by CRYSTAL JOHNSON

It is officially COLD in Nashville! We even had a sprinkling of snow throughout the day. This isn't my first chili of the year - but I've changed my recipe a little so I'm posting an update and adding some red wine ideas. Since we eat this a lot in fall and winter I've tried it with several kinds of wine and I have a few favorites. It's so interesting to read about and hear what wines people prefer paired with foods. It varies so widely and i'm always up for trying a new comb

It has been COLD here and we've had snow in Atlanta twice in the past few weeks! So, I'm all about comfort food for the moment. I love a good Bolognese sauce for sure-but spaghetti and meatballs happens to be the go-to comfort food pasta dish at our house. I've started making extra meatballs to freeze since I found out they cook PERFECTLY from frozen in heated sauce. It makes a quick meal with no compromise on taste. I’ll add more details below. This recipe was shared with m

Beef Bourguignon is one of my favorite cold weather meals that I make multiple times throughout fall and winter. I've tried several recipes and Ina Garten's is my go-to. It has a ton of flavor and easy instructions. I've been focusing on eating more plants since January AND it has been cold in Atlanta so I have been craving the flavors and comfort-food-tummy-warming feeling that Beef Bourguignon brings. Using the blueprint of Ina's recipe combined with some flavor boosting i

My favorite holiday for sure! I love that it means time with family and friends AND that it means yummy, once-a-year dishes. I'll be headed home to Tennessee for Thanksgiving this year so, no huge meal-planning for me, but maybe someone wants last-minute ideas. I'll see my Memaw, pictured below, who is responsible for all the holiday traditions on my mom's side of the family. To say we love her is an understatement! When I don't make it home to TN I host Thanksgiving in Atlan

The first time I made Thanksgiving at home I was walking through all the typical dishes with my husband to see what we wanted to have and he asked about squash casserole. I'd had it before but needed a recipe so I checked the little cookbook from the church I grew up in. I know almost every lady who shared a recipe in that book and have very fond memories of them. I still think of the poeple there in that tiny church as a community who care about and want the best for each ot

I might be the only person who specifically asks for this one at my Memaw's Thanksgiving. It's a yummy cranberry sauce/relish that brings a lot of texture. I can eat this alone with no turkey...love it! INGREDIENTS 1 package fresh Cranberries, rinse, then simmer in about a half cup of water until they pop **Cranberries can also be finely chopped from fresh-no cooking OR you can use 1 can of Cranberries 2 Oranges, 1 peeled, 1 whole, chopped 1/2 cup Pecans, chopped 1/2 cup pine

I recently asked a few friends what they were looking for or looking forward to for the holidays. Ever since, I have one friend - whom I've known since I was five and grown up with - who says to post deviled eggs and keeps sending me hilarious Tik-Toks related to deviled eggs ever since. So this is for my oldiest-moldiest friend Heather B. These are such a Southern classic. I've grown up eating deviled eggs and sometimes forget about them until encountered at a dinner or holi

Some recipes bring to mind a specific person, time or place. This one does all of those things! My former roommate and good friend, Courtnie, was always like a sister and even shared her family. I ended up calling her Aunt Pam by the same name she did. The whole family was always sweet, supportive AND super fun! I remember lots of laughing anytime they were all together. This recipe has become part of my Thanksgiving menu. I've tried many mac and cheese recipes over the years

This recipe comes from my friend Robyn and I dare say it has replaced green bean casserole in my house. I love both...but this is a crowd-pleaser and we really do enjoy it for special occasions (as it is really rich). INGREDIENTS 5 cans whole green beans, or 32-48 ounces fresh green beans, boiled to fork-tender 1 package bacon (not super thick) ½ cup butter 1 cup brown sugar INSTRUCTIONS Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Lay 1 piece of bacon flat and top with a bundle o

It's a weeknight and you got stuck in traffic heading home or you just don't want to spend so much time in the kitchen. Everyone has a go-to for those nights and mine is always salmon if I'm trying to be healthy. It might be pasta if I'm not trying to be healthy;) I probably make this once a week. It's fresh, tasty and easy for a healthy meal. I'd still make it if I had all day to plan and cook-and that is what makes it post-able! Ingredients -Salmon, 2 portions (1.25 lbs) -O

I hope you all are off to a great start this year! I took time in December to get ready for the holidays and relax. I'm focusing on health/wellbeing so far this year and for me that means creating some healthier habits and making them more routine. I've started with diet, not that I'm following a known diet, just that I'm trying to make good choices that will benefit me going forward. I feel best when I'm eating lots of fresh vegetables and fruit plus healthy fats and light p

Happy Thanksgiving! Nothing extra is really necessary for dressing up butter but I do love this recipe. If you have leftovers it is amazing as the finishing touch to a steak. Butter is still the star here so find a good one! I like to use Kerrygold or Amish butter for this recipe. Sometimes I don’t have unsalted butter and I just use salted butter and a quarter of the salt listed below. A note on room temperature-make sure the butter is truly soft before you try this. It make

Since the best bird I’ve made is a chicken rather than a turkey, we will celebrate with Thanksgiving chickens tomorrow. This recipe is one Keller demonstrated in his Masterclass series and it is amazing! For the roasted chicken : 1 whole chicken 2.5 to 3 pounds 3 rutabagas 2 turnips 2 parsnips 2 large leeks 4 carrots, trimmed and cut in half 1 small onion 8 small red-skinned potatoes Clarified butter (or 1⁄3 cup canola oil) 1 lemon Equipment : Parchment-lined cutting board Pa

I am a huge fan of most potato recipes but when it comes to gratin or scalloped potatoes I find them extra tasty! This recipe uses broth in place of cream. Don’t even begin to think these are lesser for being made without cream. They get a good dose of butter and the perfect amount of cheese. I actually prefer these over the same type with cream. INGREDIENTS 2 lbs boiling potatoes ½ clove unpeeled garlic 6 Tb butter 1 tsp salt ½ tsp black pepper 1 cup grated swiss cheese, emm

This recipe is something I came across when a friend gifted me Masterclass -which I highly recommend! Thomas Keller , renowned chef, spoke about his favorite method for preparing squash and zucchini - so I figured I should try it. It is super simple, and I typically do not even make the sauce described at the end, we just eat it without the sauce. It is yummy enough for a holiday side (especially for a small crowd) or for a weekday dinner. Ingredients 2 pieces zucchini or sum

This is a Barefoot Contessa recipe by Ina Garten and it is WONDERFUL! This is also how I became a fan of a fall cognac cocktail. I bought cognac for the the gravy recipe and had quite a bit left over...enter Google search and "cognac cocktails" - voila, the bottle was put to use. I also must admit how excited I was when we received a gravy boat as a wedding gift from our friend Sonya. She sent a few gifts - but the gravy boat was my favorite - and was something I, until that

The main ingredient in Thanksgiving dressing [at least where I'm from] is cornbread! So you might need a good recipe if you want to take a stab at making dressing. I've tried store bought cornbread to cut out a step of making dressing and I do not recommend it. Some is too sweet or has too much moisture to work well in dressing. This one turns out well each time I've made it - for dressing or as a side for a meal. Cornbread really is better when it is made in a cast iron ski

Every holiday my grandmother, "Memaw," is in the starring role. Growing up we always spent holidays at my grandparents house with alllll the family. Parents and siblings, uncles, great-uncles, aunts, great-aunts, cousins, their families, any friends we wanted to bring - it was open house for holidays. Thanksgiving, circa 1986 All our family members contribute to holiday meals but my Memaw's dressing is the main Thanksgiving attraction. Don't be fooled...that is not her only c

This one is my husband's very favorite meal. Every culture seems to have a particularly special roasted pork dish. In the Southeast United States we have barbecued pork, or pulled pork, that is typically smoked and then served with a signature sauce depending on which region/state you happen to be having that BBQ. We also commonly call pulled pork simply "barbecue" / BBQ / Bar-B-Q / Bar-B-Que in the South. BBQ can also refer to ribs, brisket, anything smoked or cooked on a gr

We are nearing the end of summer - and I am hung up on basil this year so I keep looking for ways to enjoy it while it is growing on my balcony. I've used this recipe as a remoulade sauce with crab cakes - tossed with a little vinaigrette to create a creamier dressing - as a dip for veggies / bread and as the dressing on my turkey sandwich for lunch. I also hope to try it with french fries and as the binder for chicken salad. So here's my latest basil-laden creation. It make