• Show appreciation for your host with compliments. Notice the clean house, the fresh flowers, the pretty candles, the well-behaved dog, etc., stop your host in mid-frenzy and deliver a sincere compliment.
• Play with the children. Bring coloring books, stuffed animals, a board game, something that inspires the imagination.  Spend part of your time on the floor with the kids.
• Say I’ve missed you or I care about you. Start the day off on the right foot by sending love and being loving.
• Talk a walk.  If the weather permits, ask everyone to go for a walk with you.  Those who want to, will, just don’t leave anyone out. Appreciate the fall colors.
• Decide how you want to remember your day before it begins. Be thankful.

Happiness is a Warm Cookie, Charles M. Schulz

• 2  boneless skinned turkey breasts (about 3/4 lb each)
• 1 tbls olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced white onion
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 1/4 cup diced ham
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 2 tbls dry sherry
• 1/2 cup cooked shrimp (no tails)
• 2 cups bread cubes (from a baguette)
• 2 cups bread cubes (from corn bread)
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1 egg (beaten)
• salt & pepper

Preheat the oven to 425° and coat the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil.  Prepare the bread crumbs by tearing the baguette and corn bread** into small pieces to make 4 cups.

Saute the onions, celery, ham and cayenne for about 3 minutes.  Add the sherry and shimmer until nearly evaporated, then toss in the shrimp and season with salt and pepper.  Immediately remove and put in large mixing bowl.  Stir in the bread crumbs, broth, egg and parsley.

Beat each turkey breast until flattened a bit.  Place a pile of stuffing in the middle of each turkey breast then roll up like a jelly roll.  Place the “rolls” in the baking dish, with the pretty (breast) side up, and the rolled part hidden underneath.  Lightly salt & pepper the breasts.

Put remaining stuffing into another oven proof dish and bake alongside the turkey.

Rum Glaze

• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tbls dark rum
• 1 tbls brown sugar
• 1 tbls molasses

Simmer all glaze ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat for about 4 minutes. Baste the turkey rolls and put them in the oven for 30 minutes; baste every ten minutes.

Serve each guest a turkey roll with stuffing on the side.  I served this with an herb salad pre-mix with thinly sliced anjou pears and shaved Parmesan.  The dressing was equal parts apple cider concentrate and olive oil with diced white onions, and fresh bacon bits.

**I made home made corn bread before I started and used the recipe on the back of the corn meal box and added 1/2 cup corn. I also used butter on the bottom of the baking pan.  If you don’t make home made corn bread, add 1/2 cup corn to your stuffing.

Wine Pairing

The glaze is surprisingly rich and the cayenne brightens the stuffing considerably. I served an Alamos Malbec from Argentina.  It’s an highly rated everyday wine for about $12.

This recipe was inspired by Cusine at Home.

The first rule, and really the only one to really worry about, is that Turkey, being a dry meat, fights with tannin. Tannin is present in different levels in different wines and comes not only from grape skins, but from oak barrels as well. As such, low tannin, fruit-forward reds are highly recommended as are chardonnays with well integrated oak and tropical fruit profiles not to mention off-dry rieslings and fruity roses.

In the hustle and busyness of the holiday season, it’s so easy to get fatigued, to be grumpy or to feel lonely or put upon.  It helps when I remember to make a choice as often as I can rather then let my life run away from me. When I choose to… take a nap instead of powering through a project, put off an errand to take a walk with the dog, sit down with a snack and leaf through a magazine…I’m training myself to take it easy.

And the best part?  My relaxed, happy mood is contagious.

When buying Rosé, sparkling or otherwise, I like to try different varietals, but my favorite continues to be Rosés made from 100% Pinot Noir.  One of my favorites is made by Lynmar. I’m seeing quite a few Rosés from Northern California lately that are made from Rhone varietals such as Grenache and Mouvedre.  Renwood makes an affordable Rosé from Syrah that is highly-rated.  For sparkling Rosé, I’m looking forward to opening a Rotari Brut, made from 25% chardonnay and 75% Pinot Noir, on Thanksgiving day.  It is a Best Buy from Wine Enthusiast.

(Picture is Hubby with a centerpeice that someone gave me at the Heirloom Tomato Festival in Carmel.)

Traveling to a foreign country at Thanksgiving is a wonderful memory that still makes me smile.

“I am the Lord of these Vines.  I make wine and everybody has a happy heart.”

Inscription above the fireplace at Castello di Amorosa based on a poem written in the 14th Century, loosely translated.

To reactivate your imagination, visit Castello di Amorosa (Castle of Love) near St. Helena in Calistoga.  Dario Sattui, a long-time vintner, followed his imagination and built an authentic, 8-level (including the torture chamber and subterranean passageways) Tuscan-style castle.

There is a fee for touring and tasting (think Disneyland for adults but the tickets are cheaper and you get wine).  Take your time and play in the four levels of underground passageways.  (Look for the bright exit signs when you’re ready to leave because you will get completely lost.)  The passageways are lined with barrels, filled with small lots of artisan Italian varietals.  Snoop around and look for secret passageways (we found one).  When you get to the dungeon/torture room, be careful, the stuff in there is real!  It’s an eerie feeling; but this may be the only time you’ll ever see the implements of medieval torture up close.

After all the fun enjoying the five towers and playing in 107 castle rooms, I was surprisingly enchanted by the main tasting room. It is very welcoming and charming and the staff was animated and knowledgeable about the wines.  I recommend that you taste as many wines as your budget allows; it’s time for grown up activity, savor it!

Make Castello di Amorosa a destination, spend lots of time and don’t see the fee as the usual tasting fee, this place is one-of-a-kind.  I suggest ending your visit with a stop at Greystone for a meal or a snack to complete your day in another cool, old, stone building.

I like this winery because:

• the wine club offers huge discounts (a $45 bottle of wine only costs $36).
• the wines are consistently smooth, rich and great with food.
• I never feel like I have to taste a bottle before serving it to friends…it’s consistent.
• the web site is informative with lots of tasting and pairing notes.

If you have a special occasion coming up, you might want to try a Justin wine, they are comparable to much more expensive wines. Costco and Bevmo are now carrying some of their wine.

**That’s me at the beach when I wasn’t tasting wine!