When I needed to get my financials in check, it involved a massive overhaul of what I thought about money.

It became apparent that what I considered “luxury” was something that was not only unrealistic, but it was silly.  Over time, I came to teach myself that luxury would not be defined by large tvs, elaborate homes, fancy cars, or name-brand clothes; I now define luxury as the freedom to buy food when we need it, to stop for gas without doing math in our heads, to be sick and afford medicine or a doctor’s visit.  Luxury is now defined by freedom and options, NOT by things.  Which, I think, was a huge turning point for me.

Now I need to find the same thing about food.

It’s going to take undoing of YEARS of believing the wrong things.  Since I was 18, I’ve tried every fad diet in the book.  I’ve worked hard to yo-yo diet, and Lord only knows how much money I’ve spent on the various diet trends.  I’ve lived on Diet This and Low-Fat That and Sugar Free SomeMore and you name it, I’ve probably spent money trying it.

And?  I’m kind of done.

Because what inevitably happens is that it’s NEVER as good, it’s ALWAYS crappy, and I RARELY feel happy after eating it.  It doesn’t fulfill ANYTHING I need from food.  Am I the first to admit that I enjoy food?  YES, I AM.  I’m a foodie.  I LOVE food.

So my New Year’s Goal to stop eating diet food has been an awakening for me.

Of my fad diets, the two that have been the most effective were the Atkins Diet and the Reverse Diet.  When I stopped to ponder why, it’s because: it’s REAL food.  Real food.  I loved the food that I ate.  And when I was on the Atkins Diet, I loved the food enough that I didn’t feel the need to gorge on it.  Same thing with the Reverse Diet.  I ate the food that I wanted, no guilt, and I was happy about what I ate.

Let me caveat it all and say that I still try and make wise food decisions.  I’m not living on Krispie Kremes, no matter how much I want to.  But if it comes to using real butter versus margarine, or full-fat cheese instead of no-fat soy cheese? DUDE, that difference makes the food worth eating.  Whole milk has been a welcome addition to our household.  Real, honest food.  And when we eat this real food?  We’re not hungry enough to sit and gorge.  And we don’t feel guilty about it.

It’s a new way to look at food.  One I desperately needed, and one that will reshape 2010 for me.

So, um, it should be noted that I’m not working this week.  Feel free to hate me.  I would hate me.

Today, I’m sitting down to make a list of what we’re going to need for Thanksgiving this year.  This is my second year hosting, and to be honest, I LOVE IT.  I know.  I told people at work that I was hosting and they’d look at me like I was nuts and then ask me if I needed any Xanax.  True story.

But in reality, I .. yes, I turned down the Xanax .. I really LOVE hosting stuff at my house.  Now, my house’s layout is not all that conduscive to large gatherings, but the kitchen?  Man, our galley kitchen is MEANT for it.  It’s huge.  It’s so huge that I fell in love with the house having only seen the kitchen.  When we have parties, people never leave the kitchen.  It’s warm, roomy, beautifully decorated.. man, I could wax poetic for days on how much I love my kitchen.

Although?  We got into a conversation with our neighbor on Halloween about what our kitchen USED to look like and the wine fridge was previously a double-wall stove.  Um?  Ready, America?  I think I’d get far more use out of a double wall stove than I do the wine fridge.  I KNOW.  I feel dirty even typing that.

Back to the task at hand: THANKSGIVING.  I hosted last year and it was .. well, it was my first time.

(Also, um, DAMN, I WAS FAT.)

So this year, here’s my menu of what I’m making.  And, of course, it’s all shit I’ve found online.

This is my favorite dish: wild mushroom and sausage stuffing.  I found this dish last year online and made it on a whim, and it was CRAZY easy and OHMYGOD good.  It was actually requested again this year because it is so savory and rich and yummy and wonderful.  I typically double the batch because, let’s face it: can you ever have too much stuffing?

I will probably make a pan of Stove Top stuffing as well for the less adventurous. (BRYAN.)

I made this last year and it was SO GOOD, I ate it for days afterwards on ANYTHING. (Um, reference fat picture above.) I was so excited you could make cranberry sauce in a crockpot and the bonus is how amazing your house smells while you make it.

I will also have Ocean’s Spray Cranberry Sauce with Ridges for the more traditional eaters. (BRYAN.)

I can’t find the recipe I used for last year’s yeast rolls, which is.. um.. a good thing.  Because they sucked.  I worked my ass off kneading these damn rolls for-EV-er and they were dry and horrible and BLECH. (And I was mortified.)  So this year, I’m going to make these from Pioneer Woman.  Everything I’ve made of hers over the last few years has been awesome, so these shouldn’t disappoint.  Also, I have two packages of Sister Shubert’s Parker House rolls in the freezer.

Speaking of the amazing PW, I made her pecan pie last year (with additional chocolate and rum) and it was so yummy (and EASY!) that I’m making it again this year.  But I also know that it’s just not Thanksgiving without a pumpkin pie.  Having said that, no one in my family actually LIKES pumpkin pie in the traditional form.  THANK GOD FOR MY NEW OBSESSION, BAKERELLA: she posted this drool-worthy recipe for a suped-up pumpkin pie that has had my tummy growling since I saw it.

And because I’m THAT kind of hostess, I’m making this pumpkin dip for an appetizer on some ginger snaps while the meal finishes and this peppermint bark as a take-home treat for my guests. (Also, if you haven’t yet checked out Christy at Southern Plate, YOU SHOULD.  Yummy traditional southern food from a local gal.  Her recipe for banana pudding actually inspired me to try making things from scratch, no lie.)

Now that you’re all starving and stuff, I wanna know: what is your MUST-HAVE staple at a Thanksgiving Day feast?

When I was little, Hoppin’ John was one of those meals that you always HATED to hear you were having, and then you stuffed yourself silly eating when it made its way to the table.  I don’t know we fought the stuff so much; now that I’m all growed up, this is such a treat to make.  It’s also great on New Year’s, because you get the recommended black-eyed peas.

Also: it’s easy, and I’m lazy.

Ham
2 cans black-eyed peas (dried would work, too, but.. lazy)
Onion (optional)
Rice
Salt (to taste)

Take any old ham.  Really.  We had some leftover spiral-sliced honey-baked ham in the freezer, so I took chunks of that.  No need to pull apart or dice or cube or anything.. this is a lazy, New Year’s Day kind of dish.  Throw it in a Crock Pot (I used my six quart) and fill half way up with water.  Cover and turn on High.

Go do something meaningful with your life for a few hours.  Or, like me, take a nap.

After a couple of hours on High, you’ve got yourself a GREAT smelling ham broth.  If you want to, at this point, you can saute up an onion to add to the broth, and maybe even sneak in some carrots or something for nutrition. (I did neither, but .. lazy.) Throw in the canned peas. (If you’ve used dried peas, you may want to soak those overnight before this recipe, so they plump up a bit.) Cover again and simmer on low for another hour or so.

At this point, I took out the ham and pulled it apart into bite-sized chunks, which is a lot easier after it’s tenderized in the broth. 

About an hour before you’d like to eat, throw in some uncooked rice.  I used boil-in-bag rice because it’s all I had on hand, although I did take the rice out of the bag.  Turn it back on high until it is a soft boil and leave it there for about an hour.

This is a good time to make cornbread, because you’re gonna want some cornbread with this meal. 

After about an hour, your rice should be cooked.  You may want to salt to taste; using the honey baked ham gave it a very sweet flavor this time around that I wasn’t pleased with, so mine got lots of salt.  Some hams, though, are PLENTY salty, so you may not need to add any.

This makes a LOT, and it’s great for leftovers because it reheats beautifully.  It’s a great stick-to-your-ribs kind of meal that’s perfect to “set” before you leave for work and finish up when you get home.  Y’all know I adore those kinds of meals, cause.. again.. lazy.