Russian Tea Cakes, Pan de Polvo, Butterballs ... whatever you call them, they're delicious

As a teacher on Houston's east side, working in a community largely made up of second- and third-generation Mexican-Americans, I was lucky enough to experience the overwhelming  generosity of the neighborhood - especially around the holidays. My students and their families didn't have a lot of money, but each Christmas, I was showered with gifts and goodies. One of my favorite Christmas traditions was receiving cookies called  pan de polvo, which literally translates as "bread of dust." These nutty shortbread cookies, made with pecans and rolled in cinnamon and sugar, are traditionally served at Christmas and weddings, and at other events such as baby showers. I never could resist the delicious, buttery goodness.

Many of us of European heritage may be familiar with pan de polvo by another name - Russian tea cakes. These cookies are nearly the same, but Russian tea cakes are made with almonds instead of pecans, and rolled in powdered sugar instead of cinnamon sugar.

No matter what you call them, however, these cookies simply taste like Christmas - and they are easy to make. 

Ground pecans - if they get too sticky, just use a fork
to separate the granules.

The recipe below is one that has been passed down from my Russian great-grandmother. I've included instructions for both pan de polvo and Russian tea cakes. 

The recipes below call for ground nuts - they can be ground in a food processor or food mill. The nuts should be ground to a fine consistency - almost like corn meal. The pieces will be somewhat sticky due to the oil content of the nuts - you can use a fork to break up any large lumps.

These also call for sifted flour. Sifting flour aerates it, which means that one cup of sifted flour actually contains less flour than a cup of unsifted flour. When I was a little girl, I loved playing with the flour sifter. However, many of us don't have a flour sifter any more. So what to do? Just pour the flour into a bowl, and fluff it with a fork for a minute or two - it should become fluffier and more airy as you do so. Then measure the flour again, using a knife to level off the measuring cup. Don't pack the flour into the cup - remember, you want light and airy.

Pan de Polvo or Russian Tea Cakes

Ingredients: 
1 c. butter
1/2 c. powdered sugar
2 c. sifted flour
1 c. ground pecans (for pan de polvo) or ground almonds (for Russian tea cakes)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Cinnamon/sugar (about 2 tsp cinnamon to 1/4 c. granulated sugar for pan de polvo) or powdered sugar (for Russian tea cakes) for the outside of the cookies

Step 1: Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Step 2: Using a hand mixer, cream together the butter and powdered sugar. This will be granular at first. Keep mixing until it becomes creamy and smooth.

Step 3: Mix in the flour, nuts, and vanilla. Again, this will form small grains, which will become bigger as you mix. Keep mixing until the dough becomes smooth. (Added bonus: because this dough contains no eggs, you won't risk salmonella if you eat it raw!)

Step 4: Line a cookie sheet with wax paper or parchment. Form 1 rounded teaspoon of dough into a ball for each cookie, and put them on the cookie sheet, about 1 inch apart.

Step 5: Bake for 30-35 minutes. Don't let them get too brown on the bottom.

Step 6: Whichever sugar you are using, put this onto a plate. Don't be skimpy. While the cookies are still warm, roll them in the sugar, then put them on a wire rack to cool.

24-Hour Christmas Party People

Me and the drink station. I'm wearing a sun dress,
because it was 80 degrees that day.
Very Christmassy...

I love holiday parties!

I usually throw some sort of soiree during the holidays, but I often decide the when and the where at the last minute. The day after Thanksgiving, I decided that I was going to have a holiday happy hour two weeks later.

Oh yeah, and in the middle of those two weeks, I was throwing a conference for 600 people.

So the whole affair had to be low stress - I wanted to enjoy the night with my friends - not spend the night dealing with food or making drinks.

I know you're thinking: what are your hostessing secrets, Catfish?

Let me contact my inner Martha Stewart, and I'll tell you.

The Drink Station
Now, I love to make fancy cocktails when two or three friends come over. But when I've invited a crowd, I like simple - and sangria fills the bill. Isn't sangria a summer drink? you might be wondering. Why should sangria be relegated to summer parties, when it has everything you want at Christmas? It's bright red, and filled with seasonal citrus fruit. It's also incredibly simple. Mix up some sangria. Put it out, along with some non-alcoholic bevvies and some beer, and you've got an easy drink station.

How to make sangria
For about 20-25 people:
On the morning of the party: Slice up a couple of oranges, a lemon, a grapefruit, and a Granny Smith apple. Put those in a bowl and pour brandy over to cover (you can use the cheap brandy) and put it in the fridge.

About 2-3 hours before the party, put about a half cup of sugar in a half cup of water and microwave it for 1-2 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved - you've got simple syrup. Spoon the fruit and about a cup of the brandy into a large pitcher or punch bowl. Add the simple syrup. Add 1 1/2 cups orange juice, and 2 large bottles of a cheap, dry red wine (like St. Genevieve Cabernet Sauvignon). Put the whole thing in the fridge until shortly before party time. Just before the guests arrive, add a liter of club soda. Here's the deal - you don't have to be exacting with the proportions or ingredients. You can use different kinds of fruit, substitute cranberry juice for orange juice ... whatever you want.

The sandwich bar - with chips and dips

The Buffet
When I was a kiddo, my best friend gave me a gigantic PINK copy of a Miss Manners etiquette book that she found on the sale rack at Waldenbooks. Aside from Little Women, it may have been the book with the single biggest influence on my childhood. To this day, I still stand by many of the etiquette rules I learned from that book. Foremost: if you invite people over, you are responsible for feeding them.

Now, my friends are lovely and I know they will all ask to bring things, so I usually make Miss Manners shiver in her knickers and mention in the invite that people are welcome to bring snacks and drinks - it saves a step, since I know that they will anyway. However, I plan as if no one will bring anything - to run out of food at a party is my worst nightmare.

So, to feed the multitudes, I've discovered a simple solution: a sandwich bar. And THIS sandwich bar is both low effort and classy-seeming.

Turkey Sandwich Bar
You need:
Hawaiian rolls (2 per guest)
Condiments (Mustard, Cream Cheese, Cranberry Sauce or Relish -- although I wouldn't put all those together)
Cheese
A turkey roast, cooked and ready for slicing

How to make a turkey roast in your crockpot - 15 min. of effort + 8 hours of cooking time = the most delicious turkey you can imagine. It's also excellent for family holiday dinners.

You need:
An onion
A turkey roast (these are in the freezer section at the grocery store, and are either all white meat or white/dark combo)
A half stick of butter, slightly softened
1 tbsp. of thyme
1 tsp. salt, pepper, rosemary
2-3 crushed cloves of garlic
1/4-1/2 c. vegetable or chicken broth

Step 1: Chop the onion into large chunks (quarters or eighths) and place in the crock pot.

Step 2: Mix the butter with the herbs, spices, and garlic

Step 3: Unwrap the turkey roast. Take the herb butter and rub it all over the roast. If your roast has skin, rub it under the skin. If your roast came with a netting over it, remove the netting first. 

Step 4: Stick the roast in the crock pot, on top of the chopped onion. Pour the broth over the top. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

Step 5: Using a meat thermometer, make sure that it's 160 degrees, at least. Then remove from the crock pot and let it rest for at least 20 minutes before serving. I served it by simply putting it out on the sandwich bar on a cutting board and let people slice their own pieces.

Finger food on the coffee table - mixed nuts, cookies
truffles, and cherry tomatoes.

The Flow
When setting up your party, you want to think about how guests will relate to one another. A good rule of thumb is that you want slightly more people than seems reasonable given the amount of space you have. Why? Won't it be crowded? Exactly. Your guests will be closer together - a party that's just a teensy bit crowded means more talking and interacting.

You also want people to have to move around. That means food shouldn't be all clustered in one place. At this party, I had drinks in the kitchen, buffet on the dining table, and an array of small snacks on the coffee table that didn't demand any utensils or plates.

The Music
I've spent years "curating" (as my pop culture soulmate, AVClub writer Todd VanDerWerff, says) my ideal holiday playlist - a mix of Christmas, Hanukkah, and winter songs. And now I share it with you.

Would you like some prickly pear with that?

As you may know, I am a bit of a cocktail connoisseur. And because of that, I almost never use commercially-produced mixers. Most of them are full of high-fructose corn syrup and fake colors and flavors.


That's why I was excited to see these "Republic Spirit Blends" at Whole Foods. They are from an Austin-based company and are made with agave nectar and cane sugar instead of HFCS. And they have fun flavors like Jalapeno Lime and Pineapple Basil. 


I tried out the Prickly Pear.  It had a nice flavor -- if you've never tried a real prickly pear, it's delicious but hard to eat ... being, you know, prickly.


I'm excited to try these out in sparkling mineral water. Every morning I start the day with some Pellegrino with a little bit of lemonade or orange juice, and this will be a nice pink alternative.

Light Green Summer Wedding (No... Not Mine!)

For months now, I've been meaning to write a post about a wedding I attended this summer that was a light greenie's dream. So why now? Well, I figure that summer is the time to attend weddings, but winter is the time when people plan weddings. Plus, I'm sure a few engagements happened last Valentine's week, and lots of brides are thinking about their visions for this important ceremony. Weddings are a big deal, but they don't have to destroy the planet or your bank account.

Half a lifetime ago (almost literally) I had the good fortune to be adopted as a family member into my best friend's family. There's nothing better than having a spare family around. I'm that maudlin person who thinks about the children who have no families, and can't believe her luck to be granted an extra one!


So when the little sister got married this summer, I was psyched. Not only was it a great celebration, but there was a (green) simplicity and a sense of fun that made it a glorious day all around. My blog friend, Sara of 2000dollarwedding,   is all about weddings that stress community, commitment, and connection, and I feel  like this was a day that focused on all of those things.

So what made this wedding a green-friendly experience that linked friends and family? And how might you create the same kind of experience?

The Setting

The wedding was held on a working farm that belonged to friends of the couple. Many of the flowers and veggies came from the farm. While the bridal party was being photographed, the kiddos were communing with the cows and turkeys. The ceremony itself was held in a clearing in the woods. The tables were laid out on the lawn. It was all beautiful because nature is beautiful. Lots of expensive and ungreen additions weren't necessary.


OK, you might be thinking. That's great, but I don't know anyone with a farm.

Some of the most fun, most connected weddings I've been to have been in backyards. Dancing in the garage often beats a ballroom.


Take-away: When planning a wedding (or other events, for those of us who are not bridally-inclined) think about non-traditional spaces that you might have access to - backyards, garages, farms, businesses, etc.

The Guest List
I know that many folks don't want the kiddos at their special day - kids cry and are noisy, they spill stuff, they have needs and schedules and require a truckload stuff like toys and diapers and bottles and blankies. Nevertheless, personally, I love it when life's passages include little ones. It just seems appropriate. I mean - moments like the ones below are absolutely precious and emphasize the connection between generations.

The picture at left is one of my favorites from the day. This is me and my friend John during the ceremony - we were on kid duty and just hung out in the back chatting. I didn't mind hanging out with my little buddy during the vows. It kept the chill, casual vibe going.


Take-away: When entertaining (especially for important and memorable life events) include the guests that YOU want close to you, rather than feeling obligated to include everyone you've ever met or to exclude people (like youngsters) just because your mom doesn't want crying babies around. Yes, this can cause some drama, but there's enough written about how to navigate the sensitive subject of the guest list that you should be able to prepare yourself. And, you can just blame Mama Earth as necessary ("Mom, I'm sorry, I can't invite your yoga classmates. It will make our carbon footprint way too large!")




Decorations

Mostly, the outdoors were the decorations. There were some simple wildflower bouquets here and there, and the centerpieces were natural wood rounds and mason jars. 


Take-away: Nature is the best decoration. And the cheapest.

Apparel:
This is the bride, my friend Caitlin. Isn't she gorgeous? 


Everyone in the "bridal party" found their own dresses at regular stores (gasp!). I know that many ladies have a Cinderella fantasy that's been sold to us by a whole industry that wants us to spend a lot of money and use a lot of resources so they can profit. I mean, tulle is often made from petroleum products. I don't think anyone who wants a fancy gown should be judged, but there are lots of options these days for eco-friendly gals to wear non-traditional duds or to recycle or repurpose a dress someone else wore. If you want your own new gown, you might think of ways to offset the environmental toll. Planting a tree with your sweetie would be one special way.


Take-away: Cinderella's just a story.  A girl or guy should be able to wear whatever they want!


What have been the best green touches at weddings or parties you've attended?

Recipe - Golden Summer Sangria

One of my favorite things about summer in the Northwest, where I'm from, is that you can sit on your porch for long evening hours, soaking in the golden sunlight drifting through the leaves until nine or later.

I tried sitting on my Houston porch the other night, but there were little flying cockroaches buzzing all around. I went inside.

Still, for those lazy evenings when you and your friends are sitting around (on the porch or just pretending) this is the perfect drink. It's easy to make and tastes like summer.

A couple of notes: sangria is best when it has some time to sit, so tryto make this at least 4 hours before you want to drink it - but if you don't, it will still be good. Also, as you know, your recipe will be greener if you use organic ingredients. Even if you do use organic, wash your fruit in a mixture of vinegar and water to remove badness.

Golden Summer Sangria

This recipe should serve 5 or so friends. Cut it in half, add more, use different fruit ... it's very forgiving.

Ingredients:

white grape juice

blueberries

1.5 cups of gin or vodka

1/4-1/3 cup simple syrup (I used lavender-infused, but you can make your own by boiling one part sugar with one part water.)

2-3 nectarines

2-3 plums

1 lemon

1 lime

2 bottles sauvignon blanc or dryish white wine

club soda

Step 1:

Fill an ice cube tray with the white grape juice and drop 2-3 blueberries in each space. Put these in the freezer (They are not going to turn completely firm - they will be a little slushy, like homemade popsicles)

Step 2:

In a large pitcher or punch bowl, mix the gin or vodka with the simple syrup. Then cut up all of your fruit - the nectarines and plums into eighths, the lemon and lime into thin slices. As you're cutting, put the pieces into the alcohol to soak.

Step 3:

Pour the wine into the pitcher. Stir, and then put the whole thing into the fridge for at least 4 hours.

Step 4:

Serve with the white grape-blueberry ice cubes (to keep the drink from getting watered down) and a splash of club soda in each glass.

Step 5:

Keep an eye on your guests! The fruit soaks up a lot of alcohol; I've known folks to get a little loopy after eating the fruit in the bottom of the punch bowl. Make sure that all of your guests are responsible with their keys. Summer is always better when everyone is safe.

Light Green + 2000 Dollar Wedding = Beautiful Music

Hey, there! I just wanted to let you know that I have a guest post featured on 2000 Dollar Wedding today! No, I'm not getting married. The post is about being intentional in thinking about your bridal party -- because I'm an expert at being a bridesmaid.

In case you're not familiar with 2000 Dollar Wedding, it's a blog about creative, fun, community-oriented and environmentally-friendly weddings; basically, it's a perfect fit for Light Green. Even if you're not getting married, I highly recommend it as a place to go for DIY and entertaining ideas, as well as ruminations about making space for intention in your life and relationships.

Grammy's Birthday

My grandmother had her 85th birthday in May!

The whole family got together at my Aunt Debi's house for an "Al Fresco Birthday Luncheon". It turned out to be a beautiful day, with family, friends, and good food.

My aunt's vision for the lunch was an Italian theme, and she has a big patio in the hills above Ojai, California, so it was easy to pretend we were actually in Italy.

There were also lots of ecologically-friendly touches throughout the day. It struck me that you could use similar strategies to increase the greenness of any party - even a small wedding.

Tables and Chairs

There was one long table outside; it was just a bunch of smaller tables put end to end. Since the party was going to have a relaxed vibe, it didn't matter that the chairs and tables didn't match. It seems like the desire for entertaining perfection, fueled by all the lifestyle magazines out there, is the enemy of green living, because it forces people to consume more. If you want everything to match, then most of us aren't going to be able to use the stuff we have on hand.

Place Settings

Rather than use paper, plastic, or even bamboo, we used china plates and real silverware. How did we have enough place settings for everyone? Simple - Aunt Deb borrowed a set of dishes from my mom. Again, it didn't matter if everything matched. I thought it looked as beautiful as something out of Martha Stewart, even if it wasn't "perfect."

They rented wine glasses, but didn't go overboard being green. With a bunch of cousins under the age of 10 running around, there were plastic cups on hand for the little ones. Of course, those can be recycled!

Centerpieces

The centerpieces were white roses from my aunt's garden, as well as framed pictures from my grandmother's life. Family members brought the pictures they already had on hand, which meant we weren't printing new ones or buying new frames.

Flowers produced commercially can be extremely damaging to the environment. Use the ones you grow yourself, and you know exactly what chemicals were used -- plus, they haven't been refrigerated and transported over thousands of miles, saving energy costs.

Food and Family

We cooked the feast ourselves, and everyone had a great time. It was so fabulous to be together, and it was great knowing that the our celebration wasn't harming the Earth.

Entertaining doesn't have to be an excuse to increase consumption. Just a few simple steps, and a willingness to prioritize joy over perfection, can mean a celebration that everyone can enjoy without feeling any green guilt in the morning.

"Flirting", Food & Friends

Flirting.

It means to show casual interest in something. If you're flirting with that cute bartender, you have a little mini-romance that lasts a few minutes. You meet, the relationship develops, you break up ... all before he puts that gin and tonic on the counter. But ... there's always the possibility of a longer-term romance.

Alicia Silverstone suggests that you can also flirt with a plant-based diet. My friends Jenn, Amanda and I have started a supper club to have little romances with the wonderful recipes in Alicia's book The Kind Diet. (Click here to visit Alicia's website, The Kind Life -- if you've read this blog for awhile, you know that I'm pretty enamored of Alicia's recipes).

Our hostess, mixing miso.

Why is it kinder to eat a plant-based diet? Well, one reason is that it's better for the earth, and hence for everyone living on it. Jenn, Amanda and I all have long-term commitments to various levels of greener eating (I'm the lightest green, because I eat poultry; Amanda is the greeniest, because she's a vegetarian).

Jenn hosted the first supper club meeting, and she chose "Rice Waffles with Vegetable Melange" for dinner -- except none of us had a waffle maker, so we made pancakes instead.

Jenn and Amanda pore over the cookbook.

All of us took part in the cooking. I was in charge of the vegetable-chopping; Amanda took control of the pancakes; Jenn directed the whole operation.

We were a little nervous about the pancakes. They were made with whole cooked brown rice, and we weren't sure how they would cook up. After a little trial and error, however, we got beautiful, golden-brown pancakes:

The vegetable melange included carrots, onions, broccoli, and seitan, which is an alternative protein made with wheat gluten. Seitan is probably my favorite meat substitute; it has a consistency a lot like chicken. In fact, the concept of this dish reminded me of a Southern classic: chicken and waffles. Only this meal was a lot healthier, for us and for the planet. And who doesn't love using the word melange? Melanges are cool.

The meal turned out to be delicious and innovative. It was wonderful to take a break from work, to cook and share stories with friends. In fact, this was how enjoyable the evening was:

I promised Jenn and Amanda that I would post this silly picture of myself if they were going to be featured on the blog!

We had such a great time that we're planning to do it again in a couple of weeks.

Yankee Dirty White Elephant Santa Swap

You know the game, although you may know it by another name:

White Elephant

Dirty Santa

Yankee Swap

It's a holiday tradition in many families and workplaces, a gift exchange in which goodwill and generosity go out the window in favor of Machiavellian maneuvering for the perfect gift. Wikipedia explains the rules like this:

"Each person takes a turn choosing a gift. The first person picks a gift, opens it and shows it to the rest of the company. Then the number two participant picks a gift and chooses to either unwrap it or to exchange it for the previously unwrapped gift. If the gift is exchanged, the person who had their gift taken from them gets to unwrap the chosen gift and then the turn passes. When all the gifts have been opened, the game is over."

There are many variations, but the general theme is the same no matter where you are: show no mercy. Who cares what that baby Jesus said!

Often, these exchanges come with directives to spend $10 or less on a gift that no one would really want -- which just seems to add more junk to the world that will eventually get thrown away. So, why not add an element of green to your exchange this year?

Some greener ideas:

Wine:

Who doesn't want a bottle of wine? At the last Gleetini Night of the year, my regular gang swapped wine, and the trading got vicious as the cabernet sauvignon was the hot item of the night.

Cookies:

At many cookie swaps, participants have to bring dozens and dozens of cookies. But where's the fun in that? Then nobody has to choose what kind they want. When there's only one dozen of Aunt Suzie's coveted S'more Delights, you'd bet the swapping will get crazy.

Already-Read Books (or Never-Read, but sitting on your shelf)

Trading books is a great way to bring friends together. But fighting over books? That's even better.

"Previously-owned" Items

A common way to play White Elephant is to bring gifts that have already been used. Not only does this cut back on consumption, it can result in lots of crazy gifts getting into the mix. One of my all-time favorite White Elephant gifts was an antique radio tube like the ones you see above. It decorated my room for years.

What are you going to bring to your gift exchange?

Party Planet

You may have noticed that I'm a big fan of parties, party food, and party drink. But it's a proven fact that a party that is bad for Mama Earth is 42.3% less fun than a party that is eco-friendly.

Therefore, when I was invited to a potluck, I decided to try a recipe from Alicia Silverstone's cookbook The Kind Diet, which is dedicated to recipes that are easy on the earth because they are all vegan.

I settled on Artichoke, Mushroom, and Leek Crostini, which was also featured on Oprah earlier this year (click here to find the recipe on Oprah's website).

To save time, I used store-bought pesto instead of the homemade that the recipe calls for, and I mixed it with the homemade artichoke spread. I also couldn't find some of the Asian ingredients, like umeboshi vinegar, so I substituted white wine.

Fresh cut leeks are always gorgeous.

The crostini turned out to be a delicious and very sophisticated dish. They did take a little while together, so give yourself time if you're going to try these out. All in all, however, I highly recommend them.

3, 2, 1 ... Cocktails!

In my last post, I wrote about my eco party preparations, and promised that cocktail recipes would follow. And because I'm a girl of her word, this post contains said cocktail recipes.

Cocktail ingredients.

Classic cocktails are hip these days. Whether its the influence of Mad Men, or the greening of our culture, every major city seems to have its own micro-distilleries making small-batch bourbon, and bartenders dredging up old-school recipes for the perfect martini or old-fashioned. In Houston, Bobby and Kevin, proprietors of Anvil Bar and Refuge, keep cocktail culture alive and well. Happily, the classic cocktail culture eschews ungreen ingredients like high-fructose corn-syrup and artificially-flavored mixers.

I can honestly say (and not in a I'm-hipper-than-thou way, but in a I-drank-my-first-gin-martini-with-my-parents way) that cocktails are sorta my thing. And I love the classics. They are easy to concoct, yet elusive to master; they taste elemental; and you sound cool ordering them. Nevertheless, as a hostess, I know that not all of my friends dig the classics. Hence, I've developed the 3,2,1 system.

The 3,2,1 system is a nearly foolproof method for devising cocktails which satisfy your friends who like a fruity drink, yet remain sophisticated enough that Don Draper would still recognize them. When creating a recipe, if you stick to a formula like this one, you won't go (too) wrong:

3 parts spirits

2 parts fresh-squeezed lemon or lime juice (or other fruit if you want to get crazy)

1 part simple syrup (could be infused if you planned ahead)

This formula can easily be adjusted slightly. Don't like sweet? Dial down the simple syrup. Amp the lime. Want to keep the sweet but add astringency? Dial up the spirits. Soon you'll be able use this system flexibly to create drinks like the ones I served at my happy hour.

Mad Women Cocktails

I decided to dedicate these to the women of Mad Men, characters who might chafe at the restrictions placed upon their sex, but look great doing it.

Betty Draper's Mint Gimlet

On Mad Men, the gimlet is Betty Draper's drink of choice. The gimlet is a drink that perfectly reflects Betty -- the frozen shock of gin mixed with the tart sting of lime, softened by a hint of sugar. This season, however, Betty has truly lost the life she once craved ... and what better to represent the fading of summer than fresh mint? The green leaves wave to Betty like her lost youth.

3 parts gin (or vodka)

2 parts fresh-squeezed lime juice

1 part mint-infused simple syrup (Click here for the recipe)

Mint

Put a couple of mint leaves and ice in a shaker. Bash with the handle of a wooden spoon. Imagine that it's your father and then cry for betraying him. Put all liquid ingredients in the shaker and, you know ... shake. Strain. Garnish with mint leaves. Drink while appearing to have absolutely no feelings, yet with every sip feeling the stabbing loss of the life you once had.

Joan Holloway's Lavender Lemondrop

Joan is no shrinking violet. Hence, lavender might be her flower of choice. It's softly lovely, yet if you get too close to a stand of lavender, you'll no doubt find it bursts with bees. This lemondrop takes a step up in sophistication from the lemondrop you've no doubt had at a hotel bar.

3 parts vodka

2 parts fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1 part lavender simple syrup (I used the Sonoma Syrup Co. brand, which has can sugar instead of high-fructose-corn syrup)

Lemon twist

Mix liquid ingredients in a shaker. Strain. Garnish with lemon twist. Drink while looking askance at the immature little boys who run the firm where you work.

Peggy Olson's Whiskey on the Rocks

Peggy's not fancy. She's in new territory for a woman at her firm as she rises through the advertising ranks from secretary to copywriter. To succeed, Peggy's become incredibly adaptable, drinking what her boss drinks -- and that's whiskey.

2 oz. whiskey

Rocks (but if you don't have any, because you're drinking in your office at noon like the Mad Men just imagine them)

A dash bitters, if you're feeling sassy

Pour the whiskey in a glass. Drink standing up in your boss's office while he berates you.

Cranberry Sauced

As my loyal Light Greenies (I think there are about 20 of you now!) know, "mixology," or the art of creating cocktails, is a hobby of mine. This hobby gets a workout every Wednesday night when my friends get together for "Glee-tini Night." We laugh, we drink 'tinis, and we debate the relative merits of Puck and Finn.

Last week, I created a cranberry martini to celebrate our last big Glee-tini Night before everyone headed off for the holiday. As they say on Top Chef, I wanted to mimic the "flavor profile" of cranberry sauce -- but not the kind that comes in a can. My mom always made fresh cranberry sauce each Thankgiving, a sweet-tart taste explosion that makes the canned version curl up and cry in a corner. Those flavors include cranberries, of course, along with orange zest and sugar.

I also wanted to green my cocktail. Many flavored vodkas and cocktail mixes are chock-full of fun things like high-fructose corn syrup and and the ubiquitous "natural and artificial flavors." While no one can claim that a martini is healthy, it can be made healthier for the planet if you infuse your own vodka with organic goodies. Here's how to do it:

To make Orange-infused Vodka:

Ingredients:

4 tsp. organic sugar

4 oz. H2O

1 organic orange

10 oz. vodka

Step 1: Mix the sugar and water in a microwaveable container. Microwave on high for about 1 min, or until the sugar is dissolved.

Step 2: Wash your orange well (you can use white vinegar to kill the H1N1 that might have migrated from some kid's hand to your orange while it was happily nesting with the other oranges in the grocery store). Cut the orange into pieces and leave on the peel! -- that's what's going to give it that zesty, orangey goodness.

Step 3: Mix your sugar water, orange pieces, and vodka in one container. Mash up the oranges with a spoon if you want. Then stick the whole thing in the fridge for 2-3 hours.

Step 4: Strain it all and put the orange vodka in the freezer.

That's it. You're going to use that orange vodka to make your

Cranberry-Sauced Martini.

Ingredients

2 parts orange vodka

1/2-1 part pure cranberry juice (NOT cranberry juice cocktail)

dash orange bitters

ice

organic sugar

curl of orange peel

Step 1: Rim martini glass with sugar. To do this shake the sugar out onto a plate. Dip the rim of the glass in water or a squeeze of lemon juice. Then swirl the glass in the sugar. Click here for a pic of how to do this.

Step 2: In your ice-filled cocktail shaker (or plastic tumbler or bar glass) mix the vodka, cranberry juice, and bitters. Shake, shake, shake ... well, you know the rest.

Step 3: Strain into your prepared martini glass. Garnish with the orange peel.

Step 4: Toast to something you are thankful for.

I am thankful for you, Light Greenies -- all 20 of you. I am thankful for my amazing nephew H., and the wonderful nieces and nephews that I am not related to by blood, but by love. I am thankful for my amazing mom and dad, my fabulous sister and her great husband, and the family of friends that I have here in Houston and in the PacNW (you pronounce that PackNoo).

I am thankful for the existence of French fries and pie. I am thankful for Joss Whedon. I am thankful for stories. And I am thankful for the proliferation of dance shows. So with that, I leave you a Thanksgiving gift ...

DIY Valentine's Day - It's Not Too Late

So, Valentine's Day is not my favorite holiday, being, as it is, a commercial-fest of consumerism, blah-blah ... you know all the arguments about how the greeting card companies make us feel bad if we're not part of the celebration in order to amp up our holiday spending. I felt a little discouraged seeing the last-minute shoppers cruising Kroger, trying to find something - FAST - for that special someone. They were even selling plates of cheese pre-cut into hearts. I might find myself questioning someone who doesn't have time to cut heart-shaped cheese themselves (there's a joke in there somewhere, but I just can't get it.)

Luckily, the tough economy, according to this NPR story, has led more people to make their own holiday gifts and cards. That seems more meaningful than the plate of heart-shaped brie - unless your sweetie really loves cheese. Even though it's late in the day, there's still time to DIY for your loved ones. Here are a few ideas (and at the end of the post, find an alternative to Valentine's Day)



I absolutely love these Anatomically-correct Hearts from cheekymagpie.com. Just click the link for the template.

I traced the template onto craft paper and cut it out. Then you just fold it in half and you get a lovely, 3-dimensional heart. All-in-all, it takes about 5 minutes and looks gorgeous.

An inspiring quotation makes a nice addition to your card. You can find some great quotations about love here, at Wisdom Quotes. These are great because they aren't the same ol', same ol'. Gotta love any site that includes Albert Einstein in its page on love.

Now, I haven't tried Nigella Lawson's Valentine cupcakes, but I listened to her describe them on NPR yesterday, and I definitely mean to. Make them for a sweetie with a sweettooth. The chocolate cherry ones sound especially tasty, and quick to make. I also like the way Nigella describes how the competitive world of boarding school produced in her a "lofty detachment" toward the holiday. You go, Nigella!

Mix-tapes are a traditional gift from one disturbed teen to another. For you music lovers, check out the iTunes store. The "Essentials - Crazy Love" mix contains all the stories of whacked out romance you can handle, including "Stan" by Eminem, "Ben" by Michael Jackson, and "Under My Thumb" by the Rolling Stones. Get it for someone you stalk.

Finally, for those of you singletons who are perfectly content to be single, check out International Quirkyalone Day. This holiday, to quote the website, is: "a do-it-yourself celebration of romance, friendship, and independent spirit. It's a celebration of all kinds of love: romantic, platonic, familial, and yes, self-love. International Quirkyalone Day is not anti-Valentine's Day. It's NOT a pity party for single people. It's an alternative--a feel-good alternative to the marketing barrage of Valentine's Day and an antidote to the silicone version of love presented in shows such as Hooking Up and The Bachelor."

And who can't find the love for that?

DIY Sunday

Blood Orange Martinis

Note: DIY Sunday will be a semi-regular feature about the craftiness (or entertaininess) that lies within us.

Recently, I read somewhere that because of the recession more people will be skipping the bars and drinking at home. So why not hold an economic stimulus happy-hour and serve these blood orange martinis? With one of these in hand, your friends will forget they're not paying for their drinks, and you'll have the satisfaction of being a DIY bartender extraordinaire.

I'm not obsessive about local/organic produce; I buy it when I can afford it. I do, however, try to choose fruits in season. To make a vast generalization, they should have a lower carbon footprint (if they're in season, they don't have to travel as far ... theoretically) and should be tastier, and grown under more natural conditions. Apples and pears in the fall, berries in summer, citrus fruits in winter ... I anxiously await late winter for blood oranges. You can usually find them at natural markets (Whole Foods, Central Market, Huckleberry's, or farmers' markets if you're in southern climes) during January and February. And then poof! they're gone. That's why I try to make this recipe as often as possible during that brief period.

Blood oranges have a slightly-perfumey, almost strawberry-like flavor. Lime adds a tang. The cocktail is so delicious, you might want to warn your guests of the punch it packs.

Ingredients (for 2 large or 3 medium cocktails):

3-4 oz. vodka (depending upon how strong you like your cocktails)
2-3 blood oranges
1 lime
Splash triple sec
Ice
You'll also need a cocktail shaker or some facsimile (pub glass and spoon would work fine)

Step 1: Slice the oranges in half. Before you squeeze them, use a small paring knife to slice off a twist of rind. Set this aside. Using a juicer, or your own strength, squeeze the blood oranges. You want about 2 oz. of juice. Set aside the blood orange juice and squeeze the lime in the same manner.

Step 2: Pour the vodka, fruit juices, and a splash triple sec into the shaker filled with ice. Shake, shake, shake.

Step 3: Place the twist of orange rind into a martini glass, and pour the cocktail in. Happy pink drinking to follow!

Enjoy!Note: You can make all kinds of fun, fruity, and surprisingly-potent vodka cocktails using this same formula and any fruit you choose in place of the vodka.

Thanks to my friend Kelly who provided the photo styling (and the shaker, kitchen, and glassware) for this post.