GIVING THANKS: MEMORIES OF HAITI

This morning, I intended to share this delicious Giada DeLaurentiis Eggplant Capanata recipe and sort of brag about the fact that I am "woman hear me roar" because I'm making an Thanksgiving appetizer that will also double as a fantastic leftover dish to add to pasta (okay, so I still kind of roared). But right as I started to craft the post and upload my ever so stylized and glamorous iPhone -push the mess aside so it looks just like Pinterest minus the blur photos, I remembered the date:  

Exactly one year ago today, I went to Haiti.

One year ago today, (which happened to be the week after Thanksgiving), I went to Haiti with Ladies' Home Journal and Crocs Cares to deliver 5000 shoes to school children. While a bountiful recipe can be a great reminder to give thanks for the luxuries in life we often take for granted, I have so much to be thankful for and my journey to Haiti is one of those blessings.

Happy Thanksgiving and Much love and peace.
xo
JB

*****

Day 1

When I was first contacted by Susan Pocharski, Entertainment Director at Ladies' Home Journal, asking me if I’d like to join them, CrocsCares, and Feed the Children for a trip to Haiti to deliver shoes to school children, I was beyond honored and thrilled. Opportunities like these are rare and there wasn’t an ounce of hesitation when I leaped back with YES! In addition, I was going to be traveling with Real Housewife of New York, Countess LuAnn de Lesseps and mom bloggers, Nicole Feliciano and Catherine Connors, both whom I look up to and admire greatly. I could hardly contain my excitement.

Minutes later, of course, (being me), I was scouring the CDC and US Embassy websites for up-to-date info on all the shots I may need and the security precautions I should take.  After all, I thought, Haiti is the most impoverished country in the Western Hemisphere. Surely, there’s a lot to take into consideration. But in reality… there’s not much disease or security measures to take into consideration anymore than any other poverty-stricken and under-developed country.  A country lacking infrastructure means more than unsettled financials, it means unsettled people… and therefore, I’m assuming, unsettled tourists…

Once we got through customs and outside of the airport, it seemed like instant mayhem. While I certainly wasn’t expecting a JFK type arrival with a Carmel Car & Limo to greet me in a luxury sedan, I wasn’t necessarily expecting a mob, of what I think was mostly men, covering the walkway in which we had to walk through to get to our cars that would caravan us through Port Au Prince to our hotel. People were shoving, grabbing bags, even yanking us here and there to come with them. My travel companions, including the lovely Sally Lee, Editor in Chief of LHJ, however, seemed unfazed.  Though I did my best to cover it up, I knew she could tell I was nervous, and I definitely was embarrassed. Buck up, Jenny, buck up.  But, I felt so far from home… already. Perhaps it’s because Sally had visited Haiti before, I thought… and as an activist, many other third world countries, that this sort of chaos doesn’t penetrate anymore… This is Haiti, everyone kept saying. It’s just chaos. 

And it was. During the nearly 2.5 hour drive to our hotel in Petionville (which is approximately 5 miles away from the airport), it was instantly obvious that the devastation from the earthquake in 2010 is ever-present. Tents on the sides of the road, a completely non-existent National Palace and rubble… still… rubble and crumbled facades. What kind of state will these schools be in that we’re visiting? What kinds of needs will these children have that we’ll be delivering shoes to?

Oh, how I couldn’t wait to see the children. I realize it sounds dramatic and maybe a little cheesy, but truly: I needed to touch a child. I needed to see the one thing that I knew would calm me. Of course I was missing my son, but it wasn’t a homesickness that made me ache to get to these schools… It was a need to find a commonality. A need, for even if only an instant, to connect with a group of people whose lives are so different from mine, simply from a survival standpoint. The love of a child though, that binds us together. It really makes us the same. I’m not here to see the devastation and report back. I’m here to give something.

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THANKSGIVING DECOR: WORK WITH WHAT YOU GOT

Thanks to Pinterest, I'm now well aware of the fact I'm not the only woman in the world who falls asleep at night dreaming of beautiful table-scapes, perfectly baked pies, and unbelievably organized pantries. Apparently, we all want things to look and taste just perfect.

While I had every intention on showing you one amazingly thought out and decorated Thanksgiving mantle and table display, the reality of time, a full time job, a child with green stuff oozing from his sinuses (TMI?) and what I think might be a broken thumb (mine, not his), set in. Things can only be so perfect for so long. Or at least close to perfect, kind of.

Still, with a very full plate, it was and is my mission to make my house presentable not just for the real life folk coming to give thanks on Thursday (and eat a 26 pound bird), but to show you, the people of the intra-world what you can do with scraps of burlap (from your kind of-sort of-organized craft closet) and foliage from your own back yard.

Here's what I did:

To make the burlap sign, I cut some pieces of burlap, and used my sons marker to write "Give Thanks." Placed it in an inexpensive frame.

To get the fall foliage thing, I climbed on to my patio, and using kitchen shears (only the best), chopped down some branches. (Jonah was the photographer to document the "mom in the wild" journey).

Using the freshly cut leaves and leftover pumpkins and gourds from Halloween, I draped them across the mantle and used a few pieces of clear scotch tape to keep the leaves in place. And voila!

24 hours later.... Dried leaves. If only every Pinterest sequence revealed the "what really happens moments after perfection (kind of)."

Good news. There's more leaves where this came from. Bad news, the backside of the pumpkins are now basically covered in mold. Now worries, turn those bad boys around for the next round of Pinterest perfection photos...  Shhhh.....

THE GO TO: SPAGHETTI SQUASH WITH MEAT SAUCE

Is this fancy iPhone work, or what?!

As if life isn’t hectic enough, (and that doesn’t include wedding planning), I’m hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year for 23 people. Thankfully, everyone is bringing a dish, so all I have to do is cook the turkey (hi, mom), and make the table look pretty (hi, Pinterest). Needless to say, this past week has been a little crazy.

In an effort to stay sane (and healthy) during “go, go, go time,” I’ve been leaning on some “go to” recipes that I know I can whip up easily.  Some of my go-tos are meatloaf, crockpot turkey chili, shredded chicken tacos and takeout (hey, if we’re being honest).  Another Fall favorite is Spaghetti Squash with Meat Sauce.

There are two things, okay, actually three things, I can do well: 1) Roast Squash, 2) Make Turkey Bolognese, and 3) Remember lines from “Friends.” (That has absolutely nothing to do with cooking. But it’s just a great trait that I thought you should know about).

Here’s how to make this super simple, go-to meal.

This serves about 3 (that is 2 adults and 1 child. Make 2 squashes if you’ve got a bigger brood).

-1 Large Spaghetti Squash

-1.25- 1.5 lbs of Lean Ground Turkey

-Your Favorite Tomato Marina Sauce

-Fresh Mushrooms

-Fresh Basil

-Fresh Garlic

-Grated Parmesan Cheese

-Olive Oil

-Salt & Pepper

1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2) Slice spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise. You can opt to drizzle insides with olive oil, salt andpepper, or just leave plain. (This time, I did the drizzle…)

3) Place squash, cut side down, on an oiled or olive oiled sprayed baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes until squash is tender. (For 2 squash, bake 1 – 1 ½ hours).

4) As the squash is cooking, heat two table spoons of olive oil in a sauté pan. Once heated, at crushed fresh garlic.

5) Add mushrooms and sauté until cooked. In a separate pan, brown your ground turkey. Once browned and cooked through, add to the mushrooms and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and 5-10 pieces of chopped up basil depending on your preference. Add the tomato sauce and simmer.

6) Once squash is done, remove it and let it cool.  Shred the inside of the squash with a fork to create a spaghetti type consistency.  You can add olive oil and Parmesan here... but I did not. Instead I served it with a big heap of the sauce and topped with more fresh basil and Parmesan.

What are your weeknight go-to meals?

MANY THANKS....

... for family. The traditions new and old, the questions that my mom asks repeatedly (still), the goodbyes that take forever (even though we'll see each other tomorrow). It means I have family. It means I have support.

... for my health. The extra stuff around the middle, the puffy eyes in the morning (and at night), the muscle cramps and aches after a hard workout (or bad night of sleep). It means I have health. It means my body works.

... for my home. The loud and unfriendly neighbors, the (always dirty looking) tile that I would not have chosen, the clutter that waxes and wanes, ebbs and flows (depending on how hard a 4 year old cyclone hits). It means I have a home. It means I have a haven.

... for my friends. For my friends, for my sweet, sweet friends. Your words of encouragement, your words of wisdom, your words through decades and disasters. It means everything. It means I have a team.

... for my child. The many questions I cannot answer, the whining and temper tantrums I cannot quell, the energy I cannot handle at certain times. It means I have a child. It means I have given life.

... for my dreams. The many disappointments, the many visions of life and love (past and present), the twinkle in the stars I manage to believe shine for me even when it feels like the world is telling me otherwise. It means I'm a dreamer. It means I have hope.

Today I am grateful for all this and more. Happy Thanksgiving.

JENNIFER BRANDT'S "LIVING"

In addition to the "Minty Mallows" that sucked me in at Trader Joes, when I saw a Gingerbread Man kit for $3.99, I couldn't resist. I instantly had visions of Jonah and I sitting together, decorating this darling cookie while drinking hot cocoa in our winter PJs... establishing a holiday tradition which one day would include me even baking a gingerbread house (mansion really) and inviting all the children to come and decorate it using "snow caps" that I had hand crafted... in my craft studio... next to the cozy fire place.... and our heavenly smelling Christmas tree.

Sure we're Jewish and I stopped getting Martha Stewart magazines years ago... But a girl can dream...

Anyway, tonight I decided we'd give the GB dude a whirl.

We decided this guy needed a lot of buttons. And apparently, gladiator sandals (they were supposed to be Uggs).

Of course, once GB guy (who Jonah decided we should call Judy) was dressed, it was time for the creativity to really begin. Hello, green water. Goodbye green sprinkles (that I had every intention of using on sugar cookies... last year).

All in all, it was actually quite fun and should time ever permit and creativity reign, I could very well see myself making this an actual tradition, using more impressive decorative goods than the low-budge kit from TJ's. But, I'd be shocked if Martha could come up with a better idea for dealing with a mess than trash bags on the floor...

STUFFED

Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone. This has been a pretty eventful week and I have so much to be thankful for.... This year, everyone came to our house for dinner. It was our second year hosting and once again, was a great success. (Check out a recent post I wrote for MomLogic about dealing with Four Families during the holidays).  Here's a little recap/ list of highlights from the holiday:

1) T-Ko made a kick ass turkey for the 2nd year in a row. I must confess that I was a little nervous considering he found the recipe from Food Network star Sandra Lee ("Semi Homemade"). Her food is as cheesy and WT as Rachel Ray's. HOWEVER, it turned out GREAT. Thank g-d he didn't ask me to create one of her "table-scapes" though... I draw the line somewhere.

2) I learned that I may have already missed the boat as far as taking care of my skin and "defying age." According to my Auntie C who works for a high end cosmetic company, I need to "get on it, and get on it fast." Apparently, I should have started a regimen (wash, toner, lotion, eye cream etc.) literally a decade ago. Well, I have taken heed and am going to start taking care of my 32 year old skin better. But can I just say: What a pain in the ass.  Waking up with mascara caked to my cheek is so much easier, and frankly makes me feel a lot younger.

3) We determined that there were 8 sticks of butter used for all the recipes (not including dessert) Well,  there were 8 of us at dinner.... That's 1 stick of butter per person! At one point, T-Ko said he could feel his heart beating in his eye.  

4) After Thanksgiving dinner, we bundled up Baby-Ko, plopped him in the stroller, and all 8 of us went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was like Dead (Fat) Man Walking. 

5) After dessert we all sat around and played Guitar Hero.  Nothing funny to say about this except that I wish I was a fly on the wall to hear my Nana telling her peeps down in Leisure World about this one... It's gotta be right up there with the time she told me she couldn't find her Yahoo...

6) Feeling fat and stuffed, I decided to take a Tae Bo class Saturday morning. Not surprising, the class was packed to the max. It usually smells pretty rank in there after any given class. This time though, it smelled like leftover turkey and Brussels sprouts. Needless to say, I am officially over Thanksgiving now. Of course, I can't let all that pumpkin pie go to waste.... right?