Category Archives: THANKSGIVING

HOMEMADE for the HOLIDAYS

  Gift wrapped in sugar and spice and everything nice, Sweet Leisure brings you some sensational, truly terrific, and downright delicious recipes that you can make for happy holiday indulging. Click below for:   GOOD, GRAND AND GROOVY GOURMET GIFTS TO GIVE Peanut Butter cookies, Hot Cocoa Cake, Coffee Rub, Spiced Pecans, Sponge Candy and Pompelmocello. […]

CRANBERRY SALAD FROM BARBARA GIBBS OSTMANN

Barbara Gibbs Ostmann and I have been friends for so long that I don’t remember how we met. I think it was when she first became food editor of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch sometime in the mid 1970s. She interviewed me about my cooking school for kids and then subsequently hired me to freelance, not […]

FABULOUS FEAST FOOD FOR THANKSGIVING

In the spirit of Thanksgiving past, present and future, Sweet Leisure revisits a cornucopia of recipes so that you can fill your table with fun, festive and frankly fabulous feast food.   HARVEST VEGETABLE SOUP A simple, special, superb, savory soup that combines the best of the season’s harvest to jump start a sumptuous feast. […]

OURAY COLORADO, HOT SPRINGS & BRUSSELS SPROUTS

Whoever first said, “The best things come in small packages,” had to be thinking of Ouray. This teeny tiny Colorado town covers only about 0.84 square miles, yet it overflows with appeal. Located in southwest Colorado, near the Four Corners where Colorado meets up with Utah, Arizona and New Mexico, Ouray sits in a box […]

BEST EVER CARAMEL APPLE PIE

What can one say about apple pie? Carl Sagan said, “If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.” Eugene Field said, “But I, when I undress me Each night, upon my knees Will ask the Lord to bless me With apple-pie and cheese.” Jane Austen said, “Good […]

FABULOUS SOUP RECIPES

Recipes for two great soups, Cream of Brie and Cream of Bean. Both are luxuriously rich and beautifully versatile (can be served hot or cold, summer or winter, with any number of garnishes changing the flavor).

BACON CORNBREAD MUFFINS

Just about the best corn muffin recipe in my collection comes from Sea Island Resorts, a genteel and posh vacationing outpost located on a private island off Southeast Georgia’s Atlantic coast. Sea Island has a habit of winning the hospitality industry’s top awards, racking up five stars for luxurious accommodations, world-famous golf and wonderful Southern-accented […]

LEMON CHESS PIE

Today is National Pie Day. Schools should be out, banks should be closed and mail delivery stopped, but I’m afraid that all the attention this holiday is going to get will come from dedicated cooks baking pies. That being the case let me tell you about a knockout pie worthy of the holiday. The recipe […]

HARVEST VEGETABLE SOUP

this soup is so versatile it perfectly fits into a variety of dining situations. With a little tweaking, it can be vegetarian, super low calorie or even fat free. Serve it cold at picnics or barbecues or hot at family fall and winter dinners. The soup is even suitable for dressed up events—

FAMILY FAVORITE PUMPKIN BREAD

Have been making Pumpkin bread for years—always in the fall and winter. The bread is a must for my Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas brunch (the latter served with a whipped honey-enhanced cream cheese). I give the bread as little bread and butter presents, as well as serve it to friends who drop in for coffee. […]