it, then proceeds to write about it. I am only about a third of the way through, I’ve been switching off with my usual happy stuff, and I’ll post a full review eventually.

Anyone get a good deal on Black Friday? Small business Saturday? Cyber Monday? My husband went shopping (mostly online) so I’m excited. Hanukkah comes early this year – like most Jewish holidays, it is either early or late, but never on time. Hahaha! I know people went to the mall and Best Buy and Walmart, etc. but not in the numbers they usually do, thank goodness. At least according to what they showed on the local news.

I live in Florida where our governor is a trump sycophant and he acts like he wants us all to die. I just don’t understand it. His latest moronic move was so insane I think he set a new record for Flori-duh! Check out this article:

Meet the Uber-driving, conspiracy theorist blogger who DeSantis just hired.

When Gov. Ron DeSantis needed to hire a data analyst, his staff picked a little-known Ohio sports blogger and Uber driver whose only relevant experience is spreading harmful conspiracy theories about COVID-19 on the Internet.

In his own words, Kyle Lamb has few qualifications for the job at the state’s Office of Policy and Budget, which pays $40,000 per year.

Truth is always stranger than fiction. As always, thanks for reading and stay safe!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 1st, 2020 at 9:07 AM and is filed under Ramblings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.