Dan and I are spending Thanksgiving at home this year--our first holiday as a couple that we've actually spent alone. Usually we will spend it with family in some fashion--either immediate or extended. Therefore, in order to make it feel like Thanksgiving we decided to combine our individual traditions in order to create an emulsification of both. One of my family traditions growing up was Chex mix...not the pre-made stuff out of the bag, but the real deal. We make ours either the weekend before Thanksgiving or a few days before in order to have something to munch on during the break.
We are very picky about our Chex; my sister likes a two to one rice and corn vs. wheat ratio...I like them all so if Kristen won't be partaking I keep the one to one. Second, stick pretzels are a must...tiny twists are NOT allowed. Third, Cheerios...one must include a cup of Cheerios (I'm not sure where this started--I think it's because most everyone in our family like them and they are always in our house, so why not.) Lastly, we almost always increase the butter/seasoning mixture by at least 25%...that's just how we roll.
Chex mix is mostly lost on Dan; he likes it, but it's not a make or break for him like it is for my side of the family. I'm looking forward to watching the parade tomorrow morning, but I must say I already miss being around family...it just doesn't feel like Thanksgiving yet.
Another quirk of mine is that when I make chex...I crave chocolate chip cookies. I blame my Grandma. When we visited my grandparents over holidays grandma would always have a huge tub of chex mix and then multiple tins of cookies. My favorites were her chocolate chip, sugar and lastly, ones she called "super cookies"...I'll have to blog about those later.
One thing I've learned as I have gotten older and started baking on my own is that grandma's secret recipes are from the backs of boxes and bags...nothing against the dough boy...I just always thought there was something super secret about them. Anyhow, I enjoy making cakes and muffins etc., but cookies just aren't my thing...yet. Thus the above recipe is from Ghirardelli(which is awesome by the way...you should give it a whirl).
Remi and Lambie have become an item now. Before coming to bed he marches around the apartment searching for a good place to hide lambie for the evening. During my pre thanksgiving bonanza he decided that lambie made a pretty good pillow. Lambie is currently on the DL awaiting repair...he sprung a leak last night and I have yet to suture him up.
One thing I've learned as I have gotten older and started baking on my own is that grandma's secret recipes are from the backs of boxes and bags...nothing against the dough boy...I just always thought there was something super secret about them. Anyhow, I enjoy making cakes and muffins etc., but cookies just aren't my thing...yet. Thus the above recipe is from Ghirardelli(which is awesome by the way...you should give it a whirl).
Remi and Lambie have become an item now. Before coming to bed he marches around the apartment searching for a good place to hide lambie for the evening. During my pre thanksgiving bonanza he decided that lambie made a pretty good pillow. Lambie is currently on the DL awaiting repair...he sprung a leak last night and I have yet to suture him up. 
Like our beagle (Toby) growing up...Remi stretches out in what Dan calls the Remi Rug. His little paws are pretty darn cute.
I love that y'all spent this holiday together. John and I spent our first Thanksgiving together, away from family, because I was ginormously pregnant (you remember) and couldn't travel. We purposely said "no" to requests from friends to spend it with them, JUST so we could experience it together. We made the entire spread (ALL of it, full size - no halving recipes!), watched football and the parade. It was so much fun and now, I always look back on that Thanksgiving and think of it sooo fondly. We ate Thanksgiving dinner until Christmas. It completely transformed my "feels like Thanksgiving" mentality. I know its not your first TG together, but wasn't it so much fun?!
ReplyDeleteNote: we did the same thing for Christmas, since it was 2 days before my due date... and it was equally as memorable. I LOVE those memories. By the end of the day though, we were both so antsy and ready to "finish Christmas" with our families.