Thanksgiving Menu

DSC_0022Well friends, the week has arrived. The recipes have been chosen. The menu has been finalized. The groceries will be procured TODAY! The feast will commence on Thursday!!!

Here’s what we’re having this year for Thanksgiving Dinner:

       White Truffle Butter Roasted Turkey

       Uncle Floyd’s Mashed Potatoes

       Sweet Potato Soufflé

      Kathy’s Green Bean Casserole

       Slow-cooked Stuffing

       Mom’s To-Die-For Crescent Rolls

       Apple Cranberry Walnut Salad

       Perfect Cranberry Sauce

With Turkey as the star of the main meal and all those delicious supporting dishes, it is sure to be a gastronomic experience to remember. I literally cannot wait!

Of course there will be Apple and Pumpkin Pie provided by my mom. She really has pie-making down to an art. This crisp, flaky, buttery, but not-too-sweet crust filled with the just-right fruit and spice filling (always a little more cinnamon than a recipe calls for) is pie heaven.

I am adding jalepeno jelly to my grocery list because I am already dreaming of leftover turkey sandwiches smeared in said jelly and cream cheese. Yes!

There will be games, and movies, and hopefully I can convince my Rough and Tumble to take a post-dinner coma (nap) or go for a very, very long play in their favorite tree. Fingers crossed.

Our Thanksgiving table is already set. Seriously. I am teaching a spin class Thanksgiving morning, so I am doing all I can to get set and prepped before the big day. Here’s another peak at our table.

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Today I’ll make the Cranberry Sauce and tomorrow I’ll whip up the Sweet Potatoes. I’m hoping to be ready to rev up my spin class and then come home and put the bird directly into the oven.

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Don’t forget the tunes. I’ll be sharing a Thanksgiving playlist later today, and I’m super excited to have this refurbished radio as my music piece.

What are you eating this Thanksgiving? Where will you be traveling? Who will be coming to visit? Wishing all of you a wonderful day filled with gratitude, remembrance, love, and more LOVE!

XX, Megan

Family

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Love.

We’ve had family photos taken each year for five years or so. I love the work our friend Aubreigh has done each year, and this year is no exception. She did an awesome job*.

Besides capturing individual portraits of the boys which are 1000 times better than school photos, it has been fun to watch our family grow and change and age.

There was a moment last night when the boys were brushing their teeth and I just stared. Gazed at them, wondering how they grew so quickly from babies to boys. Wondering how those gorgeous, delicious, eight pound bundles had become these people who could brush their own teeth.

I’ve had those fleeting pauses, those frozen reflections before– tying a shoe, giving a hug, receiving a smile, watching a new developmental stage  or skill be obtained.

But I have to admit that sometimes it is not the excitement of the first bite of food, or the first word or step that gives me these glimpses into how far we’ve come together.

It is the little things that bring me the most reflection– the seemingly mundane. I get all filled up with the goodness, feeling, and immense intricacies of family. Like two boys, who were once tiny babies, now brushing their teeth side by side at the bathroom mirror.

Don’t even get me started on flossing ;).

Life.

XX, Megan

* These family pictures were taken by our good friend Aubreigh Parks. You can  see her site here, and her Facebook page here.

Thai Garlic Chicken with Basil

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This meal was a BIG HIT at our house! Savory and delicious on a cold, cold night. There is nothing better than getting a meal all ready to go. I generally make my dinners in the late afternoon and put them back on the stove to reheat right as we are ready for dinner.

I’ve found that this makes my evenings so much more stress free. If I can knock out dinner at 3:00 or 4:00 p.m. we can take off and play before returning home to eat.

In the winter this becomes more important as we participate in Youth Ski League, and the light continues to lessen every day.

Regardless of how or when you like to prep for dinner, I absolutely LOVE the way that The Six O’Clock Scramble gives you a specific list of tasks you can do ahead of time to prep your meal!

That way weather I have to turn dinner out at 8:00 a.m. (which has totally happened) or whether I step into the kitchen at 6:30 p.m. and want to have dinner on the table by 7 I am set to go.

The Scramble has literally taken the headache out of dinner time. From grocery shopping, to preping, to the actual making of the meal. If you have enjoyed some of the recipes I’ve posted here, I encourage you to head over to their site and sign up for a trial of their service. I cannot sing the praises of this meal planning service, or the good it has done our family, enough!!!

Hope your Thursday is superb!

XX, Megan

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. canola or vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. minced garlic, (10 – 12 cloves)
1 large red onion, quartered top-to-bottom and cut into strips
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips, about 1-inch long
1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
5 – 7 Tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce (use wheat/gluten-free if needed), to taste
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 1/2 – 2 cups fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the garlic, onions and peppers, and sauté them for 2 minutes. Add the chicken and stir-fry it until it starts to brown on all sides, but is not cooked through; 3 – 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce and sugar, and add that to the pan. Continue to cook the chicken, uncovered, tossing it occasionally, until the chicken is just cooked through, 2 – 3 more minutes.

At this point you can cool and refrigerate the chicken for up to 3 days, or freeze it for up to 3 months. Add the basil just before serving it.

Add the basil, toss it well, and serve it, or cover it until you are ready to serve.

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*The Scramble is a meal planning service to which you can subscribe here. For a fantastic price you will receive 8 weekly meals which means 8 recipes (main course plus a side dish), complete grocery list, the ability to tweak the number of people you are making for, and full nutrition facts.

PLUS tips as to how best to PREP your meal beforehand, add a punch of FLAVOR, and how to SLOW COOK almost every recipe if you’re especially slammed that night. This wonderful service really does live up to it’s name. You can come home at 6 p.m. and be sitting down to a DELICIOUS, HEALTHY, HOME COOKED meal by 6:30 p.m. most nights.

So Plaid

Plaid Shirt Edit

I really have been mad about plaid this season. So I rounded up some of my current favorite plaids for fall and winter. One of the reasons I love button-down shirts with a rockin’ plaid print is the daily functionality a bright, blazing plaid shirt holds in a busy primary-parent wardrobe.

Go for a casual vibe with ankle booties. Dress up your plaid with leather pants and heels for date night, or throw a plaid shirt on with a skirt and thick leggings and snow boots for a warm winter alternative to jeans!

Have a wonderful day!

XX, Megan

Left to right, top to bottom.

Neon Brights

Killer Stewart

Leaning Navy

Perfect Buffalo Boyfriend

Half-zip Buffalo Check

Window Pane Wonderful

Black and White Standard

Mellow Sherbet 

Olive Grid Awesomeness

Other great options here, here, here, here, and here.

Plaid + Plaid

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This isn’t the first nor will it be the last time plaid is featured here on Refined + Rugged. When it comes to a print you love, don’t be afraid to layer it on for stronger effect. A good rule of thumb when mixing both similar and dissimilar prints is to carry one color through the mix.

Here I’m playing off of the red of both the shirt and scarf. I really like the added wash of my jeans, but if you’re uncomfortable adding another visual texture just stick to a more uniform rinse or wash.

Hope your day is glorious!

XX, Megan

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Shirt: Madewell, Jacket: Caslon (similar), Pants: Target (old, similar), Scarf: J.Crew (similar options here, and here), Boots: Ugg, Sunglasses: Ray-ban Original Wayfarer, Earrings: Gorjana, Lips: NARS Barebella