Greetings Costa Vida Lovers (of food),

Next to Halloween, this is my favorite time of the year. I am so thankful for food and the happiness it brings in my life. I love everything about food except for pickles and yellow mustard which I do not classify as food. Thanksgiving is one of the several days that I love to get in the kitchen and just freaking cook all day. It is impossible for me to cook for just 5 people so there ends up being enough food on the table for a small army. My typical thanksgiving meal includes herb roasted turkey, fresh stuffing, whipped yams and russets, fresh cranberry sauce, giblet gravy, steamed fresh asparagus and sauteed yellow corn, homemade whole wheat rolls, butter, fresh berry jam, mixed greens with a cranberry ranch, bread pudding with a whiskey sauce and pumpkin pie with ice cream.

I want to share with you the worlds easiest and by far the best fresh stuffing and a fresh cranberry sauce.

Fresh Stuffing

Ingredients:
3 Tbs            Butter
1 cup            Diced yellow onions
1 cup            Chopped Fresh Celery
2 1/2 cup     Chicken Stock (Chicken Boulion)
6 cups          Fresh rolls or bread broken into chunks
1 Tbs            Sage
1 tsp             Salt
1 tsp             Pepper

Preparation:
Melt the butter in a pot and saute the onions and celery over a medium heat for 2 minutes.

Add the chicken stock and the spices and bring to a boil.
Add the bread and turn off the heat.
Stir the mixture until the liquid has been absorbed into the bread.
Serve immediately.

Fresh Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:
1 bag               Fresh Cranberries
1 cup               Fresh squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup           Honey
To taste           Salt

Preparation:
Combine all ingredients into a blender and puree to the level of chunkiness that you like.
This sauce is tart so if you prefer a sweeter sauce add more honey. So simple yet, so good.

Greetings my good Costa Vida fiends,

I am totally amped about the chance I have to share my passion for food and Costa Vida with you. Food is easy to be passionate about, I love the way it feels, smells, looks and tastes. If you consider that we are made of energy and our universe is energy, what we eat is truly what we are, since it has incredible energy and we need it to survive. Food sustains life and as a Chef my job is to create and harness this wonderful energy into something so good that you want to come back for more. Our bodies are the most incredible creation on this earth and I take the sacredness of that creation very seriously. I understand the extreme importance of producing natural, wholesome and great food for you; great food that will sustain and provide life giving energy. Food prepared in its simplest form is usually the best. In the picture above are simple ingredients brought together to create enormous flavor that makes your tastes buds water. In your own kitchen, I encourage you to approach the food you prepare and put in your body with the same passion I feel. After all, life is too short not to enjoy the flavors and the energy that it provides you. See you at a Costa Vida real soon.

Dave Prows CEC AAC