Turkey Cookies!

Blind turkeys make for better confectionery treats...
that way they don't have to witness their impending fate.

Recent traditions dictate that my Thanksgiving responsibilities consist of the following:

Purchasing bread rolls and warming them up.

This year, I decided to go all Martha-Stewart-meets-Modern-Girl and add to my list by volunteering to make sweet potatoes, veggie dip and Turkey Cookies (really it's about assembling them). I will say it took the better part of two hours to crank out 13 of these bad boys and I didn't even give them eyes!

I was inspired by this post on Tammy Mitchell Photography via CraftGawker (my latest addiction).

I followed her directions. Mostly.

1 bag of candy corn (after I picked up 3 bags of on super sale after Halloween!)
1 package double stuff Oreos
1 box of Whoppers malted chocolate balls
1 bag of Reese's PB cups
1 package (although you only *need* 6-7 discs) of Wilton's Orange Candy Melts

I melted the discs per package instructions and proceeded to use it like glue...on the back of the PB cup, the bottom and front of Whopper and under the whole contraption to help it stick to the Oreo base. I used my little brush to 'paint' on the feet...most of them were lucky to have two pronged feet.

Since they're for the kids' table, I'm hoping their imperfections will go unnoticed. Although I suppose children are often the harshest critics. Good thing this was just for fun!

***
UPDATE - They were a hit! Not a single turkey was left on the plate and the sea of peanut butter w/ caramel kiss cookies were all gone, too! I can't say the same about the potatoes.  While they turned out well. I think I'll stick to desserts for next year.

Crockpot Cooking for 2.5

Husband and I have agreed that if I'm working part-time and caring for Baby the rest of the time, I will attempt to be the Good Little Indian Wife he thought he married. For those of you who know me, you know that's an insane request. I am Good, I am Little, I am Indian and I am his Wife...but that combination of words does not usually come up when anyone is describing me.  My father asked him if he knew what he was getting himself into when he asked for my hand in marriage, therefore he made an informed decision.

Now that Baby is sleeping for longer stretches and sometimes even at night, I have more time to tend to other things like vacuuming, picking up around the house, cooking and regular showers! We're trying to plan a weekly menu and divvy up the cooking duties. Tonight was my night to make a Vegetarian Crock Pot Curry. I got the recipe from Stephanie O'Dea's blog - A Year of Slow Cooking. It seemed easy enough to adapt to whatever's on hand. Somehow it turned out a little too tomato-ey, but still yummy. I added more yogurt than indicated and used V8 Hot and Spicy which could have accounted for the too much tomato sensation in my mouth. Overall, not so bad for my second attempt at crock pot cooking.

While searching for easy dinner recipes, I learned that I can make desserts like walnut brownies or even some kind of apple/pear thingy.  I'm all over that this weekend while Husband is on a No Girls Allowed Ski Trip.

Menu Meal Choices...

My mom thought of this, but we couldn't find it at the time and leave it up to Paper-Source to read my mind. I wanted to use little stamps of animals to designate meal choices for the wait staff to know what to serve my guests. It would have been a lot cuter and more 'me' than stickers that said 'lamb' and 'fish'...I don't know how this would work for all cultures as they don't include lamb/goat, BUT that's for another day. Check out the link to purchase and see scale, etc.

Tasting Results are in!

Last night, Groom, F&MOB and MOG along with Groom's sister went to our tasting at Meson Sabika in Naperville.  Groom and I already love, love, love the food at this place.  We had to choose 10 items from the lists of menus to try out.  We were torn between serving all Tapas and a mix of Tapas and Traditional.  As a group, we decided that if our reception is going to be at a Spanish Tapas restaurant, there better be some Tapas on the table.  We were most surprised by the couscous that is served with the lamb chops.  There was a strong cumin and something else flavor that was just fantastic.  Here are the winners:

Tapas

Berenjena Con Queso

Grilled eggplant with roasted red peppers, fennel & Spanish onions, asparagus spears, goat cheese, and balsamic vinaigrette.

Pollo Al Curry

Chicken curry salad with grapes & celery

Queso De Cabra 

Oven-baked goat cheese with tomato basil sauce & garlic bread.

Pincho De Solomillo

Beef tenderloin with horseradish sour cream & caramelized red onions

Entree

Tilapia Marinada

Marinated Tilapia filet served with sauteed spinach and artichoke hearts with yellow plum tomato vinaigrette & lemon butter sauce.

Lamb Chops

Grilled lamb chops served with couscous, Portobello mushrooms, an onion potato cake and drizzled with an herbed garlic wine sauce