satisfying november!

Ah, November! Full of hearty comfort food. Thanksgiving. Family recipes. The time to put your diet on hold and indulge for the holidays...

And we did just that! We had a lovely Thanksgiving - highlights included my grandmother's now famous recipe for Cranberry Jell-o Mold (no Thanksgiving is complete without it), my mom's amazing pies, and my aunt's fabulous recipe for Maple Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Hazelnut Butter. (Nut Butter...almost as funny as Sticky Nuts and equally delicious!)  I think this is the recipe, but I'll have to verify with my aunt. Everyone in my family agrees that the traditional recipe for sweet potatoes with marshmallows is gross - but sweet potatoes with nut butter? Awesome!

It was also a month for cake, as we celebrated another friend's 40th birthday. This called for another family recipe - carrot cake, a recipe that has been in my family for probably 30 years and is hands-down the best carrot cake on earth. It's so good that it has now become a tradition within my group of friends, too!

And it was also a month to break out the hot chocolate - something I drink nearly every morning. I've been on a quest to find the perfect hot chocolate mix - one that doesn't contain chemicals and is sinfully delicious. The hot chocolate from Penzey's is pretty good, especially if you add a handful of crushed candy canes.

What we were eating and cooking this month: Thanksgiving foods, cheese, cake, and my morning dose of hot chocolate.