Thanksgiving Tips 2024

My People! Rula is here for you! As always, my surefire tips will make sure your dinner goes off without a hitch:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but isn't it comforting to know that some things never change?

You can also clicky click on Thanksgiving or Fall in the links over there on the left for more great seasonal and holiday recipe ideas!

Stacy's been living on Lon Guyland since 2014 — where have you been? And Mary-Charlotte has long since retired from radio, so there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. But you can still relive their glory days — there are eight years of Radio Café shows in the archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides TikTok dance routines, after all!

Well, my little Green Beans, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I've got spices to rub! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2023

My People! Rula is here for you! As always, my surefire tips will make sure your dinner goes off without a hitch:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but isn't it comforting to know that some things never change?

Stacy's been back on Long Island since 2014 — where have you been? And Mary-Charlotte has long since retired from radio, so there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. But you can still relive their glory days — there are eight years of Radio Café shows in the archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides TikTok dance routines, after all!

Well, my little Meat Thermometers, it's back to Brooklyn for me — that gravy won't make itself! Ciao!

We’re back!

Hi everyone! Thanks for your patience while we sorted out a few things behind the scenes at MoW. Even though we missed posting this year's link to

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

we hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and please stay tuned for upcoming holiday treats!

xoxo
Monica

Thanksgiving Tips 2021

My People! Rula is here for you! If you can't decide whether to hole up this Thanksgiving with the pool boy or invite over all your fully vaccinted friends, my surefire tips will make sure your dinner goes off without a hitch:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but with a certain virus still! hanging around, it's comforting to know that some things never change.

Stacy's sheltering in place on Long Island, and Mary-Charlotte has long since retired from radio, so there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. But you can still relive their glory days — there are eight years of Radio Café shows in the archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides cat videos, after all!

Well, my little Cranberries it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have a bird to baste! Take care, stay safe, and get vaccinated! I expect to see all of you back here next year! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2020

My People! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, this crazy year has been all kinds of stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but in These Unprecendented Times, it's comforting that some things never change.

Stacy's sheltering in place on Long Island, and Mary-Charlotte has long since retired from radio, so there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. But you can still relive their glory days — there are eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides herbal COVID cures after all!

Well, my little Mashed Potatoes, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have to teach the pool boy how to Zoom! Take care, stay safe, and stay home! I expect to see all of you back here next year! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2019

My people! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I link to every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

So, since Stacy's all set up at her new digs on Long Island, and Mary-Charlotte has long since retired from radio, there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. What can you do? Time seems to only stop for me. But fret not! There are still! eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides Russian election interference!

Also! You can check out all the other Thanksgiving posts here at Mouth of Wonder by clicking on "Thanksgiving" in that big word jumble down there on the left. I know, it says "Browse by Ingredient" and Thanksgiving isn't an ingredient! Just roll with it, darlings!

Well, my little Candied Yams, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have to go whip my cream! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2018

My people! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

So, since Stacy's all set up at her new digs on Long Island, and Mary-Charlotte has retired from radio, there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. What can I say? Time marches on. But don't despair! There are still! eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides swiping right on the hunky guys on Tinder!

Also! You can check out all the other Thanksgiving posts here at Mouth of Wonder by clicking on "Thanksgiving" in that big word jumble down there on the left. I know, it says "Browse by Ingredient" and Thanksgiving isn't an ingredient! Just roll with it, sweetie!

Well, my little Green Beans, it's back to Brooklyn for me — you know I'm all about the baste! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2017

My people! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

So, since Stacy's all set up at her new digs on Long Island, and Mary-Charlotte has retired from radio, there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. What can I say? Time marches on. But don't despair! There are eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides cat videos, after all!

Also! You can check out all the other Thanksgiving posts here at Mouth of Wonder by clicking on "Thanksgiving" in that big word jumble down there on the left. It says "Browse by Ingredient" but Thanksgiving isn't an ingredient! What is this world coming to?

Well, my little Brussels Sprouts, it's back to Brooklyn for me — my butter is melting! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2016

My People! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

So, since Stacy's all set up at her new digs on Long Island, and Mary-Charlotte has retired from radio, there will be no more day-before-Thanksgiving Radio Café appearances. What can I say? Time marches on. But don't despair! There are eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. I guess the internet is good for something besides cat videos after all!

Well, my little Cranberries, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have so many things to mash! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2015

My People! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Since she's moved back to New York, New York, Stacy will not be on the Radio Café with Mary-Charlotte this year. Those of you who are used to hearing her on KSFR the morning before Thanksgiving will just have to content yourselves with listening to the eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. Maybe next year they can work out some sort of wireless, satellite hookup or something. Technology — how do I even?

Well, my little Sweet Potatoes, it's back to Brooklyn for me — my gravy boat has come in! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2014

Darlings! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Now since she's moved back to New York New York, Stacy will not be on the Radio Café with Mary-Charlotte this year. Those of you who are used to hearing her on KSFR the morning before Thanksgiving will just have to content yourselves with listening to the eight years of Radio Café podcast archives that feature Stacy's Thanksgiving tips. Maybe next year they can work out some sort of high-tech, satellite hookup or something. It's beyond me.

Well, my little Sweet Potatoes, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have some cranberries to grind! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2013

My people! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Also, don't forget to catch Stacy's Thanksgiving tips the day before Thanksgiving, on the Santa Fe Radio Café with that darling Mary-Charlotte! That's at 8:30-ish am Mountain time (she'll be on after MC's annual playing of the entire, 23-minute-long, Arlo Guthrie classic "Alice's Restaurant"), on KSFR, 101.1 FM. And if you miss it (shame on you!), you can listen to the podcast on the Radio Café site!

Well, my little Giblets, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I need to pick up some sausage for my stuffing! Ciao!

Twelve High Altitude Rules to Break

Baking tips from the top
When Susan Purdy and I were testing the recipes for Pie in the Sky (the best high-altitude baking book on the market ... she says, modestly) we tried to come up with a universal strategy to solve all our baking problems. As time and testing went on and on and on we realized this was not possible. But we did find that some widely accepted tips were not true.

Susan writes:

If you research the subject of high altitude baking, you will find ubiquitous tips and lists of ‘rules’—the do’s and don’t’s for success. Whether the sources are cookbooks, university extension service pamphlets, websites, or neighbors, these admonitions seem to come from the combined wisdom of anecdotal experience, computer calculations extrapolating tests from one altitude (usually 5,000 feet) to another, and (in the case of the university labs) scientific calculations tested in pressurized laboratories that mimic changes in elevation and atmospheric pressure. With few exceptions, these ‘rules’ have not really been systematically tested in mountain-top, home kitchens. When I set out to do just that, these guidelines were all I had to go by. I was in for a big surprise when I discovered that many of the ‘rules’ were wrong.

1. Always substitute extra large eggs in sea level recipes First recorded by covered-wagon cooks traveling to uncharted western mountain territories, the ubiquitous ‘large egg’ substitution is still a popular recommendation. It does work some of the time because many high altitude recipes need more liquid and more protein. Nevertheless, the baker needs to consider the properties of the egg: the yolk is a fat, the white is protein (which has drying properties and adds strength) and the total egg adds 3 tablespoons of liquid. I believe the ‘egg solution’ was popular years ago when it was often the only adjustment made. The recipes in Pie in the Sky were developed for ‘large’ eggs. If you have a new recipe and no other changes in mind, you can start the “altituding” process by adding another egg or substituting one extra-large egg for a medium or large egg.
2. At higher altitudes, use smaller pans
   Wrong. See 3 below. If anything, you would need a larger pan.
3. Always reduce temperature 25° F when using a glass baking dish Wrong. I always bake pies in glass pie plates and never reduce temperature. At altitude, it is an advantage to get greater heat into the baked product.
4. Batter will overflow in cake pans Wrong some of the time. At high altitude, reduced air pressure contributes to rapid expansion of gases, so sea level leavening can be too expansive. In addition, liquids evaporate more quickly at high altitude; evaporation leaves excess concentrations of sugar in a batter or filling which can boils up and easily overflow. Carefully developed recipes prevent these situations. Overflow also happens if you put too much batter in a too-small pan or over-fill the pan; you need to leave rising room. If worried, put a sheet of foil on the oven floor to catch spills. Again, carefully developed recipes account for this and call for the correct size pan. I do not recommend using larger pans because batter can be too thin, causing it to over-bake.
5. Always raise oven temperature 25 degrees No. This doesn’t always work, and in fact it is often better to leave the temperature the same or reduce it, but increase baking time. Of course, it depends upon what you are baking. Raising heat 25 degrees to bake cookies and cakes works very well at 5,000 feet, but at 7,000 and 10,000 may be too hot, crusting over the top of a cake before the inside bakes through. It is often better to use moderate (350° F) or slow (325 °F) heat and add baking time or change position of rack in oven (lower third is hotter than center).
6. Always cut leavening as altitude increases Wrong. Up to and including 5,000 feet, leavening often stays the same. Leavening adjustments are critical. You need carefully balanced proportions of baking powder and baking soda to affect a good rise. Bread bakers are also told to cut the amount of yeast at high altitude. This is not always a good idea, and is not necessary in any case until you get over 5,000 feet. It is better to moderate temperature, keep dough cooler so it takes longer to rise, and punch it down for another rise.
7. Use boxed mixes, you can count on their high altitude directions to work every time Boxed mixes are developed to work to about 6,500 feet in altitude, not higher.
8. Cut back fat in rich cakes and cookies at high elevations Rarely necessary. The theory is that fat, which coats protein, or gluten, strands in flour, weakens it. This makes cakes tender (a good thing) but at high elevations, liquids evaporate quickly, leaving higher concentrations of fat as well as sugar (not so good), which weaken a cake’s cell structure and can cause it to collapse. Most of the time, you can strengthen a batter by adding flour and counter evaporation with extra liquid, so you don’t have to cut fat.
9. Cookies recipes don’t need adjustment at high altitude Sometimes. Many sea level cookies work without change, but most are improved with slight adjustments. At altitude, cookies tend to over-spread as they bake. The more they spread, the thinner and more crisp (or tough) they get. Also, because liquids evaporate faster at high altitude, the baking dough loses moisture, leaving a high concentration of sugar and fat that can change the texture. To remedy these conditions and reduce spreading, you can strengthen the batter by adding flour and reducing sugar, leavening, and very occasionally, fat. You can also add little solid shortening (which has a higher melting point) along with butter (which melts near body temperature) to help cookies hold their shape. To counter the evaporation, you add a little liquid. Sometimes you can add a little corn syrup or honey as well, to improve color and texture, and add moisture. Raising baking temperatures about 25 degrees often helps cookies rise faster, so they set before they spread and/or dry out, but you have to experiment to be sure the higher temperature doesn’t cause over-browning instead.
10. Pie crusts are generally not affected by high altitude Not true. They are affected, but not as much as cakes. At 5,000 feet and above, especially in dry mountain air, pastry dough often require more liquid to become pliable enough to shape and to bake without cracking or toughening.
11. Pie fillings are not affected by high altitude Not true. For fruit tarts and crumb-topped pies, baking times and techniques are about the same as at sea level as long as the fruit is not too hard and the altitude is not too high. However, it takes longer for juicy pies to thicken because it takes more time for the juice to come to a boil and gelatinize the starch (flour, cornstarch, or tapioca); these pies often take longer to bake. At 7,000 feet and above, it takes much longer to bake through hard, crisp fruit. For example, if you sandwich a high mound of Granny Smith apple slices between two crusts, the top will often burn before the apples inside are baked. There are two solutions: change the variety of apples or precook the fruit on the stove. And furthermore at 7,000 feet and above, food tastes more bland than at sea level; you often need to increase spices or seasonings in your pies to brighten flavors.
12. Cut out all baking soda at high altitude No. Baking soda (which has four times the leavening power of baking powder) has two functions: it neutralizes acidity, lowering the pH of a batter; while also working with acid ingredients to make carbon dioxide, a leavening. Baking soda must be in balance with baking powder for high altitude products to rise well. It is true that the higher the acidity of a batter or dough, the more quickly it will set in the eat of the oven, but you cannot remove soda to retain acidity without replacing it with baking powder or another leavening.

What are you favorite high-altitude recipes?

How to find a good recipe on the internet

Recipe searching tips
I am constantly looking up new recipes to meet the needs of my clients and also to keep me interested and keep me learning new things. Mostly, I wander the internet in search of info. When I tell people that's how I roll, some home chefs are really surprised I trust the internet. But if you know how to interpret the info and what to look for, you can find some great stuff! Here are some of my tips, 10 of them to be exact, to finding recipes that work.

1. If a recipe ingredient list has more then 3 canned products in it, keep looking. I am especially weary of Campbell’s cream of mushroom soup.
   
2. If a recipe suggests margarine, Miracle Whip®™ or Velveeta®™ or if the cake recipe starts with a boxed cake mix, keep looking.
   
3. If a recipe states you need to buy some over-exposed, overly-commercial, pseudo-famous, TV chef’s personal spice blend or use his custom-made equipment, keep looking.
   
4. Only use recipes from sites where the recipes are actually tested and home chefs can post their comments, good or bad.
   
5. Identify the chefs you can trust and go to their websites directly. Some folks I trust: Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa); Martha "The Convict" Stewart; Nigella Lawson; Alton Brown (though his procedures are often too anal retentive for me); the queen herself, Julia Child; David Lebovitz; Susan Purdy; Amanada Hesser; Marcella Hazan; Paula Wolfert; and of course, Mark Bittman.
   
6. If a recipe is full of spelling errors and the food is measured using coffee cups and homey terms like a smidge or titch, keep looking.
   
7. If you're looking for ethnic authentic recipes, go to sites from the country you are looking up, not general massive archives.
   
8. Avoid the websites with 200 versions of the same items, obviously they have no editor or webmaster and they waste lots of your time. Instead try magazine archives: Epicurious; Gourmet; Food and Wine; Saveur; Fine Cooking, Bon Appétit. They will be edited and tested.
   
9. Remember you have no guarantee a recipe, especially a baking recipe, will work. Don't take it personally, it might take a few tries to get it right, especially at this altitude.
   
10. I like to download 3 or 4 different version of a recipe and then combine them to achieve the best possible flavors and most efficient procedure.
    

Thanksgiving Tips 2012

My people! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Also, don't forget to catch Stacy's Thanksgiving tips the day before Thanksgiving, on the Santa Fe Radio Café with that sweetheart Mary-Charlotte! That's at 8:30-ish am Mountain time (she'll be on after MC's annual playing of the entire, 23-minute-long, Arlo Guthrie classic "Alice's Restaurant"), on KSFR, 101.1 FM. And if you miss it (shame on you!), you can listen to the podcast on the Radio Café site!

Well, my little Giblets, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have many things to stuff! Ciao!

Top Ten Tips to save time in the kitchen

1. Spend some money on a good knife: Buy a good sharpening steel and get good at using it, and have your knife professionally sharpened every 6 months. Also only use this good expensive knife on proper cutting surfaces like wood or plastic, not granite!
2. A good chef is very organized: I always work from shopping and prep lists.
3. Mise en place: This is how a restaurant kitchen can make so many different items so fast at the same time. This means get all your cutting and prepping done ahead of time whenever possible. This is extremely important in Asian cuisines.
4. The freezer is your friend: Any chef worth anything always knows what's in the freezer and can throw a meal together in minutes when necessary. It's very important that everything be well-wrapped, labeled, and dated. Just because it's frozen doesn't make it immortal. Things to keep in your freezer: frozen beef and chicken stock; duck and goose fat; a few rolls of slice-and-bake cookie dough; a few rolls of savory cracker dough; a few pie crusts; some phyllo dough; frozen fresh herbs; pesto; fruit purees; chopped lemongrass.
5. Chopped garlic: If it's chopped and in a little olive oil in your fridge you will use it. Don't do more then you can use in a week as it will start to ferment. It makes adding garlic to everything so easy!
6. Flavor boosters — extracts and oils: These are great ways to add an intense flavor to foods both sweet and savory and will last for a long time. Orange and lemon oil, vanilla extract, almond extract, maple extract, tangerine oil, homemade infused oils of basil, mint, rosemary, lemongrass. You can also make infused syrups. Orange juice concentrate is really handy for sauces, aiolis, and vinaigrettes.
7. Herbs de Provence: If you have one herb, this is a great mixture to work with. The original mix from southern France contains savory, thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon, and lavender flowers. But there is much variation in the blend.
8. When in doubt, put it in pastry! Old chicken and over cooked vegetables can be combined with a rich delicious cream sauce and a fantastic chicken pot pie is born. Overripe fruit can be wrapped in phyllo to make a delicious, flaky, last-minute strudel.
9. Less is more: If you don't have time to fuss, just go out and buy 3 exotic expensive ingredients and serve them together beautifully arranged on a large platter.
10. A professional kitchen should have no waste: Everything can become a dip or soup (or a staff meal) if you know how to creatively combine leftovers. And if it's left over and you don't know what to do with it, freeze it for later.

Thanksgiving Tips 2011

My People! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Also, don't forget to catch Stacy's Thanksgiving tips the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, on the Santa Fe Radio Café with that sweetheart Mary-Charlotte! That's at 8:00 am, Mountain time, on KSFR, 101.1 FM. And if you miss it (shame on you!), you can listen to the podcast on the Radio Café site!

Well, my little Giblets, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have to recalibrate my meat thermometer! Ciao!

Thanksgiving Tips 2010

Darlings! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Also, don't forget to catch Stacy's Thanksgiving tips the day before Thanksgiving, on the Santa Fe Radio Café with that sweetheart Mary-Charlotte! That's at 8:00 am, Mountain time, on KSFR, 101.1 FM. And if you miss it (shame on you!), you can listen to the podcast on the Radio Café site!

Well, my little Giblets, it's back to Brooklyn for me — I have some herbs to rub! Ciao!

Guest Kathy Yurista: Gardening Tips!

Special Guest
Its finally time to plant, so how about some words of wisdom from Kathy Yurista, the resident gardener at Real Food nation? Here are some tips she shared on the show.

Her favorite seed companies:
Territorial Seed
Abundant Life Seed Company
Seeds of Change
Native Seeds
Seed Savers Exchange
Peter's Seed and Research (closed in June 2010!)
Thyme Garden Herb Company
John Scheepers Kitchen Garden Seeds

Favorite cookbooks to get recipes for her organic produce:
The Moosewood Cookbook (Kathy loves the spinach and Ricotta Pie)
The Ayurvedic Cookbook by Amadea Morningstar

Tips for beginners:

• Try growing things with big seeds. Big seeds have a better success rate!
• There is no advantage to planting early. The soil needs to be warm for most things to grow.
• And the most important thing I learned is even for an experienced gardener like Kathy, it's still trial and error and always a learning experience.

Want to ask Kathy a question? call 505-699-5605

Thanksgiving Tips 2009

Darlings! Rula is here for you! I know, I know, for some of you, cooking for Thanksgiving can be very stressful. That's why you should go check out my surefire hints to improve the evening's meal:

❯❯❯ Rula Gives Good Bird ❮❮❮

Yes, fellow Pilgrims, these are the same tips I post every year, but — like me — they never go out of style!

Also, don't forget to catch Stacy's Thanksgiving tips the day before Thanksgiving, on the Santa Fe Radio Café with that sweetheart Mary-Charlotte! That's at 8:00 am, Mountain time, on KSFR, 101.1 FM. And if you miss it (shame on you!), you can listen to the podcast on the Radio Café site!

Well, my little Giblets, it's back to Brooklyn for me — my chestnuts are roasting! Ciao!