Tag: Christmas
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Merry Christmas to All!
Today is Christmas. 2012. Christmas is a holiday celebrated around the world, and though it is claimed by Christians as a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, and the holiday is named thusly, its roots predate Christianity and it draws on ancient celebrations from many religions. I have always been drawn to Christmas for…
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Christmas Special is Posted!
My Christmas special which was filmed at the Kenmore Live Studio in Chicago has been posted! It’s 35 minutes long…keep in mind that we had a strict 10 minute time limit for each segment, so the “finished product” is rarely perfect! Enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VJkcMFra3F8
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Chicago Christmas Special
What a weekend! I spent last weekend in Chicago filming “A Ben Starr Christmas” for the Kenmore Live Studios. Beena David, who is both a classically trained vocalist AND the host for Kenmore’s shows, has been working with the Chicago area MasterChef contestants, and I met her on my recent mega-roadtrip to the northeast. (She…
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Weird Christmases
Christmas seems to get more and more distant the older I get. Perhaps it’s because I don’t have children. Or perhaps Christmas in America IS, indeed, changing. More frantic. Less time to prepare, but a stronger, unspoken obligation to prepare, and a heavy guilt trip if you don’t. There’s a distinct voice in my head…
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Fresh Pumpkin Pie (NO cans!)
So everyone’s got a recipe for pumpkin pie, and here’s the best one. (An instructional video for this recipe is located at the bottom.) Of course, the best one involves nothing from a can, which means WORK. I’ll throw you some shortcuts the deeper we get into the recipe, but if you want to make…
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Transforming Thanksgiving Leftovers
So it’s the day after Thanksgiving and your fridge is exploding with a mangled turkey carcass, half a pan of stuffing, gobs of gelatinous cranberry sauce…and you’ve got no idea what to do, right? Don’t microwave another paper plate filled with stale leftovers. Transform the leftovers into something different and better! TURKEY MEAT Tamales Coming…