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In times of crisis, people turn to food. When someone is sick, vats of homemade chicken soup tend to appear. Funerals are always followed by tables full of food made by friends of the family. It's human instinct -- when someone close to you is hurting, that nurturing heart wants to feed and take care of them.

This came home to me again Thursday, when my mom called me at work to let me know that my grandmother had fallen and broken her knee pretty badly. She said Grandma would be fine, but she was going in for surgery Friday and would be doped up through the weekend, so there was no point in rushing down to Florida when I couldn't do anything about it.

And I thought my lasagna was bad. At least I didn't give anyone food poisoning.

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (Reuters) -- The massive security force deployed by Argentina for an Americas-wide presidential summit this week suffered its first glitch on Wednesday -- food poisoning.

At least 70 federal police officers guarding the beach resort hotel where U.S. President George W. Bush and others will meet were overcome by diarrhea and vomiting after dining on lasagna at a nearby hotel late on Tuesday, police commissioner Daniel Rodriguez told local radio.

If you're not already lucky enough to have a man in the house who cooks for you, today's the day to get him in there rattling some dishes around. And what's easier than hamburgers or spaghetti and meatballs?

CNN has a gallery of some products available at a recent auto convention, including a fry holder that sits in your cup holder. Keep looking in the gallery, and you'll see a grill you can attach to your trailer hitch.

However, it turns out a better product is already on the market -- a fry holder with a ketchup cup attachment!

Seriously, folks. We need to get better at separating driving from other activities.

In case anyone's interested.

Press release:

Editors Gwen McKee and Barbara Moseley of Quail Ridge Press are searching the state of North Carolina for cookbooks to be included in the new edition of Best of the Best from North Carolina Cookbook: Selected Recipes from North Carolina’s Favorite Cookbooks. The original edition was published in 1990 as part of Quail Ridge Press’ acclaimed Best of the Best State Cookbook Series. This Series has over 2 million copies in print and is considered the definitive survey of regional cooking. It is also the hallmark of Quail Ridge Press’ mission of Preserving America’s Food Heritage.

For the new North Carolina edition, the editors are reviewing not only cookbooks from publishers but also cookbooks that have been produced by community clubs, churches, restaurants, and individuals. "We enjoy finding that little cookbook from a small community that includes wonderful family-favorite recipes," says Moseley. "We are very anxious to review as many cookbooks as possible and are particularly interested in those cookbooks that convey the flavor of the region," McKee adds.

Did you ever have one of those nights where you stand in front of the fridge, staring at its contents, and you just can't come up with anything for dinner? I do this all the time. I know I have a ton of stuff in my pantry that I could mix in various ways to come up with dinner, but I'm just not inspired some nights. I found this Web site where you can plug in what you already have, and it will spit some recipes back at you. Even if you don't end up using the recipes on it, they might be just what you need to get your mind moving in the right direction.

P.S. I'm not really a Chicago fan. Seriously.

... what would it be?

I'm going out of town for a couple of days, so I'm throwing that out there for everyone to chew on. I look forward to reading your responses when I return on Thursday!

As for me, I think it would have to be pizza. You've got your bread, your cheese, your tomatoes, and your meat. You could scrape one or any ingredient off to create something new every day :-)

First, thanks to everyone who responded in comments or by e-mail with suggestions on what to make for my grandmother. She's out of the assisted living facility and back home (albeit in a wheelchair), and she's in much better spirits for it.

While I was gone, Erin over at Poetic Acceptance posted the latest Tar Heel Tavern, and there's a new Big Link in town.

And last, but certainly not least, someone at the Tulsa State Fair sculpted Darth Vader and Yoda out of hundreds of pounds of butter.

I picked up a copy of the Taste of Home Brand-Name Cookbook at the grocery store the other day, and one of the recipes caught my eye. It was called gourmet chicken bundles, and I decided to put my spin on it for dinner a couple weeks ago. It turned out OK, but I'll continue to play with it. The mixture was missing something -- and after talking to a couple of fellow foodies at work, I think I'm going to try adding cheese to the mixture next time right before folding them up and putting them in the oven. Any other suggestions?

From Manchester Evening News:

A CHEF has baked the world's most expensive pie costing more than £1,000 a slice, it was revealed today.

The traditional steak and mushroom ingredients have been replaced by a £500 beef fillet, Chinese mushrooms worth more than £2,000 and truffles.

The recipe includes two bottles of 1982 Chateau Mouton Rothschild red wine costing more than £4,000 and the pie comes topped with gold leaf.

I could think of better things to do with £1,000 than buy a slice of pie. Like maybe buying a ticket to somewhere in Europe and sampling the fare over there?

In honor of going to see "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" at midnight, I decided to find out just what is treacle tart (a favorite of Harry's). I had never really heard of it before reading the books, and it sounds like it could be good.

My first stop was at Wikipedia, where I found out that treacle is just another word for molasses. Then I moved on to ingredients for the dish, which all seem to be about the same:

1 basic pie crust
1/2 cup of Lyle's Golden Syrup or molasses
1 cup soft white bread crumbs
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Most of the recipes seem to recommend Lyle's Golden Syrup, which is apparently a cane sugar syrup with a distinctive taste.

It seems like a really easy recipe to make, and I might have to attempt it this weekend, although the thought of almost pure molasses makes my teeth hurt. Anyone ever had it before? I'll let you know how it turns out. Now, I have to grab my broom and fly to the theater!

I'm going to be posting some Thanksgiving recipes from my own collection for the next few days. If you have any you want to send my way, please do and I will post them for everyone's enjoyment.

This is one of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes, although I make it whenever I need a sweet potato fix. I made it last year, the first year I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for my in-laws. My father-in-law, taking seconds, said it was just like candy.

Sweet potato casserole

3 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes
1/3 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 cup chopped nuts
1/3 cup butter, melted

Mix sweet potatoes, sugar, milk, butter, eggs, cinnamon, and vanilla, and pour into baking dish. Mix nuts, brown sugar and flour in a small bowl. Add melted butter. Sprinkle over potato mixture. Bake at 375 degrees until brown, about 25 minutes.

For many Southerners (myself included), there is no debate. It's dressing, not stuffing, that will adorn the Thanksgiving table this year, and woe to anyone who suggests differently.

For those of you who don't know, there is a difference between dressing and stuffing. If it's made of bread and cooked inside the turkey, it's called stuffing. If it's made correctly (wink, wink), with cornbread and cooked in a separate dish, it's dressing.

Dave Barry serves up his amusing take on making Thanksgiving dinner.

From Central Florida:

"An elderly Illinois couple is hospitalized after being rescued from their burning car by a man who used his Thanksgiving turkey to break the windows."

"Copsy couldn't open the door and couldn't break the windows with his hands or feet, so the 20-pound frozen turkey had to do."

Check out the top 11 signs you know you're having Thanksgiving dinner with a geek. My favorite: "The turkey is given the opportunity for a saving throw before being butchered."

If you forget to thaw your turkey in advance (or if you thought you took it out in plenty of time but didn't, like I did last year), don't panic. Place the turkey in its wrapper in a sink filled with cool water. Make sure the water covers the turkey, and change it often so that it remains cool. The USDA has guidelines for how long it will probably take to thaw your turkey in this manner, according to pounds. It works out to about 30 minutes for each pound of turkey. Don't use warm water, which could let bacteria to grow. For the same reason, don't thaw the turkey on your kitchen counter.

The USDA page also has all the guidelines you need to roast your bird in the morning. Basically, wash your hands often when handling turkey, a whole turkey should be cooked to 180 °F, and let it sit 20 minutes before carving.

My favorite tip when cooking a turkey? Whatever else you add, the best way to get a juicy turkey is to rub it all over well with butter before putting it in the oven. Stick little pats of butter in all the crevices and folds, and you'll end up with a great turkey. To achieve a beautiful brown color, keep the turkey covered with a lid or alumninum foil. In the last half hour or so, remove the lid or foil and allow to brown.

Above all? Don't worry about it. Things are going to go wrong, and there's nothing you can do about it. Enjoy your family and accept that you are making memories to share for years to come :)

Happy Thanksgiving!