Facebook Twitter This sausage and sauerkraut dish is a holiday tradition my mom always served to bring health, wealth, and prosperity in the New Year. Print Recipe Sausagekraut Serves: 16 servings Total time: 2 hours Ingredients 3 lbs Polish kielbasa sausage 12 cups water 1 (27 oz) can crispy sauerkraut ⅔ cup barley 5 teaspoons caraway seeds 6 cups water 6 medium potatoes Salt and pepper Instructions Place sausage in a large pot with 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour. Meanwhile, drain and rinse sauerkraut. Place sauerkraut, barley, and carawa ..read more

Facebook Twitter Each New Year, people around the world eat specific foods to summon good luck for the next 365 days. Some popular traditions call for greens, legumes, pork, grains, noodles, and fish. All are symbols of health, wealth, and prosperity for the coming year. Hoppin’ John, Greens, and Cornbread (Photo: Spoon And Chair) Starting the new year with a mess of greens, Hoppin’ John or black-eyed peas, and corn bread is a southern tradition said to bring you luck and prosperity in the New Year. According to tradition you are to have 365 peas (one for each day of the year), yellow corn b ..read more

Facebook Twitter Oh, how easy it would be if all you had to do to simplify your life was eliminate, toss out, throw away the stuff you didn’t want or need and keep the rest. Essentially, that’s one way to simplicity. But simplifying also means reducing the complexity of life by rejecting, on some level, the busy, materialistic, super-sized culture we are all caught up in. click to download a copy Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumbnail ..read more

Facebook Twitter Designed by James Radin. (Photo: Cote de Texas) Once upon a time, when I was seriously considering buying a white couch, my mother dismissed the idea with a wave of her hand. “That,” she said, “is simply not practical.” She was right. I had two children, a dog, and a cat . . . not to mention, a husband who worked with horses. We were a clean bunch, and our house was always neat as a pin, but white in our family room would be hard to keep clean. “Something darker and patterned would be better,” she said. “It won’t show the dirt.” I bristle whenever I hear people sa ..read more

Facebook Twitter A warm, savory soup with thick French bread soaking in beef broth and sautéed onion, and ooey smothered in gooey cheese. What’s not to like? Print Recipe Easy French Onion Soup for 2 Serves: 2 servings Total time: 25 mins Ingredients 2 tablespoons butter 1 large sweet onion Pinch of salt 3 cup beef broth ½ teaspoon black pepper 1 bay leaf 2 thick slices of French bread 3 slices Swiss cheese Instructions In a medium-sized pot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Peel and quarter the onion; then slice it thinly. Place onion slices in melted butter. Add a pinch of salt and sa ..read more

Facebook Twitter While I love the optimism of New Year’s resolutions, enthusiasm and hope often fades within weeks and my efforts at self-improvement come to a whimpering end. Let’s face it—most of us fail when it comes to sticking to resolutions. Caught up in the excitement of the New Year, we make lofty promises to ourselves—we’re going to do this, that, and the other thing. We expect too much and set ourselves up for failure. Yet, we are eternally hopeful when the New Year comes around believing, without any credible evidence, that we can improve our lives . . . change is possibl ..read more

Facebook Twitter This may not hold true for everyone, but for me there is nothing quite as soothing as enjoying my first cup of coffee in the still of the morning knowing my house is clean. Clean means less clutter. Everything is neatly in place. Only the basics—those things that provide beauty, functionality, and comfort—are in the room. This simplifies my daily chores and frees up time for me to pursue hobbies, explore other interests, and enjoy the simple pleasures life has to offer. It doesn’t take much to remove clutter, simplify, and organize with the purpose of making life easier and m ..read more

Facebook Twitter One holiday tradition that never gets old is baking Christmas cookies and treats. Feast your eyes on these lovelies that will sweeten any holiday party, cookie swap, or gift-giving cookie tin. Linzer Star Christmas Cookies (Photo: Betty Crocker) Easiest Gingerbread Cookies (Recipe: Supergolden Bakes) Holiday Pretzel Treats (Photo: Katrina Runs for Food) Brown Sugar Roll-Out Cookies (Photo: The Sweet Adventures of Sugarbelle) Cranberry White Chocolate (Photo: Haute Apple Pie) Dried Cranberry and Almond Jumbles (Photo: Family Friendly Food) Ree’s Favorite Christmas ..read more

Facebook Twitter Gathering family and friends together is one of the greatest joys of the holiday season. You want guests to feel welcome and comfortable in your home, and Christmas offers a perfect opportunity to spruce it up (pun intended). Start with the tree and bask in its glow. Decorate the mantel. Adorn the staircase with garland and ribbon. Deck the halls with boughs of holly. Hang mistletoe. Bring out the Christmas bears and Santas. Light candles, the more the merrier. Dress your holiday table in gold or silver and glassware in vibrant jewel tones. Add a welcoming wreath on the front ..read more

Facebook Twitter I love mornings. Morning is my favorite time of day. I rise before the sun and enjoy my coffee in the dark . . . tasting the rich, warm liquid and savoring the stillness in our home, the peaceful hush, the chance to think without distractions. Many people are alive, but don’t touch the miracle of being alive. —Thich Nhat Hanh Though savoring is usually associated with eating something delicious, like decadent chocolate, it can apply to just about anything. At some point in your life you’ve certainly savored chocolate—you’ve taken a piece of the chocolate into your m ..read more