Thanksgiving with my big, fat, Cuban family is usually a very typical American feast. But because my family has so many amazing cooks, we're often trying new recipes and sometimes we like to put a spin on some old classics. Our turkeys have run the gamut from deep-fried to classically oven-baked to (my favorite) the Guavalicious ...
Thanksgiving
The Best Graduation Party of The Year
My son, Jonathan, graduated from high school a few weeks ago. As I've done with each one of my four kids, I asked what type of celebration he'd enjoy. The four of them have asked for completely different types of parties and I have tried my best to comply. in 2001, Amy wanted an All-Cuban theme, with all the family and her friends, ...
Finding Joy
There has been so much preparation leading up to this week. Of course, I'm sure it's been like that in every home that celebrates Christmas. And also, did it seem like December just vanished in a puff of smoke, or is that just me? We're not the people who put up Christmas decorations the day after Thanksgiving. We take our time and ...
The Best Baked Potato Soup EVER®
For the holidays many of us get one of those beautiful spiral hams. You set it out on your table and it always gets oohs and aahs. There's nothing like a fabulous ham. Am I right? For Thanksgiving we served two turkeys - one smoked, one roasted, and then there was also the spiral cut ham. Because we Cubans like an abundant table. There are a ...
The Cuban Hipster Thanksgiving
When I host family or friends for a big, elaborate dinner, my delight is in designing the tablescapes. My job, as I see it, is to create a warm and welcoming atmosphere, but not get too hung up on making things so department-store-perfect that it feels too cold and impersonal. It's fun for me to set a pretty table. It's much more fun to ...
It’s Not About the Meal
There's a trend that happens in the month of November. People are sharing (on social media) something they're grateful for every day of the month. I've heard the arguments that everyone should just be grateful all the time and not just as a "trendy meme" for the month that the Thanksgiving holiday falls on. I guess ...
Give Thanks. I mean it.
I'm preparing to host Thanksgiving again this year. Of course, everyone's invited. I love traditions. But what I love more is making them my own. I had a vision. I wanted to hang a giant banner that read, "Give Thanks" that would be the first thing you saw when you walked into our freakishly small cottage-like home. I tried to ...
Everyone’s Invited
Everyone knows that Thanksgiving lands on the 4th Thursday of November. So, it's not like it's a big surprise that Thanksgiving this year will be celebrated on the....4th Thursday of November. This happens every single year. 4th Thursday = Thanksgiving. We have already discussed and decided that the Thanksgiving celebration will take ...
Styling a Quick and Easy DIY Thanksgiving
I love a beautifully set table. I do. It doesn't have to be fancy or elegant, although it could be. My preference is for fun and welcoming. Here are some examples of Thanksgiving tables that I've done in the past here, here, and here. Today I want to share how I went about styling my Thanksgiving tables last year. So, buckle in and welcome to my ...
Nochebuena is coming and everyone’s invited!
We Cubans celebrate December the 24th. It's our BIG Christmas celebration with the extended family. And when I say celebrate, I mean we pull out all the stops. It's a PARTY. The meal is usually roast pork (lechón asado), white rice, black beans, plantains, yuca con mojo. And a great big flan (and assorted sweets) for dessert. It's ...