Mothers, sisters, daughters, this is for you….

Behind every great woman there are about three or four other great women.  Since before the history books were written, women have come together to share wisdom, support and even resources.

The miracle of technology has extended my female network beyond my immediate family.  With Twitter, Facebook, IM and e-mail, my female network spans three continents and I now am blessed to call them all sisters and friends.  And while modern life and luxuries may have eliminated many of our needs for support, no amount of technological “advances” can take away from our need to connect, share and inspire one another.

In celebration of International Women’s Day, March 8, 2010, women from all around the globe are invited to attend W.I.S.H. Women’s International Summit for Health – a series of free on-line interviews with leading health and wellness experts who answer the most pressing questions faced by women today.

Whether it’s the kids, the cellulite, the hot flashes or steamy romances, W.I.S.H. brings women together to find solutions and recharge their batteries.

W.I.S.H. promises to be the world’s biggest empowerment party for women and I invite and encourage you to sign up and be a part of this extraordinary event.  I signed up a few months ago and have been waiting for the right time to share it with you.

Today, my WISH for you is that you take one item off your endless to-do list and out yourself first.  Register for the WISH Summit now!

I don’t do this too often but every once in a while I stumble across something truly worthy of breaking from my routine and doing something completely different.  Now before you go and think I’ve gone off my rocker or some guest blogger has hijacked my site or that I’m being paid gobs of money to talk about this, rest assured my sanity (such as it is) is still intact, no one has hijacked my site (they really would have a hard time cracking into my iQuanSite) and I’m not being paid to talk about Tim Brownson’s and John Strelecky’s Million Book Giveway (though I do hope this post will assure me a place in heaven).

I’ve been following Tim Brownson on Twitter for a while.  Lost track of how or why I started to follow him but I did.  His tweets eventually led me to his site where I immediately signed up to receive his witty notifications in my inbox so I would never miss another brilliant post again.  I mean who wouldn’t want to hear if the dog would do something unfortunate again.

At some point, Tim started blathering on about his new book and then he did something truly unique: he announced and he and his co-author would give away one million copies of their book “How to be Rich and Happy”

And it wasn’t some airy fairy promise to give away books.  They have a plan and they’ve identified a core group of people who will benefit from their book.  People who, if they take the message of the book to heart, will transform their lives and truly learn the joy of living life on their own terms.  It’s because of who they want to help (high school / University kids, single parents, the unemployed and the homeless) that I’m breaking from the ordinary and telling you about Tim & John and their One Million Book Giveaway.

Head on over to Tim’s blog now to read more about the one million How to be Rich and Happy Give Away

Tonight I’ll go to bed eagerly awaiting the return of La Befana.  It’s a tradition I’ve honored since my childhood.  The Epiphany marks the end of the 12 Days of Christmas and the night that La Befana brings treats and sweets.  La Befana used to fill my stocking with oranges and After Eight mints but as I’ve grown older, she’s started filling them with different things… usually household items or sensible things like socks and slippers.  But some years I miss the sweets and treats   Who knows what goodies she has in store for me this year.

The Story of La Befana

I’ve been hearing the story of La Befana since I was a baby.  My mother used to tell me the story every year.  A few years ago I got curious about her and Googled information.  Popular tradition holds that the Magi stopped at an old woman’s house on the last night of their journey, and asked her to accompany them when they set out the next morning.  She replied that she had things to do (clean the house is what my mother always told me) and so they set off without her.  When she was done her chores she changed her mind and tried to follow, but was unable to find either the Magi or Baby Jesus.  So she renews her search every year, visiting boys and girls the world over, and leaving those who have been good stockings full of candies and treats.

So auguri per La Befana!

Well I’ve been baking up a storm lately… and in some cases, unbaking (tried most of the Raw Christmas cookie recipes you’ll find featured on this site).  Have been busy getting the house ready for my annual Christmas Eve dinner.  I’ll be sharing good food and laughter with 20 relatives this year.  Will post pictures of all the food and treats in a few days.

Cooking for large numbers doesn’t have to be hard.  It just takes a little planning.  The prime rib is in the oven along with some carrots and celery.  I’ll be adding the potatoes in a few hours.  What I love about prime rib is that it’s a season, pop in the oven and walk away kind of meal.  Not too much needs to be done to it.  I slow roast it so there isn’t much tending that needs to be done until it’s ready for carving.  I made a veggie lasagna two days ago so all that’s left to do it pop it in the oven to bake.  Yesterday, I whipped up a huge batch of meatballs.  And today I’ll be making some minestrone soup and a salad.  Sounds like a lot but if you space things out over a few days, it really makes for a more enjoyable time.

After all, who wants to spend the entire day in the kitchen when there’s family to enjoy.

Happy holidays to you and yours!  Hope you create some wonderful memories this holiday season.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends.  I live in Canada so we had our Thanksgiving well over a month ago.  But I have many American friends and clients who are celebrating Thanksgiving with their families today so I’d like to wish them all a Happy Thanksgiving.  Many will be spending the day with family and friends and enjoying wonderful meals and maybe a little football.  Some will be hard at work on their businesses, but will knock off early.  And still others will treat it like any other day and not even take time to pause or reflect on the meaning of Thanksgiving.

What Does Thanksgiving Mean To Me?

I’ve been thinking about what Thanksgiving means to me: good food, time with my nephews, raking the leaves at our Lake home, apple picking… yes all of those things remind me of Thanksgiving but what makes this day any more special than the rest.  Apart from the historical significance, what does Thanksgiving mean to me.

I started an experiment this year on the eve of Canadian Thanksgiving: to write down five things for which I am grateful for every day.  Since Thanksgiving is a day of giving thanks, it makes sense that you need to know what you’re thankful for before you can truly understand the meaning of Thanksgiving.

So every day since Canadian Thanksgiving, I’ve been writing down five things I’ve been thankful for that day.  It’s been an interesting experiment.  Some days it was hard to find five things to be thankful for and experience has taught me that those are the days I need to practice gratitude more.  It’s really been an eye opener.  If there were days my honeyman and I were disagreeing over something, five minutes with my Gratitude Journal changed my perspective on the day and brightened my mood.  It works for trouble at the office too.  Any challenge or upset could be diminished by looking at it from a different perspective.

An Exercise in Gratitude

Thirty plus days later, am I any closer to figuring out what Thanksgiving means to me?  I think I am.  It means: remember.  Thanksgiving is a day to remember, at least once a year, to be thankful for friends, family and a full plate.  We should be thankful for many things in life, the big and the small, every day.  And if not every day, at least every Thanksgiving.

I think I’ll keep Thanksgiving with me all through the year by continuing to write in my gratitude journal.  How about you?  How will you be spending the day?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Believe it or not, there aren’t too many nights when my Accidental Kitchen is closed.  It’s not that I don’t like going out to restaurants (I LOVE IT!) it’s just that I work long hours and can’t justify the hours I’d miss if we had to go out for dinner.

But Valentine’s Day is one of my few nights out  

Tonight was my first night out in a restaurant since going gluten-free.  And it was tough to find choices on the menu that I could eat.  But the company was great (just my honey-man) and the wine was good so I didn’t really notice how little I had to eat until a few hours after we got home.  Guess we’ll have to do a little more research before the next soiree (kitchen is always closed on my birthday ).

My Funny Valentine

Dinner started with warmed bread.  I didn’t eat any but enjoyed buttering it for my honeyman  

We shared a starter: Mediterranean Salad.  Extremely easy to make at home.  Think cucumber, tomatoes, kalamata olives, green pepper, red onion, crumbled feta and oil, vinegar and oregano.  Then it was time for the main meal.  My honeyman had a plate of pasta and he was disappointed.  Linguini Bari: linguini with alfredo sauce with goat cheese, peppers and mushrooms.  Honeyman was disappointed because that’s one of the dishes I make really well and it just didn’t compare   I had the garlic shrimp from the appetizer menu.  Very tasty (shrimp really isn’t something I’ve tried my hand at yet in the kitchen) but I could have eaten two!  Dessert was banana cheesecake for the gentleman and chocolate mousse for the lady.

I don’t know about you but in my kitchen, sometimes the greatest creations happen simply by accident.  I’m known for adding a pinch of this and a handful of that, stiring it all up… and hoping it turns out.  Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn’t but I must admit, there aren’t too many creations that are completely inedible.

I became a “Chef” simply by accident.  I grew up in an Italian kitchen and while you may think that makes me a wicked Chef, the truth is, my mamma never taught me to cook and she never wanted our help in the kitchen.  Cooking for her family gave her purpose.  The kitchen was her domain.  In order to get some time in at the stove, I had to move out and get my own kitchen.

I taught myself to cook.  First with the usual channels: cookbooks, TV programs, and recipes from friends.  When The Food Network launched in Canada, I became an instant addict.  Whenever I’d eat out, I’d study what was on my plate, certain that I could replicate it at home.  But I never strayed too far from the basics - pasta, chicken, and the occassional stir fry – these were the cornerstones of my culinary expertise.  When I wanted good eats, I went home to mamma. 

To be fair, I absorbed a fair bit by osmosis and learned the rest courtesy of the good ol’ WWW but I’m the first to admit that my gnocchi or my lasagna doesn’t taste nearly as good as my mum’s.

Luckily, though, my foodie interests have expanded beyond the basics and even beyond anything that mamma would cook, mainly to save myself the disappointment when I compare it to the tastes in my memories.

Welcome to my kitchen.  Won’t you join me next time you’re looking for something good to eat?