Thanksgiving is our favorite holiday here at CollegeCandy; we even made little hand turkey pictures and hung ‘em up in the office! Yeah, we’re festive! Even thinking about tomorrow makes us feel all warm and fuzzy inside (although that could just be the spiced apple cider we just drank).

Here are our Top 5 Favorite Things About Thanksgiving:

1. The Food: Um. Duh? All of our favorite things on one table, in one night? Heaven! From the stuffing to the sweet potatoes to the millions of desserts, there is nothing better than that feeling of so-full-you-wanna-die that comes after a good Thanksgiving meal.

2. The Conversation: Who knew grandpa had such a dirty mind? The man can tell a sex joke like no other. We don’t know why it all comes out at Thanksgiving, but one minute you are complimenting Aunt Susie on her awesome pumpkin bread and the next minute your Great Uncle Frank is doing inappropriate things with the cornucopia in the middle of the table.

3. Friends: Or, even better, enemies. Thanksgiving is a family holiday, which means everyone is comin’ back home. That also means that you will most likely be running into those a**holes from high school who thought they were too cool for school. Well look who’s on top now, bitches.

4. The Booze: My mom is always giving me a hard time about my drinking: “Honey, you drink too much,” or, “It is not lady-like to chug a beer like that!” But not on Thanksgiving. I don’t know if she’s too drunk to notice, or if she just doesn’t care because it’s a holiday, but the booze is flowing…and I enjoy every last drop.

5. The Parade: Yeah it’s cheesy and really not as cool once you are over the age of 6, but it’s tradition. And it’s a cute tradition. And your mom won’t yell at you if you turn it into a drinking game!

Thanksgiving is probably one of my favorite holidays. The food, the family, the festivities…the food.

Normally, I go home to visit my family for Thanksgiving. But they are all the way in California and I’m in New York. With the economy in the dumps and hardly any money in my pocket, going home for a couple days wasn’t worth the trip.

So this year, I’m spending Thanksgiving on my own. My brother will be visiting me from Boston (he’s also too broke to fly home) and we will be having a lovely low key Thanksgiving meal together.

There are just a couple problems…1) I’m broke, remember? 2) how the eff do you prepare a Thanksgiving meal?!?!

Well, I did some research and here’s what I found on how to make a d’lish Turkey Day meal without throwing away too much money:

1) Campbell’s Kitchen — so we already know Campbell’s soups are ‘M’m M’m Good’ but they are also M’m M’m cheap. If you check out their website, it’s full of great Thanksgiving recipes that definitely won’t burn a hole in your pocket. Like green bean casserole, and creamy mashed potatoes! *yum*

2) DIY — you may THINK that buying already made pies and desserts and other T-day goodies is cheaper, but doing it yourself may actually save you a couple bucks. Sure it’s a little more work, but hey, it’ll be fun! Here are some savory pumpkin pie recipes to get you started.

3) Get your turkey from the supermarket — there are a ton of grocery stores that have ready-to-make, and sometimes ready-to-eat birds available. Some stores, like this one, have the entire meal, fixings and all, ready for pick up. And it’s not as pricey as you think!

Enjoy!

Sure, the weather is getting cooler, but there’s still plenty of time before you have to layer down jackets over sweatshirts over sweaters over thermals, and cover every other inch of your body in knit hats, gloves, and scarves. The air is crisp and has that cool, fall smell, but this will soon give way to biting cold, snot that freezes in your nostrils, and seeing your own breath.

Take advantage of the cool fall nights– they are more fun (and can be more romantic) than you think!

Have a bonfire
Summer bonfires make you sweat. Fall bonfires keep you warm without overheating. It’s the perfect time to gather your friends, cozy up around some flames, and reminisce about the “good old days”– like the time you got so drunk you passed out in your dorm stairwell (which may have been last weekend). If you’re still in the creepy Halloween mood, you can pull a “Summer Camp” and recite urban legends under the moon, or you can pass around a couple of forties and see where the story-telling gets you. Bonfires are a great way to set the mood in a group setting, so if you’ve been feeling shy around someone special, it’s the perfect opportunity to initiate something.

Go on a Hayride
Nothing screams “Autumn” like sitting on a bale of hay and being taken around a farm on a horse-drawn wagon. After being cooped up in stuffy lecture halls all day, a hayride is literally a breath of fresh air. If you’re feeling stressed from school, go on a clear night, sit back, relax, and be one with nature… and the twenty other people crammed into the cart! Besides, sharing a bale of hay on a cool night with a guy is a great excuse to snuggle up. Got energy to burn? Try a corn maze instead! Read More »

All right so it might not be cold yet, but that doesn’t mean a bowl of something hot wouldn’t hit the spot. If you’re too broke to swing by the nearest deli every time you get a massive craving for a soup and sandwich, try this recipe for chili. It’s super easy, great for dorm rooms (assuming you can use a crock-pot there…or can hide it from your R.A.) and it makes enough to last a lot longer than one of those eensy bowls of Broccoli Cheddar soup (still, mmmm broccoli cheddar soup…).

Chili is extremely customizable. For instance, depending on whether you like yours really hot or not so much, it isn’t hard to adjust the spice of this recipe. Chili is kind of a free-for-all dish, meaning, throw whatever the hell you want into a pot as long as it sounds good. (Caution: do not try this when inebriated. I did and quickly realized that frosting does not go well in chili.) Read More »

Some people like burgers. Some people eat a lot of burgers–after going out, the next day for lunch, for dinner on a date. Yes, some people like burgers. I’m not one of them.

I don’t eat beef. I do, however, eat turkey. Not only is it very tasty when prepared correctly, it’s also much, much leaner. And, I might add, it’s cheaper too.

So here, for your dining pleasure, is a recipe for tasty turkey burgers. Don’t be fooled: These are not the dry-ass turkey burgers of the 80s. No, this is a good recipe for good turkey burgers. So…enjoy!

Turkey Burgers That Don’t Suck
makes 4 burgers

You’ll need:
1 lb of ground turkey
1 1/2 tbsp of finely chopped onion
3 small beaten egg whites
1/3 clove of minced garlic
1/8 tsp of fresh black pepper
1 tbsp of bread crumbs
1/4 tsp of salt
1 tbsp of chopped parsley Read More »

It only makes sense that New Orleans invented the dish that is by far the most fun to say (pronounced jamba-LAY-a. At the top of your lungs. With Jazz hands.) And it just happens to be fun to make also! Whether you’re cooking solo on a weeknight, post happy hour with your girls, or during a one-on-one iron chef battle with your s.o. (guilty), this guilt free jambalaya is delish, healthy, and so so easy to make.

You’ll need:

Read More »

In several previous posts I discussed the intense controversy surrounding the upcoming Beijing Olympics. In recent weeks the traditional international journey of the Olympic Torch has served as a flash point for clashes between supporters and protesters.

Ironically, this torch relay was supposed to be the largest in Olympic history—a showcase of international cooperation and sport. Instead, it has become a testament to international outrage over China’s human rights abuses, especially over Tibet.

March 31: A huge carefully scripted ceremony at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square sent the torch off across the globe

April 3: In Istanbul, Turkey, the Uighur expat community staged demonstrations against Chinese persecution of their “brother” expats in Xinjiang. In February 2007, for example, an Uigur activist named Ismail Semed, was executed on the shaky grounds of attempting to “split the motherland” and possessing explosives.

April 6: Massive clashes occurred between Free Tibet protesters and police during the London relay. Thirty-seven protesters were arrested including a man who tried to snatch the torch away from one of the runners. Another tried to put out the torch with a fire extinguisher. Read More »

Dear Blackberry,

I have been sooooo busy; I totally haven’t been able to write to you until now! Like I’ve even been too busy for Benji and I totally love him. Not like I love you or Tink or myself. Or all of my mirrors. And my car. And my reflection in store windows. But I love him. Screw all of those other guys. This is for real. You know how I know it’s for real?

Because I get to go on tour with his band. He knows that music is my life. I bet he’ll want me to sing with them soon and then they’d be even more famouser! He totally gets me.

Did I tell you that he takes me to all of these made-up places? South Africa – you never heard of it either, right? Like West Africa is a real country, but South? Also, he can wear my hats. That means that when I play dress up with my doggies he’ll fit right in. It’s so totally perfect. Read More »