Fight winter doldrums with good-mood maker foods

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been fighting the urge to crawl into bed with a bowl full of macaroni and cheese these days. What gives?

Are you ready for some potato skins?

Growing up in Wisconsin in a house full of die-hard, season ticket-holding Packer fans taught me a thing or two about the sanctity of football. My dad organized a weekly football pool for our family with some pretty high stakes.

Full of (black) beans: An affordable, versatile and easy way to boost winter health

Remember your can opener? That trusty device can be a key to a healthier diet this winter. Canned or fresh, black beans are among the quickest, easiest and cheapest ways to get a natural boost of iron and fiber.

King Cake crowns feasts of Epiphany

The last crumbs of the Bûche de Noël are hardly swept away and it’s time for King Cake. The dessert, a crowning jewel of Epiphany feasts the world over, is not only a Mardi Gras treat.

New Year’s challenge: Take a trip around the world at your table

Let’s face it; New Year’s resolutions aren’t that much fun.

I don’t know anyone who resolves to spend more money, throw more parties, increase caloric intake or exercise less at the turn of a new year, but I imagine those people would have a lot …

Making, baking holiday treats at different times

There is something to be said about having the ability to serve warm, home-baked treats to guests without so much as dirtying the mixer. The answer? The freezer.

Thanksgiving leftovers go gourmet

Come Thanksgiving weekend, we’ll be tripped out on tryptophan. But somehow it won’t be a challenge to muster enthusiasm for hauling out the remains of the bird for yet another meal.

Turkey — and all the trimmings — just seems better the second time around. …

Save room for cupcakes, and other Thanksgiving trends

The mention of gluten-free stuffing would have raised eyebrows around the dining room table in Norman Rockwell’s iconic 1943 painting of Thanksgiving dinner.

Here’s looking at you, Morocco

Richard Mack and Jill Buckner describe themselves as two photographers with one vision. Last May, they spent five days lugging heavy equipment through exotic marketplaces loaded with piles of fresh dates, olives and spices when they visited Marrakesh and Casablanca.

Carving up a pressure free holiday, the best way to slice your bird

Tending to a Thanksgiving turkey as it limps along in a slow oven to golden brown perfection is a labor of love and few folks will argue that a beautiful turkey doesn’t make an impressive centerpiece on a holiday table.

Go big on Thanksgiving by thinking smaller

Everything about Thanksgiving is big; extended tables to fit more family, gargantuan birds that are roasted and served next to vats of mashed potatoes and gallons of gravy.

Thinking outside the pickle jar — preserves star in new recipes

That jar of Grandma’s beloved pickled beets — and many other favorite preserves — will be put to work in some of the season’s trendiest recipes. More and more chefs will not only preserve summer produce this fall, but they will use the preserved foods to enhance the flavor of some of their latest recipes.

Don’t bruise the bourbon, and other tailgate party advice

It’s a sure sign of fall when trails of grill smoke rise above the parking lot of Ryan Field in Evanston on certain Saturday afternoons. It’s tailgate season, and Northwestern University Wildcats fans have back-of-the-truck football party foods tackled.

Pulling for pork: More meat-lovers want choicest cuts

The other white meat, pork, is as popular as ever. And more and more people are coordinating with local pig farmers and roasters to get the freshest, best-tasting pork possible.

Brown sugar and spice and everything pumpkin

Good grief, Charlie Brown. Your 46-year-old holiday television special, “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” is facing more and more competition.

This Halloween, HGTV will broadcast “Pumpkin Wars,” featuring a battle between the cities of Highwood, Ill. and Keene, N.H. The show will air at …