I’ve been using Pinterest now for a few months and I must admit, it’s pretty cool. It’s a great resource for finding ideas on just about anything. With Valentine’s Day coming up, I quickly put together a Pinterest board of all my favorites for desserts, recipes, craft ideas and a whole lot more. Here are just a couple of cute ideas I found. Enjoy!

Table Setting for Two

A Delightful Kids Setting

For The Cheesecake Lovers Out There

My Favorite

Kids Will Love This For Dinner

To see more great Valentine’s Day desserts, recipes and more visit my: Valentine’s Day Pinterest Board. Pinned some great stuff lately? Pin with me at http://pinterest.com/noelskitchen/.

The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree:  the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other. ~Burton Hillis

Some of my most treasured memories center around a happy holiday table-the people who were there, the family jokes and news bulletins on the most important events, and the good food that helped conversations flow and the time fly; and here we we find ourselves about to ring in a New Year. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas weekend!

Christmas was quite and peaceful this year. Since I’ve lacked writing lately to relax and enjoy the time off with my family, I couldn’t resist writing to all of you today as we are doing absolutely nothing. The stores are beyond insane with the after Christmas sales and I personally don’t have the patience for the undecidable crowds.

These days we all live with busy hurried lives. But it’s still possible to provide the necessary islands of peaceful, enjoyable family living that are traditionally associated with the dinner table. We can still make the most important meals, the family meals, memorable – not just once in a while, but most of the while.

Ringing In The New Year!

The days of those classy New Years Eve parties where we dressed up and rang in the New Year with champagne toasts are a total thing of the past.  We are parents now and our carefree party days are few and far between. While most would say we could probably leave our child(ren) with a family member for New Years Eve, it doesn’t seem to feel right. When they were younger, it was much easier but now as they get older, they want to be included in the entertainment and festivities of the special occasion. We’re not ones to travel much on the holidays. We prefer to stay home, where it’s cozy, and avoid the messy traffic. Over the years, we’ve developed some simple, yet fun traditions for celebrating the new year with our kids. It can be a lot of fun to invent your own New Years Eve traditions to do each year as a family. From homemade noise makers to tasty party food, you will be creating wonderful memories that will last a lifetime.

This year, we’re trying something new. After one last visit from family and friends, we’re creating a Happy New Year tree! We’re taking down all the Christmas ornaments, but leaving the lights on to twinkle through the night; adding some curly ribbon of various colors and topping it off with a beautiful, sparkly star.  With all that said, 2011 has been a pretty great year for our family. We’ve seen goals accomplished and new dreams hatched. Our children have grown in size and in spirit. We have fulfilling jobs and health and food on our table. 2011 has been great to us.

Here’s to a new year full of creating new family memories!

Happy December 1st!

“Every year at just this time, In cold and dark December, Families around the world All gather to remember, With presents and with parties, With feasting and with fun, Customs and traditions for people old and young.” -   Helen H. Moore 

We have officially kicked off the holiday season. If you will be cooking during the holidays, it is important to plan your meals ahead of time. Not just for the big Christmas dinner, but throughout the entire month. If you’re a working mom, sometimes the holiday season feels like chaos. It doesn’t have to be.

I was delighted when Steph from Be Positive Mom asked to interview me on the topic  Holiday Cooking For The Working Mom. In the interview, I’m sharing some incredible ways to meal plan during the holidays and even set aside time to relax during the busiest of times.

Enjoy! And remember, whatever you do this holiday season, remember to relax and enjoy yourself. As a family, you will have great memories of this holiday season if your holiday planning is less stressful.

 

This week’s menu is intended to provide help and recipes with side dishes and Thanksgiving leftovers. Last week’s menu featured easy mashed potatoes, candied yams, favorite green bean casserole and a delicious orange cranberry sauce. But what do you do with the leftovers? This week’s featured recipes include turkey divan and turkey enchiladas. You’ll also find salads, sandwiches and soups that you can make with the leftovers. And we can’t forget about those scrumptious desserts.

You’ve spent days, maybe weeks, planning the perfect Thanksgiving menu. The day after Thanksgiving when the food coma wears off, you may find yourself with a refrigerator full of leftovers and a house full of ravenous family members.  If that’s the case, Noel’s Family Meals  has easy and quick  tasty home recipes to satisfy your famished loved ones using many Thanksgiving favorites.

And Remember, the original menu will always be available in the Tools and Resources option in your Premium Family Meals Tools section of your Member Dashboard to refer back to.  You’ll also find the most recent information and updates on the Home page under Noel’s Family Meals. If you’re not already a Premium Family Meal Member, you can find out how to join HERE.

This pudding has a soufflé topping and a custard-like base. Bake it in two soufflé dishes or casseroles.

Pumpkin Soufflé Pudding

Ingredients:

• 6 eggs, separated
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 1/3 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 4 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 3 cups milk
• 1 can (1lb.) pumpkin (2 cups)
• 2 Tablespoons melted butter

Directions:

1. Beat egg whites until foamy; add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in 2/3 cup of the brown sugar; beat until stiff but not dry. Set aside. Mix together remaining 2/3 cup brown sugar, flour, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Beat egg yolks until thick, and beat in sugar-spice mixture. Stir in milk and pumpkin.
2. Fold half the beaten egg whites into the yolk mixture, blending until smooth. Carefully fold in remaining mixture, blending until smooth. Carefully fold in remaining whites and melted butter. Turn into two buttered soufflé dishes or straight-sided casseroles (1 1/2 or 2-quart size; use foil collar to extend to 1 1/2-quart dish). Set in a pan of hot water and bake in a 375 degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Serve with Ginger Whipped Cream. Makes 16 to 18 small servings.

Ginger Whipped Cream: Just before serving, whip 1 pint cream and flavor to taste with powdered sugar, vanilla, and ground ginger. Turn into a serving bowl for guests to spoon on top of warm Pumpkin Souffle Pudding.