How To Save Gifted Wine From the Trash

Single Serving Sangria

Who hasn't received a bottle of wine as a host or hostess that just wasn't quite palatable for their taste? Wine makes a great gift...when you are absolutely sure about the tastes and preferences of the person to whom you are gifting. Wine can be harder to shop for than clothing (at least you can eyeball a tshirt for the recipient and include a gift receipt if it doesn't fit. If that bottle gets popped and its too sweet or too dry its too late. So what to do?

Rather than pour that puppy down the drain, consider doctoring it up into an impromptu glass of sangria. First consider which direction the glass strays from your palate before deciding on a mixer. Too sweet? Grab the seltzer. Too dry? Grab the lemon-lime soda and some orange juice. (Consider a 1:1 ratio of wine to mix in.) This gives you a perfect summer spritzer. Feeling more adventurous? Why not mix in a bit of wine or liquor from your own cabinet to balance out the undesirable notes. Next check your fruit bowl or freezer for some complimentary fruit. Dice up a few strawberries or drop in some frozen blueberries. Voila, you've suddenly gone from drab to fab. Cheers!

Red or White & Blue Sangria

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Happy National Wine Day and Memorial Day Weekend! 

In honor of such a boozy occasion, I've come up with a two for one recipe...Red or White & Blue Sangria. Finalizing a menu that is a crowd-pleaser without driving the host into debt is one of the hardest tasks of party planning. Sure, you can throw a party where each person gets a customized beverage and dinner recipe, but you will probably need to take out a second mortgage. Sangria is a great party drink. The recipes lend themselves to large batches, but the question is always red or white?
Why not red and white? My Red or White & Blue Sangria lends itself to be made with either red or white, allowing you to use the same recipe twice and please the red wine drinkers and white wine drinkers in your life. Sorry beer drinkers, today just isn't your day 😉.

Starbuck's Hack: Abby's Apple Pie Chai

I love anything chai when there is a chill in the air. The spices just warm me right up. The apple chai is an old Starbuck's menu item from back in my college days. It was a tasty treat in the fall. It eventually went the way of other seasonal drinks (the Starbuck's Cemetery) but was still available to order if you're barista had any recollection. One day I caught a glimpse of my barista mixing mine up and was pleasantly pissed to see that it was just steamed apple juice with a few pumps of chai. I thought "wtf, I can do this at home without spending $4 a cup." Alas, like most other inventions, Abby's Apple Chai was born out of straight up spite.

Super C Strawberry Mango Protein Punch

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Although spring is right around the corner, cold and flu season is still holding on. I have been super busy, so staying on top of my game, mentally and physically has been really important. No time to get sick! My crazy busy life demands an extra dose of Vitamin C. My delicious Super C Strawberry Mango Protein Punch has been a great way to start the day and fight office germs. Instead of almond milk, I added 1 cup of OJ to my favorite AM smoothie when I was starting to feel a little under the weather and voila, a new recipe was born! They say "out of necessity comes invention", after all.

With 30 g of protein (60% DV) and over 350% DV of Vitamin C, my Super C Strawberry Mango Protein Punch is the perfect way to start the day!

Chaos-Free Christmas Countdown - 3 Days

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The house is clean, the groceries are ordered and the cookies are baked. There is not much left to do but wrap gifts. Block out some time in the evening tonight and tomorrow to get through the pile without going crazy. Recruit help when possible from your hubby and tiny humans...make it a family affair! Strategize your wrapping based on who you are seeing and when you are seeing them. Have a Christmas Eve exchange? Start there...end (or don't bother) with the gifts you are mailing or exchanging after the New Year.

Chaos-Free Christmas Countdown - 4 Days

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We're in the home stretch...hopefully the house is cheery and bright, free of dust and smells of delicious cookies (that are hidden out of the reach of rumbling bellies).

Today is all about you. T-Minus 4 Days is the midpoint in the one week countdown. Take a break and treat yo'self.

Chaos-Free Christmas Countdown - 5 Days

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Hopefully by now your T Minus 7 Days and T Minus 6 Days Checklists are all checked off, the side dishes are prepped and a batch of cookies is put away.

Luckily for both of us, the Monday is pretty easy. It's just time to decorate. Stop, I know what you're thinking. "Decorating for Christmas takes days, weeks." Well, this isn't Christmas. The motto of the Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Decor is "If you don't have it, don't go buy it". This saves money, time and ultimately the headache of trying to head to the store the week of a holiday. So work within your attic, storage closet or your backyard! Head over to my Christmas Pinterest board for inspiration, but here are some of my favorites. Customize them to what you have packed away.

Chaos-Free Christmas Countdown - 6 Days

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The key to a smooth and easy Chaos-Free Christmas is leveraging your free time this throughout the week and weekend for prep. Use lunch breaks to run last minute errands when the stores are less crowded. Recipe prep in the evening while dinner is cooking and the kitchen is already messy.  It seems early to start cooking, but that's what your freezer is for! Focus on prepping and freezing the dishes that can stand the cold to minimize your cooking on Christmas morning. Watch the daily guide for thawing instructions later in the week!

Chaos-Free Christmas Countdown: 7 Days

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Happy Monday...just one week until Santa unloads his sleigh in your living room and family bursts through the front door! Are you ready? Fear not, I have the ultimate Chaos-Free Christmas guide. Watch for daily guides and to-do lists for the perfect Christmas day, starting with tomorrow (Tuesday).

The week leading up to Christmas usually looks like the whole year took a big poo on the page of my planner and left a years worth of plans crammed into a week. As everyone prepares for a week off of work or home with their tiny humans, deadlines at work are inevitable, half-days at school for the tiny humans make the schedule more difficult, and surprise drop-ins from friends and family have us turning off the lights and locking the doors. Follow my Chaos-Free Christmas Manual for a smooth holiday spent outside the kitchen and tucked into bed before the crack of dawn every morning.

Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Thanksgiving Day

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Happy Thanksgiving! Time to sit back, relax and let your appliances take care of dinner for you. The marathon is over, the finish line is in sight and all that is left is pouring some cocktails, sipping a glass of wine and chatting with your favorite relatives. Put on your stretchy pants and get your crock pot going. Its game day!

Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Wednesday

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Hooray! You've almost made it! One more day until Thanksgiving. The finish line is officially in sight. The Wednesday to-do list is short and sweet, intended to keep the kitchen clean and the dishwasher empty. Consider grabbing a pizza for dinner or using paper plates for dinner tonight. Take it easy! This is the end of the Thanksgiving marathon.

Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Tuesday

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The Tuesday to-do list is all about getting ahead of the food prep. All of the grocery shopping should be done, the house should be spruced up and decorated. The only things left are the meal and setting the table. Over the weekend we prepped all of the freezer friendly dishes. Tuesday is for prepping the pies and baked goods that will keep until Thursday and starting the great thaw.

Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Decor

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I'm a little late on Monday, but I fell victim to a cold over the weekend so instead of writing, I slept. Hopefully by now your weekend to-do list is all checked off, the side dishes are prepped and the end tables are dusted.

Luckily for both of us, the Monday is pretty easy. It's just time to decorate. Stop, I know what you're thinking. "Decorating for Christmas takes days, weeks." Well, this isn't Christmas. The motto of the Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Decor is "If you don't have it, don't go buy it". This saves money, time and ultimately the headache of trying to head to the store the week of a holiday. So work within your attic, storage closet or your backyard! Head over to my Thanksgiving Pinterest board for inspiration, but here are some of my favorites. Customize them to what you have packed away.

Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Weekend

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The key to a successful Make-Ahead Thanksgiving is leveraging your free time this weekend for prep. Don't worry, this weekend is for more than Thanksgiving. The recipe prep on this weekends to-do list should only take about 2 hours! It seems early to start cooking for Thursday, but that's what your freezer is for! Focus on prepping and freezing the dishes that can stand the cold to minimize your cooking on feast day. Watch the daily guide for thawing instructions later in the week!

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This recipe is part of my Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide. Find it on the Weekend to-do list. For daily to-do lists leading up to turkey day, follow on my blog or sign up for emails. New to-do lists everyday at noon through Thanksgiving!

Creamy Dairy Free Butternut Squash Soup

Prep Time 1 hour 20 min, serves 6.

Ingredients

• ~3 lbs. Butternut Squash
• 3 Tbsp. Olive Oil, plus more for squash
• 1 Small Onion, Chopped
• 5 Cups Vegan "No Chicken" Chicken Flavored Stock 
• 1 Dash Nutmeg
• 2 Tsp. Garlic, Minced
• 1 Tsp. Thyme
• Himalayan Pink Sea Salt
• Fresh Pepper
• 1 Cup Unsweetened Original Almond Milk, on soup day

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This recipe is part of my Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide. Find it on the Weekend to-do list. For daily to-do lists leading up to turkey day, follow on my blog or sign up for emails. New to-do lists everyday at noon through Thanksgiving!

Freezer-Friendly Pigs in a Blanket

Prep Time 15 min, serves 12.

Ingredients

• 1 package Cocktail Wieners 
• 1 tube Crescent Rolls

Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide: Friday

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Happy Thursday...T-Minus one week until turkey day touches down! Are you ready? Fear not, I have the ultimate Thanksgiving guide. Watch for daily guides and to-do lists for the perfect turkey day, starting with tomorrow (Friday).

The week leading up to Thanksgiving can be plagued with deadlines at work, half-days at school for the tiny humans, and reunions with friends and family, home from afar. Follow my Ultimate Make-Ahead Thanksgiving Guide for a smooth holiday spent outside the kitchen and with your guests.

Pantry Raid: #Crocktober Vegetarian Chili

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Ladies, start your engines crock pots. I know, I know, #Crocktober is over but the it was in the 60's and 70's here for most of October, hardly stew and soup weather. It's finally cooling down and I'm in the mood for soul warming dinners! Check out my Pantry Raid Vegetarian Chili recipe, perfect for that Meatless Monday morning when you wake up and forgot to prep your pot! No need to fall off of your #Crocktober wagon even though the month has passed. Simply crack a few cans and let your cooker do what it does best!

Drunken Apple Cider with Shrunken Heads

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The key to any good party is a signature cocktail. For Halloween that means something creepy, preferably straight out of my the witch's cauldron (aka crock pot). No need to spend the party heating up individual cocktails to order, what is this, a short order kitchen? Dust off your crock pot, it is Crocktober after all, and let it flex its muscles a little.

Rotting Deviled Eggs with Creepy Crawlers

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Deviled eggs are a standard party recipe, but go the extra mile for Halloween by letting them rot before serving them to your guests. This recipe is pretty easy, but is time consuming thanks to the extra creepy steps. These were a creepy, tasty treat that really freaked out my guests. Definitely worth the effort! Despite the effort, eggs are a great budget-friendly item at the grocery store. 1 dozen at my local Aldi store costs only $.89 and yields 24 of these spooky deviled eggs. The remaining ingredients are standard pantry items, requiring no additional investment. You'll also score bonus points from your gluten-free and dairy-free friends for this recipe!