Texas Cooking Online * November, 2004 Newsletter *

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Vitamin Brands at Wholesale Cost Top Sellers Atkins Products Atkins Baking Products | Atkins Bars Pull out the pie bakers. Dust off that roasting pan. This is the time to punch up the heat and cook for Thanksgiving. We have tried-and-true recipes and detailed instructions on the site for every possible Texas-style Thanksgiving dinner. Start planning now so this year's meal can be your best ever. This month, look at our imaginative new article about an enticing array of pies for Thanksgiving. Jay Ann Cox also breathes new life into fruitcake, that often denigrated and disgraced dessert which, if given a chance and prepared and presented properly, is delicious and memorable. Dr. John writes a round-up of things everyone should give thought to before starting their Thanksgiving meal journey. The holidays provide a flurry of events in Texas. Our Texas Events Calendar reflects parades, lighting ceremonies, home tours and Santa arrivals in hundreds of towns, big and small. Our classic article, Special Holiday Side Dishes, is a must for anyone seeking unique accompaniaments to the turkey dinner that won't pale by comparison. And for the benefit of those who do not subscribe to our Recipe of the Week, we are also linking our most popular Thanksgiving article, Turkey & Most of the Trimmings. The featured recipe, Holiday Eggnog Pie, is a new addition to Grandma's Cookbook. It is sure to become a favorite. Check out the November winners in the T-shirt contest near the bottom of the page. So settle down, get comfortable, and enjoy our newsletter. Help Yourself to Our Weekly Recipe Email Sign up for our latest feature, the Texas Cooking Weekly Recipe Email. Nothing fancy, just a carefully selected recipe that's sure to please with maybe a link or two to some compatible dishes. Recipes range from savory to sweet -- the entire spectrum. At Texas Cooking, we have always focused on quality over quantity, and we carry that tradition to our Recipe of the Week email. Sign up here.

Restaurant Promotions Special Features Patchwork Pie by Jay Ann Cox Patchwork Pie is my fondest dream during the holidays. It's not something that I've ever done, but I sure have wanted to. I keep thinking that maybe this Thanksgiving will be the one where I'll make a Patchwork Pie. Think of it as a United Nations for pie. Take a slice from each independent pie nation - apple, cherry, buttermilk, pecan, chocolate, pumpkin, lemon, berry - and create an entire pie in patchwork. In Search of The Perfect Fruitcake by Jay Ann Cox There seem to be two types of people in the world: those who adore fruitcake, and those who despise it. There is very little middle ground. No one seems merely to like it. Even Johnny Carson famously said that he believes there to be only one fruitcake in the world, and everyone keeps passing it off as a gift, year after year. Ready for the Holidays? Thanksgiving Dinner Checklist by John Raven, Ph.B. With the holidays pecking at the door, John has a checklist that will make food preparation easier and safer. Starting with the ever-popular Thanksgiving turkey, he goes through the critical points. For example, if you have a frozen turkey, it will take at least two days to thaw it properly for cooking. Serve Up Texas Cooking with Style Brighten up the dinner table with Fiestaware. This durable china includes a myriad of serving pieces, drinking glasses, pitchers, teapots, bakeware and more -- all in the classic Fiestaware design and brilliant colors -- that it perfect for everyday use. With the holidays coming up, take a look at the American Christmas Tree pattern. Serving holiday dinners on this china will make a memorable meal. Texas Cooking's Fiestaware Store now has special pages on the retired colors like lilac and chartreuse. Many of these products are available in our online store and through our special eBay connection. Test your knowledge of Texas trivia Our new quiz concerns a little-known fact that may come as a surprise even to native Texans. Have you read John Raven's latest Q&A column, Ask Dr. John? A new online form has been added that makes "asking Dr. John" easier than ever. Not only does he field questions about barbecue, chili and outdoor cooking in general, but his downhome culinary knowledge extends to all parts of the menu. Sports Tickets | Concert Tickets | Theater Tickets Great items for Longhorns, Aggies and Red Raiders fans. Visit today for useful, decorative and fun ways to show your school spirit. Discount Cigarettes Inexpensive shopping by the carton. Click on our link to find out more. Looking for free stuff? Participate in contests, get product samples, trial offers and information Special Holiday Side Dishes by David Bulla Every year I like to have something different in addition to the familiar dishes traditional in my family. There is no way that I could put together a holiday meal without the required pumpkin pie. There is no way to have a roast turkey without the family's favorite stuffing. Yet every year I like to mix in a few new flavors with the old traditions just to keep them right on the edge of their comfort zone and blow them all away. Turkey & Most of the Trimmings by Patricia Mitchell Whether you're a novice at preparing a holiday meal or an old hand, Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner can be daunting. Even if you are able to delegate preparation of some of the dishes to friends and relatives, more than likely you will be responsible for the basics; that is, the turkey, the dressing (that's stuffing to you non-Southerners) and the gravy. New Recipe: Holiday Eggnog Pie This pie is so good you'll find yourself making it throughout year. 3 eggs, separated 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 1/8 teaspoon salt 1 cup half-and-half 1 teaspoon rum extract 1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin 1/4 cup warm water 1 prepared 9-inch pie shell In a mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks until thick and lemony. Blend in the sugar, nutmeg and salt. Pour mixture into the top of a double boiler over boiling water. Gradually stir in half-hand-half and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a metal spoon. Set aside. In a cup, add the gelatin to the warm water and stir until dissolved. Add the rum extract, and stir mixture into the hot egg mixture. Let cool. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites gently into the cooled mixture. Pour into pie shell. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg, if desired. Chill for several hours before serving. You can find this and over 400 more recipes in Grandma's Cookbook. More Great E-Mail Newsletters Texas Cooking's Recipe of the Week email is great for people who enjoy our new and classic recipes from our cookbook. Cooks, recipe collectors and fans of Texas will enjoy this brief, weekly email that contains a carefully selected recipe with maybe a link or two to some compatible dishes. Sign up here. Stop Spyware! Kazaa, Gator and other similar programs have been sneaking onto people's computers wreaking havoc to their systems. These malicious programs are difficult to remove. They flood the screen with their own pop-up ads and open up the computer to a host of viruses. If you have programs like Kazaa, TopText, Gator, WhenU and others on your system, take a moment to learn about the problems these programs cause. We have written a useful and quick tutorial that will inform you about these programs and how to uninstall them from your computer. Free Catalogs Enjoy Great Savings from Free Catalogs Clothing Bridal / Wedding Invitations Wine & Brew Sporting Goods Hobbies / Crafts Pets _________ Cosmetics, samples, DVDs, promotions Gratis! November T-Shirt Contest Winners Keith A. of Norman, Oklahoma Sharon G. of Garland, Texas Craig H. of Livonia, Michigan Jeff J. of Macon, Georgia Lana M. of Baltimore, Maryland Sandy M. of Round Rock, Texas Eldon O. of Houston, Texas Mary Sue R. of Oceanside, California Raymond S. of Roanoke, Virginia Hannah W. of St. Louis, Missouri Congratulations winners! We are frequently asked if we award T-Shirts to non-US residents, and the answer is Yes. We have had quite a few Canadian winners, and have also sent T-Shirts to winners in England, Australia, Ireland, Switzerland and Germany. The Rules Since we began our T-Shirt giveaway seven years ago, our contest rules remained unchanged. Readers have been able to enter as many times as they like, and their entries were retained in our database. As you can imagine, our contest database has become very large (which is good), BUT much of it consists of old email addresses that are no longer valid. Therefore, we are making the following change in our contest rules: Readers can still enter as often as they like; however, each contest entry will expire three months following the date it was entered and will disappear from the database. This will greatly reduce the number of "names in the hat" and improve the odds of winning. We think this change will result in an even better contest. We are frequently asked how one goes about entering the T-shirt contest. Sign up here. Subscription / Unsubscribe Help This newsletter is sent to you because you, or someone on your behalf, indicated you would like to receive it when you signed our Guest Book or entered our T-Shirt Contest. If you wish to stop receiving the Newsletter, click here or point your browser to http://www.texascooking.com/unsub1.ihtml If you would like to change your email address, please send an email to txmailbox@texascooking.com. ©2004 Texas Cooking Online. All rights reserved.