how ironic that thanksgiving is ruled by sagittarius? the sign of generosity, almost to a fault, rules this holiday of culinary excess (at least to the luckier among us). inspired by martha’s article below, i thought her idea would be a perfect holiday garnish. it’s simple, just prepare a bowl of cut, folded, and slit leaves. upon arrival, ask guests to jot their holiday thanks on the inside of a leaf or two. at dinner, garnish each cocktail with one of the inscribed leaves. Treat them like fortune cookies and have guests read their leaves aloud. or, fill the leaves out yourself before the guests arrive with creative words of gratitude, and serve them on welcome drinks. cheers!

go forth and gather pumpkins dear tipplers. set your infusions now so they are ready for thanksgiving dinner. and while we’re giving thanks, be sure to thank cancer for this concoction. the moon rules the pumpkin due to it’s rather hard outer shell and really soft interior, making it a cancerian fruit or vegetable. even the experts can’t decide on which!

cancers are usually careful and rarely careless. especially when it comes to their home and family. of course who doesn’t want thanksgiving dinner to go exceedingly well? but cancer wants this especially so. they NEED to make sure thanksgiving dinner is just right. well, girl, you can’t go wrong with this one. granted it’s only for the sweet tooth crowd (me). but your guests will be sucking these down hard. kind of like drinking a liquid lollipop… be sure to collect keys at the door, these tend to sneak up on you.

PUMPKIN SPRITZER
2 oz pumpkin-infused gold rum
2 oz beet syrup
cream soda (all natural type, i used boylan’s creme vanilla)

combine rum, beet syrup and stir very well. pour into ice-packed glass and top with cream soda. stir and serve.

PUMPKIN RUM: fill container with cubed pumpkin (you can leave skin on if you wish) and cover with gold rum. allow to sit for 1-2 weeks and strain.

BEET SYRUP: one of the many eclectic ingredients this giant swedish furniture store sells. who knew that beet syrup was used in ginger snap cookies!? one taste and you will see that it tastes just like a liquid gingersnap cookie. add 1 c beet syrup to 2 cups water and heat on stove until dissolved. add splash vodka and store in fridge.

the pumpkin is ruled by cancer. it’s hard exterior and sloppy insides are tres typical of most cancerian produce and all members of the family cucurbitaceae, which includes cucumbers, melons, squash, and gourds. and speaking of produce, the moon is responsible for producing chicks that are way cool, a tad aloof and bit rough around the edges – all a feminine kinda way. like a sparkling and priceless diamond hidden deep within the lump of humble homely coal. this is one lump of coal you’d be lucky to get in your stocking! but only a select few ever get the chance to behold the diamond; most get stuck looking at coal – and if they’re very naughty, getting painfully pinched by her witty wicked words. oh yes, cancer’s the queen of slap downs. don’t dare step out of her dainty little line, i can attest to that! so you see, it’s worth your while to get into cancer’s stockings… she’s a lovely sap, just like those slimy seeds within her brethren fruit, the pumpkin.

CANCER’S STOCKING (CHOCOPUMPKINTINI)
1 oz vodka
3/4 oz godiva chocolate liqueur
2 tbs pumpkin butter
1 oz cream or soy creamer

shake all ingredients with ice for ten seconds and pour into chilled glass.

(recipe created by gwen sutherland kaiser)

this thanksgiving, i had a full house. actually, it was severely overfull in a wonderful way : ) my sisters and their families, including babies and puppies flew in from across the country, and my mum’s family even graced us with a visit from the UK. the perfect chance to review that bottle of DH KRAHN gin waiting patiently on my bar. as with most brits, my uncle is a hard core Gin & Tonic drinker. this thanksgiving holiday i concocted several specialty libations, including a pumpkin pie martini, a cranberry sauce fizz, a mojito, an appletini and a rose gimlet. he politely tasted them all, but pretty much stuck to tippling his good ‘ole G & T. as i mentioned, D H KRAHN had conveniently sent me a bottle, and so i asked my english uncle to review this american gin. hi admitted to quite liking it, and i think it hurt him just to say that! he noted that it was more flavorful than the British gins to which he was accustomed. his only negative comment was that the shape of the bottle made it difficult to squeeze out every single last drop without rolling the bottle around to get it. now that’s a true brit for ya if ever there was! bottom line: it was smooth and palitable and the bottle was empty at the end of the day.

happy thanksgiving, DAILY OM style:

“Often when we practice being thankful, we go through the process of counting our blessings, acknowledging the wonderful people, things and places that make up our reality. While it is fine to be grateful for the good fortune we have accumulated, true thankfulness stems from a powerful comprehension of the gift of simply being alive, and when we feel it, we feel it regardless of our circumstances. In this deep state of gratitude, we recognize the purity of the experience of being, in and of itself, and our thankfulness is part and parcel of our awareness that we are one with this great mystery that is life.

It is difficult for most of us to access this level of consciousness as we are very caught up in the ups and downs of our individual experiences in the world. The thing to remember about the world, though, is that it ebbs and flows, expands and contracts, gives and takes, and is by its very nature somewhat unreliable. If we only feel gratitude when it serves our desires, this is not true thankfulness. No one is exempt from the twists and turns of fate, which may, at any time, take the possessions, situations, and people we love away from us. Ironically, it is sometimes this kind of loss that awakens us to a thankfulness that goes deeper than just being grateful when things go our way. Illness and near-miss accidents can also serve as wake-up calls to the deeper realization that we are truly lucky to be alive.

We do not have to wait to be shaken to experience this state of being truly thankful for our lives. Tuning in to our breath and making an effort to be fully present for a set period of time each day can do wonders for our ability to connect with true gratitude. We can also awaken ourselves with the intention to be more aware of the unconditional generosity of the life force that flows through us regardless of our circumstances.”

this thanksgiving, skip the pie and go straight to the good stuff. slightly less fattening and loads more fun. small batch produced, PUMPKIN PIE vodka, the latest innovation from ARTISAN VODKA.

and lest we not forget, astrology of the cocktail. the pumpkin is ruled by the moon and belongs to the sign of cancer. fitting, as cancer is the sign of family and a nurturing home. happy thanksgiving!

VIA LUXIST

today, october 17th, i went to the liquor store in nutley, new jersey. and what to my wondering eyes should appear? but a fucking christmas wreath, in fact many jolly wreaths strung up on lamp posts lining the street. ok, as jen would say, this town needs a TIME OUT. it’s not even near halloween yet, never mind thanksgiving. and for the record it was 75 degrees today and i was sweating bullets as i drove by this shocking display. but that’s another global warming topic for another unseasonably warm day. why am i ranting about wreaths in october? because it’s ridiculous and i want it stopped. bah humbug. can’t we celebrate one holiday at a time? ok, fine, walmart and the drug stores have some christmas stuff out, hidden in the back of the store. but such a blatant display? have some couth. granted, consumer buying has kept us out of a recession… but at least give us ’til halloween’s over before bombarding us with commercialism. kudos to nordstroms, who religiously abstains from holiday adversting until black friday. if only more stores would have that kind of class.

this season, make it a BIRD FRIENDLY HOLIDAY WREATH