Written by Cindy Mushet 

For a food lover, there's no better holiday than Thanksgiving.  An entire day devoted to the preparation and enjoyment of a bountiful meal with family and friends - now there's something to be thankful for!  

Between a tumbling economy and a bumpy recovery, we're all counting our blessings extra carefully this year.  And our pennies.  In my home, the over-the-top Thanksgiving extravaganza will be a little less, well, extravagant.  That doesn't mean there won't be an abundance of good food, just a re-focus on the number of dishes and who prepares them.  This year I'm relaxing a bit, and inviting family to share in the preparation.  Best of all, the kids are helping, too.  My 11-year old daughter Bella and her cousins...

Written by Joy Manning

Every year, the Thanksgiving Day table is set hours ahead, bowls and platters at the ready, marked with notes so nothing is forgotten. Scraps of papers bearing lists, recipes, ingredients, timelines, flutter around the kitchen like so many fall leaves. It's the feast of the year and in most homes a dozen or more dishes are served. But in the mad dash to cook an unforgettable holiday meal, the star of the meal, the turkey, is often an afterthought. Sometimes it's even a freebie. Many grocery chains give away turkeys to customers who have accrued sufficient points by shopping there all year. One nibble of these birds make it clear why it's so easy for the stuffing, dressing, roasted vegetables, cheese plate, canapés, spinach dip,...

Written by Marie Simmons 

Walking through the neat rows of vegetables at La Cocina Que Canta (the culinary school at Rancho La Puerta in Tecate, Mexico, where I teach cooking classes) Salvador, the head gardener, regales me with his enthusiastic review of what's at its peak in the 7 acre organic garden adjacent to the school.

"Look at the quince," he exclaims with his unbridled enthusiasm. "Look how many are on the tree."  His hands move fast through the heavily laden branches as he fills his arms and mine with as many as we can juggle. Immediately, my mind is racing to the kitchen as I try to imagine how I can cook the quince for the mystery recipe I need to pull together for...