One of my favorite parts of the holidays is catching up on all the holiday shows that I grew up with like How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys and The Year Without a Santa Claus.  I mean, what would Christmas be without the Heat Miser and the Abominable Snowman?  It would be incomplete!

Last week when I was in Disneyland I received a programming guide to ABC’s 25 Days of Christmas and I was so happy because every year I can’t get my act together to find out when the shows are on.  Now, I have all that info in one handy place and I can enjoy those shows with the Tiny Dancer for the first time.  Don’t worry if you don’t have the schedule – you can get the ABC holiday programming guide online.  I can’t wait to see these shows again!

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The holidays are my favorite time of the year. It’s a chance to get together with friends and family, reflect on the year and indulge. Whether or not Santa was extra generous, I always find the best parts of the holidays in the small comforts and personal luxuries.

Since having a baby, my former metabolism-that-wouldn’t-quit has slowed down a bit but I’ve been really good about cutting out sweets and running 5 days a week. So this year, when I think of holiday comforts, I’m thinking of all the yumminess I’m going to stuff in my face. Here are my top 5 yummy holiday comforts in no particular order.

1. Hot Cocoa with Whipped Cream and Marshmallows. Not the instant kind, though that would in a pinch. I mean real coco, real milk, whipped cream and real marshmallows. Not the marshmallows that come in a plastic bag from the grocery store – marshmallows from a specialty store that are made the old-fashioned way. Hey, if I’m going to splurge, I want it on my terms!

2. Mama and Nonna’s home cooking – Going back home to NY for the holidays means one thing – my mom and grandmother’s home cooking. Holiday mainstays include my grandmother’s lasagna, my mom’s rice balls and on Christmas Eve – the feast of the 7 fishes.

3. Dessert – Holiday feasts are just paving the way for the grand finale – dessert! At my family holiday feasts dessert is a mix of American and Italian desserts. Some of my favorites are pumpkin pie, pasta fritta (fried dough you dip in cinnammon and sugar), pignolata (fried little dough balls dripping in honey and sprinkles), cannoli, apple pie, and Christmas cookies.

4. Mulled Apple Cider – The holidays aren’t just for eating –they’re for drinking too! One of my favorite ways to warm up is with a warm mug of mulled apple cider. Nothing says the holidays like the scent of mulling spices wafting through the air.

5. Chocolate – Any comfort of mine – during the holidays or not – involves chocolate. But during the holidays, we have extra special chocolates like peppermint bark & salted caramels. Yum!

Those are my favorite yummy holiday comforts. I hope your holiday season is full of yumminess and comfort!

Comfort is the perfect gift for everyone on your holiday gift list, so be sure to take advantage of Tempur-Pedic’s Buy 2, get 1 free pillow offer! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective.

Princess of the Posse has been making fun graphic tees for the ladies, but when the head mama in charge Kelly B. had tiny dancers of her own, she decided to make graphic tees for the little ladies as well. Taking her signature high quality fabrics, printing techniques and limited runs of everything P.O.P is now making “Play Clothes for Princesses”. The line is starting out with two signature styles for now with more styles coming after the holidays. You can purchase the new items online.

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I’ll be back on Monday.

xoxo
Gabriella

Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the
Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://moms.dailybuzz.com/channel/style

The holidays are coming and that means two things: gifts and holiday parties. Since I’m trying to save my pretty pennies for gifts for my family, I’m trying to get glamorous for the holiday parties on a cheap and cheerful budget. Thankfully, drugstores like Walgreens have come a long way baby and you can find any beauty product you might be looking for right in the cosmetics aisle of your local store. I recently went to Walgreens to get some inspiration for amazing party looks and came up with 5 ideas in 5 minutes. Here they are…

1. Nail It! Nails are having a moment – long gone are the days of only pink and red nail polish. You can paint your fingertips in virtually any shade of the rainbow. Just figure out your ensemble for your holiday parties and pick out a fun contrasting color – matchy matchy is no fun. When in doubt some silver or gold glitter says “holiday cheer” like no other.

2. Bat Your Eyelashes! I wish I were one of those girls who could wear false eyelashes all day every day but alas, I’m not. False lashes up the glamour factor instantly. So, for special occasions like holiday parties I like to go the extra mile and put on the lashes. Just remember that if you’re playing up your eyes, try to keep your lips and cheeks subtle.

3. Wing It! I’m a huge fan of winged eyeliner and since it’s been popular for a while now (thank you Amy Winehouse for the revival) many cosmetics companies not only offer liquid eyeliner with easy applicators, they offer an array of colors. Basic black is always pretty but you can go for green, blue or purple. This year, I’m going with gold!

4. Pucker Up! Nothing completes a look like lipstick or lip gloss. After not being so popular for many years, lipstick is making a comeback. Opaque lips, especially matte ones, are very on trend right now. I love the look of a matte red lip for the holidays (or anytime for that matter) but red lipstick is not for everyone. If you want something more subtle or with some shine, you can’t go wrong with lip gloss. From very natural to very bright, from matte to super shellacked – your lip color will complete your makeup look.

5. Pile It Up! If you look on the runwways and fashion magazines you’ll notice that hair is up. Whether it’s a high ponytail or a low side bun, up-dos are popular now. Fortunately the hairstyles that always seemed so difficult to master are getting easier with a few handy tools. I personally want to try a low side bun this holiday season – with these tools, I’m not afraid anymore!

I hope these tips inspire you to come up with amazing party looks of your own! Happy Glamorous Holidays!

Moncler has worked with Bruce Weber for the past few years on their ad campaigns and for Fall 2011, Bruce Weber created a short film split up into a series of episodes. The film “Don’t Steal the Jacket” follows the story of children and a puppy – all Moncler-clad of course. I included some Moncler.com.

I love kid’s sneakers that feature cute characters like Hello Kitty and Yo Gabba Gabba! – I’ve gotten the Tiny Dancer a few pairs. But sometimes, you want to dress your kids (or they want to dress) in something that’s more like what mama wears. Ash Footwear makes sneakers for parents – and sizes the styles all the way down to toddler sizes.

Ash Sneakers feature a familiar vulcanized silhouette but these sneakers are anything but basic. They merge a background in French luxury design with Italian leathers and craftsmanship – mix in details like buckles, zippers and chains and you have Ash sneakers. I only found out about Ash sneakers for kids – and I’m happy they come in my size too!

Yesterday I gave you my menu for a Thanksgiving dinner I’m putting together and gave you the recipes for the appetizers and drinks here.  Today, I’m going over the recipes for the turkey, gravy and cranberry sauce.  Here’s a review of the menu:

MENU
Mulled Wine
Cranberry Cocktail
—
Stuffed Mushrooms
Spinach & Feta Puffs
—
Mushroom Soup
—
Herb Roasted Turkey Breast
Dressing (fancy way of saying stuffing not made in the turkey)
Mashed Potatoes
Candied Yams
Green Beans
Gravy
Cranberry Sauce
—
Roasted Chestnuts
Apples & Clementines
—
Pumpkin Pie
Apple Pie
Coffee, Tea, Mulled Cider

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast with Pan Gravy, Inspired by Rachel Ray; Brine recipe from Alton Brown

For the Brine:
1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 1/2 teaspoons allspice berries
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped candied ginger
1 gallon heavily iced water

For the Turkey:
1 small (golf-ball sized) onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 cloves of garlic
12 fresh sage leaves
2-3 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves removed from stems
3-4 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed from stems
Large handful fresh flat-leaf parsley (about 1/2 cup, from 12 stems)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for oiling pan
1 teaspoon salt, plus more as needed
6 fresh bay leaves
4 tablespoons butter
2 boneless turkey breast halves, skin on (about 2 to 2 1/2 pounds each) (with my menu since there are many courses and sides I guestimated 5 people per breast).
Freshly ground black pepper

For the Pan Gravy:
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 to 3 cups chicken stock
Salt and pepper

The Brine (you can make the mixture ahead)
1. Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice berries, and candied ginger in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil. Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate.

2. Early on the day you’d like to eat, combine the brine, water and ice in a large stock pot. Place the turkey breasts in the brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate until you are ready to cook – at least 4-5 hours.

3.  Preheat the oven to 450º. Remove the bird from brine and rinse with cold water. Discard the brine.  Place the bird on a clean cutting board and pat dry with paper towels.

Preparing the turkey
1. Oil a roasting pan and set it aside.

2. Put the onion into the bowl of a mini food processor. Chop the onion until fine. Add the sage, parsley, rosemary, thyme, garlic, olive oil, and 1 teaspoon salt and pulse until it forms a coarse paste.

3. Put 2 of the bay leaves and the butter into a small pan and heat over medium-low heat until the butter is bubbling. Remove from the heat and set aside.

4. Put the turkey breasts on a work surface. Carefully run your fingers between the skin and the flesh from 1 end, being careful not to pull it completely off, creating a pocket. Season the turkey breasts generously with salt and pepper. Stuff half of the herb paste under the skin of each breast, and spread it evenly under the skin. Transfer the breasts to the roasting pan, and slide 2 bay leaves underneath each one. (The heat of the pan will release the bay leaf oils and flavor the breast.) Using a pastry brush, baste the breasts with half of the bay butter. Place the turkey in the oven and immediately decrease the temperature to 400 degrees F. After 20 minutes, baste the turkey breasts with the remaining butter, and roast for an additional until cooked through, and a thermometer placed in the thickest part of the breast registers 170 degrees F (about 1.5 hours total but go by your thermometer).

5. Remove from the oven, transfer to a platter, cover, and let rest for 10 minutes before carving while you make the gravy.

6. Put the roasting pan over the burner on medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the pan juices, and cook, stirring, for a few minutes. Scrape the pan to lift the bits that are stuck to the bottom. Pour in the chicken stock, bring to a simmer, and stir until thickened. Season with salt and pepper.

7. Slice the turkey breast on the diagonal, and serve with warm gravy.

Cranberry Sauce, Ali’s mom’s recipe, you can make ahead
1 packet of fresh cranberries
1 cup orange juice
1 cinnamon stick
1 piece of ginger
1 cup sugar

1. Combine all the ingredients and let it cook until berries break up.

2. Let cool and refrigerate.

Candied Yams, Inspired by Keyshawn’s Mom’s Candied Yams on the Food Network
3 pounds sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 stick sweet butter, cubed
Dash of cinnamon
Dash of Nutmeg
Dash of vanilla extract

1. Place raw potatoes in large pot, cover with sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla extract and butter and cook over medium heat until potatoes are fork tender (about 20 minutes) but not mushy. That’s it!

I hope that helps with your Thanksgiving feast! Buon Appetito!

Juice has a pretty bad rap. It’s usually disguised as being just as healthy as fruit and has lots of added sugar. For the most part, I drink water and coffee but there are days that I would love some juice but fight back the urge because of the calories and lack of fiber that you get from actually eating a fruit. As for the Tiny Dancer, she only drinks water and milk and I’ve been trying to avoid all the sugar of juice.  When I was offered a chance to try a fruit juice with no added sugar and extracts of whole grain to up the fiber, I thought why not?

Juiceology, is all-natural healthy fruity drink and is the first juice ever that contains extracts of whole grain with only 98 calories, no sugar added, and zero fat. I tried the Peach Mango and Blueberry Açaí – so tasty! Both juices were naturally sweet and tasted like the fruits on the label – not some processed version of them. I happened to have some orange juice in my fridge so I compared the labels. The orange juice had more calories, much more sodium, more carbs, more sugar and less fiber than both Juiceology juices. Score! Now I can have juice and not feel guilty about it.  I can also let The Tiny Dancer have some and know that there is no added sugar and that she’s also getting some fiber.

For now Juiceology is available in Ralphs, Bristol Farms, Famima, Gelson’s and Northgate in Southern California but distribution will be expanded soon – stay tuned!

http://www.facebook.com/PureJuiceology