I bet the story would have gone something like this: Mary and Martha invite Jesus over for a "thanks" giving meal a week earlier and Martha gets to work--going through all her "cook-scrolls" looking for some improved versions of her old stand-by recipes. She probably wasted a lot of time doing that, the week before (like me) when she could have been getting her house in order instead. She probably wound up running out of time, (like me) and feeling very frantic to get it all together, she became cranky,worn out and frustrated, way ahead of time, just thinking about what she'd planned to be done (also, like me). The day arrived and she was hustling all around the house, falling over the men who had gathered early to watch a goat-wrestling match, in the middle of the dirt floor of the gathering room. The children were running in and out the kitchen door, needing *this and that* (especially something to drink) and looking for things to occupy themselves with and asking lots of questions about what she was doing (sounds familiar)! Jesus arrives, early, and they all rush to get the best seats next to Him. Mary, Martha's sister, also rushes in and happily finds a seat on the floor at His feet! She's very content to just listen to Him talk and hear others ask Him questions! She forgets all about the work to be done, planned by her sister! She could have at least finished setting the table or the floor (the custom of the day was to eat reclining! There must have been a *floor-cloth* to be put in place, at the very least)! Martha is incensed! How dare Mary abandon her to all the work, (her plans) of preparing all the latest and greatest dishes for her very important guest and family! Sure she enjoyed the idea of making all those wonderful dishes, but she had miscaluculated the reality of being able to accomplish it all in one day, especially the new recipes she hadn't tried before, and couldn't rely on familiarity to make them easier to do! Martha pulls Jesus aside and says, "Jesus, can you please shake some sense and shame into Mary, and make her come help me?" Jesus says to Martha, very kindly, "Martha, Martha! You are worried about making too many different things! A turkey and some dressing, gravy and maybe some green beans, a jello-salad and a pie would have been enough! We don't need, in addition to all that, *special* mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, roasted brussel sprouts, tossed salad, fruit salad, cranberries, home-made Parker House rolls (okay-whatever *special* bread they had then), spiced apple rings, green-bean casserole (onion rings and sauce made-from scratch) scalloped oysters AND marinated asparagus! (groan--that was A LOT--and that, also, DOES sound familiar!) Get real, Martha! Mary has it all figured out! It's more important to be with Me and those you love, than trying to prove how much you care, by how much and how fancy the food is you prepare! Make it easy on yourself, and have some of *you* left-over for those who love you!" Martha must have felt like she'd been hit with a brick-bat. All that work, all that fussing about what would be really impressive to set before Him and the crowd, and all He really wanted was for her to do just what was necessary to meet a need, and spend her time with Him. Blush! I hear it! This was also about me, and our Thanksgiving-Day celebration/not! Everyone else seemed to enjoy the day, (I must say) but I was left completely wrung out--and not much fun to be around--I'm sure! I hope the rest of you, learn from my experience yesterday! Please, take time to enjoy the day, by not putting so much on yourselves, doing more than is reasonable and expected. Your family wants to be WITH you! If they want a waitress and a chef, they could go out to a restaurant, instead of to your house! Enjoy your Thanksgiving, and please, take time to give *thanks*--I know you have much to be thankful for--I've seen the pictures! :o) Janice/'Martha' P.S. That 'Best Ever Green Bean Casserole', that I posted, above---wasn't--IMHO!

Here you go Pat, it's Ann T's recipe. As you can see in the picture I do individual puffs. Ann does a full ring. La Gougere (Ann T) 1 Cup water (or half milk/halfwater) 1/3 Cup butter 1/2 Tsp salt fresh nutmeg,Grated cayenne pepper 1 Cup flour 4 eggs 1 Tbl Dijon Mustard 1 Cup gruyere cheese 1 Tsp milk extra cheese for top Bring the water/milk to a boil and add butter. When butter has~melted remove pan from heat and add flour, salt, cayenne, nutmeg, pepper and stir vigorously with a big wooden spoon. The mixture should come away from the sides of the pan and form a ball. Place mixture in the bowl of a large mixer and add one egg at a time beating well, After you add last egg continue to beat well. Mixture will be shiny. Add dijon mustard and taste for~ seasoning. Adjust to your taste. Add coarsely grated cheese. Butter a large cookie sheet and flour. Draw a small circle in the flour (about 2 inches wide) and proceed to drop the dough by tablespoon fulls around the outside of this hole, making a ring, or a crown. Dough should be piled high. Brush lightly with milk and sprinkle the extra cheese over top. Bake the ring in the over for 45 minutes at 400F. Do Not Open Door. Aften baking, open the door of the oven and leave the gougere in the oven for 5 minutes. It should be firm to the touch and golden brown. My Notes: 1)Do not refrigerate batter it needs to be at room temp. Do not place on the pan until ready to cook or they will spread. Cook as close to servng as possible...best warm but OK room temp 2)Gougere are best when cooked as close to preparing the batter as possible in order to get maximum "puff" and best texture. 3)I prefer individual puffs. Scoop up a heaping teaspoon of dough and with another spoon, push it off onto the paper-lined baking sheet (it should form a mound about 1 inch in diameter). Continue with the remaining dough, leaving an inch of space between the gougeres (work in batches as necessary, the dough can stand, covered with buttered waxed paper or parchment, for up to 1/2 hour). Bake until the gougeres are puffy and light golden, about 25 minutes, switching pan positions halfway through. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before serving, or turn off oven and let gougeres remain in oven, with door ajar, for up to 1 hour. 4) Chopped chives make an nice addition so does roasted garlic .

Linnea, here you go. Scalloped Chipotle Sweet Potatoes 1 or 2 canned chipotle peppers pureed with some of the adobo sauce 2 cups heavy cream 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced thin Preheat the oven to 350 F. Puree the chipotles in a food processor until smooth. Stir in cream. In a large casserole dish arrange a fourth of the sweet potatoes and pour a fourth of the cream over all. Repeat with the remaining potatoes and cream, forming 4 layers. May be prepared up to this point one half hour ahead, covered, and refrigerated. Bake covered for 30 minutes, remove cover and continue baking for 30-45 minutes or until the cream has been absorbed and the potatoes are browned. ~variation of a Bobby Flay recipe

I always serve spring water. Recently, we've been making infused waters in a big water jar. They're very popular. I also have plain water available. A lot of the family like sodas, so we put out a variety with an ice bucket, self serve. Plus, I can always scrounge up some juice for the kids if they want, and their parents agree. If the gathering isn't so big that stuff gets knocked over easily, I use glass tumblers for both. There's always a variety of ales in the fridge, for those who want them, and there's a bottle of whiskey for the few who want that. Generally, however, I serve pretty decent wine. Not great wine because in a crowd with all kinds of odors in the air (food, perfume, babies, etc.), and with most of the people who attend, there's no point in serving great wine. Decent wine suits them just fine. I've learned not to put out the wine that's brought, however, unless I really trust the palate of the one who brought it. No one will say anything if it's just bad. After dinner, I serve coffee and tea to those who want it, and for a big crowd, I'll make both regular and decaf coffee. Lots of variety there, but mostly it's water and/or infused water.