Not Gone, Not Forgotten

If you're like my household, Thanksgiving is far from over. From turkey and stuffing to gravy and green beans, Thanksgiving's dinner with all its fixings are still leftover in my refrigerator. If you're in need of some creative recipes to get through your remaining feast, food and beverage consumer packaged goods companies have you covered!

Too much turkey? Kraft suggests a tasty Turkey and Broccoli Casserole or Leftover Turkey Soup to get through what's left of your bird.

French's French Fried Onions are a key ingredient to a Thanksgiving favorite – green bean casserole. If you find yourself with leftovers, try some Crunchy Onion Mashed Potatoes or top your double-decker with this recipe for BBQ Turkey Sandwiches.

Campbell's offers ideas, too. Take that leftover turkey and start your morning with a Benedict-Style Turkey Sandwich. Or, end your day with a Quick Turkey Stir-Fry.

Too many potatoes from your Turkey Day? Don't let them go to waste! Use this recipe from Ore-Ida to create a Loaded Baked Potato Soup, or try Country Crock's Garlic Smashed Potato Cakes to use up your spuds. If it's sweet potatoes that are hanging around your fridge, test this Sweet Potato Bread recipe from Bruce's Yams.

Cranberries are a staple at Thanksgiving tables across the country, but when you find yourself with an extra can after the holiday, look to Ocean Spray for unique ways to incorporate the fruit into your next meal. Fruited Rice Pilaf, Red Ribbon Cranberry Coffee Cake, and Cranberry Chutney are just some ways to put the delicious side to good use.

Invite friends over and gobble up these proposed appetizers from Pillsbury. Try Mini Monte Cristos or Basil-Turkey Mini Focaccia Sandwiches for a small bite to eat after a large Thanksgiving meal.

Need more dinner ideas? These tips from Betty Crocker will help you put your turkey and sides to good use!

A week after Thanksgiving, how much of your banquet is still housed in your refrigerator or freezer? Share your inspired Turkey Day recipes and let's make the most of this year's leftovers!

Me Want Cookie

No need to wait until Halloween to get your sweet fix; October is National Cookie Month! Whether your cookie of choice is the healthier kind, like Kashi's TLC Cookies, or you prefer to splurge on Grandma's Cookies from Frito-Lay, take these thirty-one days to enjoy chocolate chip, oatmeal, and peanut butter cookies…and everything in between! Pumpkin Spiced and Iced Cookies, anyone?

Think you know about cookies? Chew on these cookie facts:

• Since its introduction in 1902, Animal Crackers have featured 37 different mammals. Today, each box contains 22 crackers in 17 varieties: bears, bison, camels, cougars, elephants, giraffes, gorillas, hippopotami, hyenas, kangaroos, lions, monkeys, rhinoceros, seals, sheep, tigers, and zebras.
  
• Nabisco welcomed the Oreo in 1912.
  
• The sale of cookies as a way to finance Girl Scout troop activities began as early as 1917. In the 1920s and 1930s, Girl Scouts sold cookies door to door for 25 to 35 cents per dozen.
  
• The Toll House chocolate chip cookie was invented in 1933 by Ruth Wakefield, owner of the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusetts. Today, the chocolate chip cookie is the most popular kind of cookie in the U.S.
  
• Cookie sales top $3 billion annually. Each year, Americans consume roughly 2 billion cookies, and will eat about 35,000 cookies in a lifetime.
  
• Sesame Street's Cookie Monster wasn't always named Cookie Monster; the Muppet used to be named Sid. Arum num num num!

If you're seeking the best cookie recipes on the Internet, check out Mrs. Fields Secrets – tips and advice from the world's smartest cookie! Want to bake a better cookie? Take Domino Sugar's advice on preparing, baking, cooling, storing, and freezing cookies of all types.

This month, indulge on Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies or go back to your childhood with Keebler Vienna Fingers. No matter how you choose to recognize National Cookie Month, be sure to celebrate in style!

Tell me, what's your favorite cookie? Leave a note, and don't be skimpy on the details!

Shana Tova

The High Holidays are upon us! Jews around the world are currently observing the "Days of Awe," the ten days between Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

These High Holy Days are a a time of introspection, a time to atone and repent, and a time to make plans for personal improvement in the coming year. The beginning and end of the holidays are marked by what else - food!

To welcome the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah meals usually include apples and honey, symbolizing a sweet new year. While Yom Kippur concludes with a fast to focus solely on spiritual well-being, the fast is often broken with a traditional Jewish feast to mark the profound experience. Kugel, chopped liver, and honey cake are just some of the customary recipes enjoyed on these holidays.

In accordance to Jewish religious dietary laws, most Jews respect a kosher lifestyle. Products certified as Kosher Dairy or Kosher Parve are marked with appropriate symbols on packaging. As the nation's largest manufacturer of processed kosher food products, The Manischewitz Company is probably the best known brand name in this category. Macabee Foods is another popular kosher brand.

In recent years, numerous eateries have added kosher supervision to their establishments. Dunkin' Donuts and Subway are just two examples of casual restaurants that have expanded their offerings in Jewish neighborhoods to better serve the community.

Whether you keep kosher or not, it's always fun to try new foods that embrace the Jewish culture, and there's no better time than now to enjoy these customary dishes. Please share your favorite ethnic recipe or the best Jewish meal you've tried. Shana Tova - Happy New Year!

The Breakfast Club

September is National Breakfast Month! With summer a distant memory, kids heading back to school, and the weather getting cooler, breakfast is definitely the most important meal this month. Check out these creative recipes from top food and beverage consumer packaged goods companies to spice up your mornings through September and all year long.

Smoothies and coffee drinks are a good way to start your day. Coffee-mate's Coffee Breakfast Drink has the right mix of coffee, protein, and calcium, while Nesquick packs a flavor punch with its rich French Vanilla Mocha. Looking for something totally different? Try Nabisco's recipe, a Super Newton Smoothie chock-full of Fig Newtons.

For those seeking a more traditional route, these recipes will help you turn off that alarm and get out of bed:

• Hillshire Farm Overnight Breakfast Casserole
  
• Malt-O-Meal Pancakes
  
• Knorr Country Breakfast Benedict

And finally, think outside of the box with these creative twists on traditional breakfast foods:

• Kashi Breakfast Crunch! Cookies
  
• Classic Campbelled Eggs, complete with Campbell's Cream of Celery Soup
  
• Welch's Pancake 'N Sausage Breakfast Muffins and its key ingredient, Welch's Reduced Sugar Concord Grape or Strawberry Jelly
  
• Last-Minute Omelet Bakes from Kraft, featuring Miracle Whip
  
• Hormel's Baked Apple Pancake with Sausages

What foods get you out of bed? Leave a message and tell me how your morning meal gets you moving, and enjoy September - National Breakfast Month!

Out of the Blue

July is National Blueberry Month, and rightfully so! Those plump, vivid berries are ripe this time of year, with grocers keeping store shelves stocked with this summer fruit. Fresh or frozen, blueberries are tasty any time of year, atop pancakes or mixed in to oatmeal.

The U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council works to promote the growth and well-being of the entire blueberry industry, and the good folks at the organization are undoubtedly excited to celebrate this month.

Find a variety of blueberry-flavored items in stores, including products like True Blueberry Celestial Seasonings Herbal Tea, Hershey's Extra Dark Chocolate Cranberries, Blueberries, and Almond Bar, and Wild Blueberry Quaker Multigrain Fiber Crisps.

Enjoy these additional blueberry recipes to spice up your month!

• Betty Crocker Blueberry-Banana Bread with Bisquick
  
• Blueberry Scones featuring King Arthur Flour
  
• Kraft Blueberry-Cheese Rolls starring Philadelphia Cream Cheese
  
• Land O'Lakes Blueberry Sour Cream Pancakes
  
• Dannon Mixed Berry Smoothie
  
• Ocean Spray Blueberry Cosmo
  
• Blueberry White Chip Muffins loaded with Nestlé Toll House Premier White Morsels
  

What are your favorite blueberry recipes? Have a good one for Wild Blueberry Soup or Blueberry Streusel Cake? Post and share!

Irish Eyes Are Smiling

Even those who aren't Irish are on St. Patrick's Day! Everyone wants to take part in St. Patty's Day celebrations, and tomorrow is the one day of the year to celebrate in style. Consider these recipes from top food and beverage CPG companies to add to your fun!

• Campbell's Irish Soda Bread
  
• Betty Crocker's Tangy Cabbage Slaw
  
• Kraft's Irish Beef Stew
  
• Pillsbury's Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage
  
• Hershey's Blarney Stone-KISSed Cookies
  
• Kellogg's Lucky Shamrock Treats
  
• Nestlé USA's "Lucky You" Mint Pie featuring Carnation Milks
  
• Tootsie Roll's Andes Frosty Mint Glacier

Of course, you can always enjoy a big bowl of General Mills' Lucky Charms at any point during your day!

Enjoy your St. Patrick's Day, and tell me, what special foods will you eat to celebrate this Irish holiday?

How Sweet

Have you heard about Sweetest Day? Each year, it's celebrated on the third Saturday of October, which would make tomorrow the big day. Sweetest Day was founded in 1922 by Herbert Birch Kingston, a Cleveland, Ohio, candy company employee. Birch wanted to bring happiness to those less fortunate by sending them candy and small gifts to brighten their day. Today, the holiday has evolved to a time where friends and loved ones can show their appreciation, and I want to share some sweet recipes with you to make for the special people in your family, using the CPG products in your kitchen cabinet.

For breakfast, try your hand at Honey Vanilla Crème Stuffed French Toast featuring Coffee-mate, or Southwest Benedict Fritos Pie.

If dinner is your specialty, test one of these appetizing ideas:

• 3 Bean Java Chili from Folgers Coffee
  
• Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce courtesy of Skippy Peanut Butter
  
• Coca-Cola French Onion Soup
  
• Healthy homemade chicken nuggets using Cheerios
  
• Tuna Noodle Casserole with crunchy Kellogg's Rice Krispies topping

If you're short on time, perhaps you can prepare a pitcher of Smucker's Heat Wave Punch or a side dish like Apple Coleslaw featuring Nestlé Juicy Juice.

What would Sweetest Day be without dessert? Attempt an after-dinner treat like Big Red Heinz Ketchup Cake, Hershey's Hugs & Kisses Crescents, or Mini No-Bake Twinkie Cheesecakes.

Bon appétit!

Be sweet to your loved ones and whip up one of these recipes this weekend! Please, share your tasty recipes that use common CPG products for unique dishes in the comments section.