Let’s sit down and catch up, shall we? I’m linking up with Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date. I’m going with a cup of Starbucks Winter Blend with Collagen of course and let’s go with Chobani Peppermint Mocha Creamer. It may be a little early in the season for Peppermint Mocha, but when I can find Chobani creamer at the grocery store, I jump on it.
Over coffee I’d ask you about your Thanksgiving plans. It’s MIL’s year to host, and since she canceled, I was trying to cook up a way to salvage some sort of gathering, but with Covid raging again, I’d tell you I’m pretty much resigned to the fact that it’ll be just the four of us together this year. I’m still going to make it as special as I can, even though the Caveman does not eat turkey. I’m thinking maybe a turkey breast on the grill and he can grill whatever he wants.
Over coffee I’d tell you I’m counting down the days (15) until Thing 1 returns home for her long winter break. Despite the remote learning mumbo jumbo, she’s had a great semester, her TA gig is going well, and she’s interviewing for some pretty sweet internships for next summer. That of course means she likely won’t come home next summer though.
Over coffee I’d tell you that while I’ve been watching the Food Network while I workout for years, since my dad’s passing, I’ve become super sensitive about the shows where highly non-nutritious foods are made. Case in point: The other day, The Pioneer Woman made a meal consisting of breaded, fried shrimp with curly fries and Mexican Chocolate Sundaes. Those sundaes included 2 cups of sugar in the cake and 2 cups of sugar in the hot fudge sauce, in a recipe that serves four people. So basically a full cup of sugar (128g) per serving in the dessert alone, before we add in the sugar found in the vanilla ice cream, so add in about 14g more per serving. The American Heart Association’s guideline for daily sugar intake is 36g per day for men and 25g for women. While I well know we are all accountable to make our own choices, and nobody is twisting anyone’s arm to make Ree Drummond’s recipes, after watching my dad suffer the consequences from years of runaway blood sugar and poorly-controlled diabetes, I think at least some nutrition facts should be mentioned along with the recipe. We put warnings on liquor, drugs and cigarettes, but food can be equally addictive and dangerous. I’ll get off my soapbox now.
Over coffee I’d tell you we finished watching Away. While it wasn’t bad, it was much heavier and more emotional than I needed right now. Caveman was hell bent on finishing it though, so we did. Since then we watched Holidate. I thought it’d be a light, fun movie and it was. Now we’re finishing up Unorthodox, which is fascinating.
What would you tell me over coffee? Holiday plans? Any holiday shopping? Do you ever decide NOT to make a recipe because of it’s unhealthy ingredients?
Preach, Marcia! I deal with poor food choices all day long in my job and it’s a pediatric office. I have diagnosed a few kids with type 2 diabetes and the parents are the enablers. It’s really frustrating and I want to bang my head against the wall at the end of the day. The pandemic has only made things worse–I have several grade schoolers who gained over 50# this year…
We will be having a lonely Thanksgiving this year too. Between Lisa and my parents, we have a lot of high risk people in our family.
Watching The Queens Gambit on Netflix. So good!
You know I’m all about healthy eating (80% of the time). Unfortunately Mr. Judy is not (quite the opposite). And the hard truth is his choices effect me.
It will just be us two for Thanksgiving. If my mom can get someone to help her, we’ll do a family Zoom. Unless she’s at my sister, and both my brother and I are actively discouraging that. My sister works at Old Navy. Her daughter just moved back to NYC, and she’ll be there — and I quite sure she’s not quarantining before coming home.
We are almost finished rewatching The West Wing. It’s amazing how relevant it still is.
Hugs, Marcia. I’m sure this is going to be a tough holiday for you.
Unorthodox was great! We’re just about done How to Get Away With Murder…really great show, but a lot of dark stuff going on. Iowa, recently, has had a substantial surge of COVID, so our turkey day plans are up in the air as well.
Our Thanksgiving will be small, but that’s normal—my Mom, my son and his wife and *maybe* my SIL. My son and his wife are going to take the lead on the menu, so I’m really looking forward to that!
I’m so glad your daughter has had a good year so far! It will be nice to have her home for a while I’m sure.
Oh, thanks for the reminder about Unorthodox. I may start that this weekend.
Most of cooking has unhealthy ingredients lol.
My Mil is home from hospital and we will take out there. Just family. It makes her happy and she’s 95. I’m not judging and hope people don’t judge us.
This will end. Can’t wait until it’s a memory.
We’re not sure what we’re going to do for Thanksgiving either. Last year the family couldn’t get together on Thanksgiving so we did our big family dinner later that weekend and my husband and I did a small meal for ourselves so I feel like I have a jump start if TG ends up being just the 4 of us. We got a prepared turkey breast with stuffing from the grocery store, green bean casserole from the deli, and we made mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, and apple pie. Unorthodox was great and the books are really good as well (the real story is totally different from the show), my latest thing is the Queen’s Gambit.
I certainly don’t eat healthy all of the time, but yes there are some food personalities who I don’t follow because they really push the unhealthy food angle. I feel like it’s the difference between enjoying a glass of wine with a friend and going on an all night bar crawl.
We are still planning on hosting Thanksgiving in our garage w my parents. We will see if that actually happens or they back out. Oh yes I get so annoyed when I see recipes like that one! Who actually eats like that? I do rather enjoy taking recipes and reworking them into healthier versions just to prove that I can. I am counting the days until my kids come home too. I miss them so much!
I have been loving the Chobani coffee creamers too, especially pumpkin spice and hazelnut. I’ll have to look for the one that you mentioned.
Like your husband, I also don’t eat turkey so I usually just eat chicken. My parents still give me the side eye for not liking turkey (lol). We never travel for Thanksgiving so it’s always just the four of us (parents and sister) so our plans won’t change this year since we all live together. however, we will probably facetime with my grandma, cousins, aunts and uncles since we won’t see them that weekend (like we normally do).
128g per person just in the dessert!!!! WOW.
Yes, I fully agree with you, there should be some kind of warning attached to those sort of recipes. And there also should be a warning label on all processed products that are high in fat and sugar.
I am also watching the Queen’s Gambit. But now I have suddenly gained access to Schitt’s Creek, which I really enjoy because it’s so light and ridiculous. I love the father and son Levy-combo.
The numbers are spiking here so I’m pretty sure Thanksgiving is just going to be the 4 of us.
So glad your daughter had a great semester and will be heading home soon! I’m counting the days until my son returns!
Every other year my children usually come home for Thanksgiving. Other years we usually get together somewhere with my sister’s family. Last year it was in Scottsdale. Unfortunately, with the nujber of cases rising, my kids don’t want to travel and I understand. We will have a Thanksgiving/hubby’s birthday celebration with my one local son and his family. It ill be fun, I am sure!
Glad your daughter’sfirst semester was good and that she will be coming home soon.
I totally agree about the nutrition info for her recipes. We have no shortage of obesity, diabetes and hypertension in the ED.
I’m watching The Queen’s Gambit and Call The Midwife. Both very good.
I loved Unorthodox. Such a great show, although it was difficult to watch at times.
I love me some friend shrimp and hot fudge sundaes, but as a rare treat. And I very rarely make anything from Pioneer Woman, just because it’s so extra in all the ways.
I don’t know how Thanksgiving will go here. Everything is always a game-time decision.
No Thanksgiving here! I hope everyone can find a way. We’re not thinking about Christmas yet as we know we will have to be apart from husband’s family and not even see them afterwards – we had the day separate last year but then got together.
I make OK choices foodwise but husband is more indulgent – less so since he got his soupmaker, though!
I would have loved to have some nice holiday plans but with COVID we’re going to keep things pretty tight around here. Maybe a few side dishes and a very small turkey is all I’d want to do!
That is tough…my mom passed away a couple of years ago and I definitely felt it when I’d see a lot of unhealthy foods and wonder what-if. It is interesting how some of these cooking shows go all out without mentioning nutrition facts…I guess they figure folks like me will never attempt to actually make the food!
No real concrete plans this year for Thanksgiving (or the holidays in general, haha) — will likely be spending time with my parents though and maybe making dinner together! (This is probably the first one I’ve gotten to spend at home in a decade.)
Definitely agreed on nutrition — it’s gotten so, so out of hand here!