Ready to entertain

Holiday party decorations don’t have to be complicated and expensive.  I picked up my placemats, napkins and charges at a discount store.  For flowers, I just bought a bouquet of small roses, baby breath, and cranberries,  Fill your vases with cranberries–I like small vases for a dinner party so people can see each other…but any size vase works.  Then, fill with water and add flowers. Candles are a wonderful accent so I lit small tea candles on the table to add to the festive ambience.  Accents of red, gold and ivory make an elegant holiday tablescape.

Keep it red for decorations: Easy Holiday Tablescape

Christmas decorations don’t have to be fancy and expensive when you get set the mood with these easy ideas. Fill a vase with cranberries and pick up flowers to pop in.  A bowl of pomegranates and pine cones can be a lovely table centerpiece.  And, those extra Christmas Ornaments-fill a glass vase or glass bowl for a  holiday effect.  Pick up red and green napkins as an accent to your meal as that little holiday color really makes a difference.  Most importantly, don’t stress–this is a time for friends and family to gather!

Budget Friendly Christmas Decorations

I had the privledge of teaming up with DuPont Teflon cookware (in 2005) for a while to promote healthy cooking with non-stick cookware. It was fun coming up with seasonal ideas for ads and articles. Some of the ads were in People Magazine and USA Today. I loved trying out all of the quality cookware and I still use it to this very day

Holly in USA Today

Holly in People Magazine

Only the Best

Crawfish Bisque and Oatmeal Chocolate Pizza-Two Favorites

What goes on behind the scenes when I appear with all my ingredients in bowls and all chopped?  Well, the day before, I chop, dice, pre-cook and organize.  I always want a beauty shot to show my viewers the finished recipe as TV time doesn’t always correspond with the real clock.  However, fortunately, my recipes TRULY are easy and not too time consuming.  My sister says, “a recipe should fit on one page or it is too long.”  She loves my Gulf Coast Favorites book as most pages include two recipes.  Looking for Louisiana recipes, this book includes it all.  Off to the kitchen to prepare for tomorrow’s segment: Crawfish and Sweet Potato Soup and Oatmeal Chocolate Pizza.

Healthy soup and pizza: WBRZ Noon Show

Sweet Potatoes or Yams?

 Tis the season of the yams!  We know our holiday table wouldn’t be complete without a bubbling hot rich sweet potato casserole. Or is it a yam casserole and what is the difference?  Well, a true yam actually is a tuber grown in the tropics, and a true sweet potato is an enlarged root of the sweet potato plant that is starchy when harvested but becomes sweeter after storage.  In the 1930′s, as Louisiana sweet potatoes were shipped to the eastern states, the consumer recognized that Louisiana sweet potatoes were moist, sweet and soft when baked.  Thus, “Louisiana Yams” (yam comes from African word “nyami” means “to eat”) became the trademark of the Louisiana sweet potato distinguishing them as the sweetest and most moist variety. 

 Here’s one of my favorite Louisiana yam recipes that I have no willpower–natural sweetness of yams, tart cranberries and a toasty pecan praline topping.

Sweet Potato Coffee Cake with Praline Topping from Holly Clegg trim&TERRIFIC Freezer Friendly Meals

Versatility and new yam ideas!  This nutritional vegetable packed with antioxidants and fiber adds a natural sweetness to any recipe from soups, stews, casseroles and breads. 

 Terrific Yam Tidbits:

 1 (15-ounce) can sweet potatoes (yams) drained and mashed equals 1 cup.

• 1 medium sweet potato, cooked equals 1 cup mashed
• If a recipe calls for canned sweet potatoes, fresh cooked sweet potatoes may be used.
• Bake sweet potatoes, wrap well, and freeze to pull out for a quick dinner side.
• Sweet potatoes (yams) should not be refrigerated unless cooked.
• Look for Louisiana yams in your grocery!

Sweet Potatoes or Yams?