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Tidings of Comfort and Joy

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“Hear! hear!” screamed the jay from a neighboring tree…

“Winter has a concentrated and nutty kernel,
if you know where to look for it.”

-Henry David Thoreau

Spring, summer and fall are outdoor months. Months of frolicking and movement.

But as Thanksgiving arrives and Christmas approaches, a nip enters the air and we start to move inward. Mentally, as we reflect and give thanks for all that is good in our lives. But also physically, as we fight off a hibernation instinct.

Spring, summer, fall. Months of doing.

The winter months are ones of reaping. Of enjoying.

We yearn to come inside and bunker down. We seek warmth, comfort, security.

We don’t hibernate, but we snuggle. We watch holiday movies on couches armed with hot chocolate, blankets and nostalgia.

We bake sugar cookies and gingerbread to warm our kitchens and our bellies.

We cuddle into soft mittens and slippers and afghans we crocheted ourselves when we were children. (At least, I do.)

We take warm bubble baths before tucking between flannel sheets and under heavy comforters.

We dress in turtleneck sweaters and tall boots, light crackling fires to endure no chill wind tiptoes down our spines.

We bring nature indoors, decorating trees and wreathes made from their branches with construction paper, glitter, and glue, breathing in the delicious scent of pine needles and cold, brisk air.

These are a few of my favorite things.

I hate the cold and dread its return every year. I hate the stress of the holidays.

But I love the cozy comforts: the textures, smells and tastes of the luxuries we allow ourselves.

I love the sound and the particular scent of the heat kicking on.

I love the hustle and bustle of the season as long as know I can always step away from it, snuggle into my refuge and watch it go by.

This is the season where we really pay attention to the ways we make our house a home.

Today is Black Friday, and we’re using our day off to declutter, clean, and create space for the cheerful decorations of the holiday season ahead. And rather on focusing on the presents I need to buy, I’m spending the day considering the way I can provide memories of warmth and security for my kids.

Ways I can bring them comfort and joy.

What are your favorite comforts of the holiday season?

I’d love to add them to my list of things to be thankful for when the weather outside is frightful.

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November 25, 2011
Happy Thanksgiving!

I feel a very unusual sensation-

if it is not indigestion,
I think it must be gratitude.

-Benjamin Disraeli

Happy Thanksgiving!

May your meal be delicious and nourishing (to your stomach as well as your soul).

May your house be warm and full of laughter.

May no giant naked turkeys stand outside your window.

(It’s probably not a good day for that.)

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

November 24, 2011
Make Healthy Home Smoothies & Coffees with Torani

Behind every successful woman is a substantial amount of coffee.

-Stephanie Piro

When I drove my kids to and from school, I stopped at the Starbucks down the road every. single. day.

It’s an expensive habit to have.

The kids ride the bus now, and I make my own coffee every morning. I still crave the rich, creamy, calorie-laden coffee drinks I got at Starbucks, though.

For years I’ve been using the flavored non-dairy creamers, and they’ve basically been my final frontier to clean eating. Because that stuff is straight up corn syrup. Milk in my coffee just doesn’t do it (some people tell me I need to steam or froth it- maybe that’s the same thing, I don’t even know- but I just haven’t bothered with buying yet another single-purpose kitchen device).

So the newest thing for me is using heavy cream. Yes, it’s full of fat and calories, but I only need a little bit to get the body I’m looking for. And the flavor? I now get that from Torani flavored syrups, the same flavorings that coffeehouses use.

I was able to participate in a She Speaks campaign that provided two bottles of syrups to try; I received Pumpkin Pie and Sugar-Free Vanilla. The sugar-free vanilla is calorie-free, but it’s sweetened with Splenda, which I can definitely taste; it’s not for me. I passed that bottle on to a diabetic friend and replaced it with a normal Vanilla which I like much better.

So that’s the recipe for kicking the non-dairy creamer habit: heavy cream and Torani flavored syrups. You heard it here, folks.

The Pumpkin Pie syrup? WELL. From Halloween until the end of the year is pumpkin season for me, in that I want EVERYTHING to taste like pumpkin. I’ve added this stuff to cookie batter, muffins, breads. I’ve drizzled it over oats when making granola. We’ve made pumpkin milkshakes. But my favorite is a pumpkin smoothie using Lifeway Kefir. The kefir (which is like a thick drinkable yogurt, if you’re not familiar) is full of calcium and protein and probiotics, and the pumpkin pie flavor makes for a great healthy dessert that’s not too sweet.

I currently have the ice cream maker chilling in the freezer. We’ll see if I can make pumpkin fro-yo with graham cracker mix-ins (this is my very favoritest indulgence, from Cold Stone Creamery). If it works my life will be complete.

Torani flavored syrups come in 120+ flavors in regular and sugar free varieties. They can be used to make at-home flavored lattes, mochas, coffees, cocoas, Italian sodas, teas, lemonades, cocktails and smoothies.

I’m going to order some of the lighter flavors, like lemon and tangerine and blackberry, and see if they will work with my SodaStream to make DIY sodas.

I love being able to control the level of sweetness. Personally, I just don’t have much of a sweet tooth anymore, as I eat less and less commercially prepared treats. I’m trying to do the same favor for my kids.

The regular varieties are made from natural flavors and pure cane sugar, and they come in glass bottles (which can be recycled indefinitely), which I love.

Holiday flavors include Gingerbread, Peppermint and Salted Caramel, all of which are just begging to be mixed with some decadent hot chocolate.

Click the nice button to order your own and get 10% off. Boo-ya!

Do you make your own coffee?
How do you take it?

Disclosure: I received two bottles of Torani for review purposes and five vouchers to give to friends (one of which I snagged for a new bottle of Vanilla) through a She Speaks program. Opinions and recipes are my own.

November 23, 2011