Ponderosa...At Home

Here’s a cute and crafty way to get your kids involved with your Thanksgiving festivities!

Turkey Bowl 

Age: preschool and up

Time: 3 hours, plus overnight

Type of activity: holiday arts and crafts

This turkey will look great as a centerpiece on your Thanksgiving table! Fill it with fruit, napkins or other items for your guests.

Materials:

·         Plastic bowl

·         Mixing bowl

·         Vaseline® or petroleum jelly

·         Lots of Newspaper

·         Scissors

·         Brown tempera paint

·         Paintbrush

·         Orange, yellow, red, black and brown construction paper

Directions:

First you’re going to make the papier-mâché bowl.

1.       This project is messy, so place newspaper over your entire work area.

2.       Cut more newspaper into 1-inch wide strips. You’ll need at least 50 strips for this project.

3.       To make the paste, combine an even amount of flour and water in the mixing bowl until it becomes the consistency of pancake batter. Start with one cup of each and add more if necessary.

4.       Cover the outside of the plastic bowl with Vaseline®. This will make it easier to remove the mold from the bowl.

5.       One at a time, dip a strip of newspaper into the mixture and lay it smoothly over the bowl. Keep adding strips until the bowl is completely covered with one layer of newspaper. To give the bowl more strength, add the first layer in a horizontal pattern, then add a second layer in a vertical pattern. Add a third layer of newspaper strips in a horizontal pattern.

6.       Place the bowl on top of a layer of newspaper in a cool, dry place. Let the bowl sit for several hours. You may even want to let it sit it overnight.

7.       When the bowl is completely dry, gently pull the newspaper mold away from the bowl.

Now it’s time to make the turkey.

8.       Paint the bowl brown and set it aside to dry.

9.       Draw and cut out all the shapes you’ll need from the construction paper.

·         1 brown circle 4 inches in diameter for the turkey’s head

·         10 rocket-shaped tail feathers about 8″ x 1″ in yellow, red and orange paper

·         1 small yellow triangle for the beak

·         2 tiny black circles for eyes

10.   Now, you’ll make the turkey’s wings. To do this, trace your child’s hands on a sheet of brown construction paper and cut out the shapes.

11.   Make sure the bowl is dry before you glue the construction paper parts to the turkey’s base. First, glue the tail feathers in a fan shape along the inside edge of the back of the bowl (the feathers should be pointing up).

12.   Next, glue one of your child’s handprints to each side of the turkey to make its wings.

13.   Glue the turkey’s beak and eyes in place on its head.

14.   Glue the turkey’s head to the top edge of the front of the bowl.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

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If you’ve always wanted try something new on Thanksgiving day, here’s a delicious recipe that will have your guests raving for more!

Rosemary-Pepper Beef Rib Roast with Porcini Jus

  • ACTIVE: 30 MIN
  • TOTAL TIME: 4 HRS PLUS OVERNIGHT MARINATING
  • SERVINGS: 12 TO 14

Ingredients

1. 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh rosemary

2. 3 tablespoons fresh coarsely ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning

3. 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

4. One 6-rib standing beef rib roast (14 to 15 pounds), 1/2-inch fat on the meat

5. Salt to taste

6. 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

7. 1 medium shallot, very finely chopped

8. 2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced

9. 1/4 cup dry red wine

10. 1 quart beef stock

11. 1/4 cup sherry vinegar

12. 4 thyme sprigs

13. 1 ounce dried porcini, ground to a powder in a spice grinder or blender (makes 1 cup)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine the rosemary with the 3 tablespoons of black pepper and the vegetable oil, and rub all over the roast. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

2. Put a large roasting pan in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375°. Let the rib roast stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

3. Season the roast with salt and put it in the hot roasting pan, fat side down. Roast for 30 minutes. Turn the roast over and cook at 350° for about 3 hours, rotating the pan 2 or 3 times. Insert an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part of the meat. When the thermometer reaches 130°, the roast is done. Transfer the roast to a carving board to rest for at least 20 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, melt the butter. Add the shallot and garlic and cook over moderate heat until lightly browned, 5 minutes. Add the wine and boil for 2 minutes. Add the stock, vinegar and thyme and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat until reduced to 2 1/2 cups, about 20 minutes. Strain the sauce and return it to the saucepan. Whisk in the porcini powder and simmer for 1 minute. Cover, remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Carve the roast and serve with the porcini jus.

Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy! 

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The life you’ve always envisioned awaits you at Ivy Lane in Pleasanton! This new neighborhood reflects the small-town comfort and charming city allure of this classic community, which was recently named #4 on 24/7 Wall St.’s list of America’s 50 Best Cities to Live In.

Pleasanton also makes education a top priority. Both of our high schools rank among the top 2% of US News & World Report’s Best High Schools in America.

We embrace a higher standard of living. Pleasanton was ranked as #3 in Highest Earning Cities in America. Money Magazine named the city one of the 50 Best Places to Live in the Nation, and the data analysis site, NerdWallet, declared Pleasanton as one of the Top Twenty Cities in Northern California.

With the arrival of Ivy Lane, fresh opportunities to live in Pleasanton are now available.

These thoughtfully designed single-family residences feature modern conveniences and innovative amenities. Offering  up to approximately 2,656 square feet of living space, with up to 4 bedrooms, 4 baths and a bonus room, these excellent homes include everything you desire in an officially outstanding community.

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Wonderful Bay Area Life

November 14, 2014

It’s cooling down in the Bay Area! Get out with you family this Saturday and Sunday for fun events near you.

It’s time to lace up your skates! Come out for Downtown Ice this weekend in San Jose and twirl and glide on the ice rink beneath beautiful palm trees. For more info, click here. 

Games, games and more games this weekend in Dublin! International Games Day is happening this Saturday at the Dublin Family Library, and you’ll have the chance to drop in and experience exotic and brand-new board and card games from 11AM to 1PM. No registration is required. To learn more, click here. 

This event is perfect for book aficionados. Get ready to meet Bay Area authors this weekend in San Jose! Mingle with more than 20 writers and hear the inspiration behind their books from 1PM to 5PM at Kings Library this Sunday. Click here for more info

Grammy-award winners are hitting the stage this weekend in Livermore! The Manhattan Transfer, one of the most popular vocal groups of all time, is coming to the Bankhead Theater this Sunday, November 16 at 7PM. For tickets, go here.

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There’s plenty to do with your family this weekend in the Bay Area! Get ready for music, dance, artistry and more on Saturday and Sunday.

Puppet shows are always sure to delight! This Saturday at the Martin Luther King Library in San Jose, your little ones can experience “The North Pole Review” by Fratello Marionettes, featuring an ice skating snowman and a juggling penguin. The show starts at 3PM. For more info, click here.

Stride is the name of the game this weekend in San Jose! The Purple Stride Silicon Valley 2014 event is a timed 5K and untimed family-friendly walk taking place this Saturday to benefit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. Registration begins at 9AM, with the run/walk beginning at 10:30AM. To register, go here. 

Take part in an artistic cultural experience this weekend in Livermore! Dancer and artist Patricia Bulitt presents A Gift Exchange of Dance: A California Dancer’s Exchange with the Eskimo in Alaska (1977 – 2013) at the Civic Center Library Storytime Room on Sunday at 2PM. This interpretive dance performance includes a slideshow of life in Hooper Bay, Alaska. Click here for more info.

This classic show will surely get you tapping your feet this weekend! Singin’ in the Rain is coming to the Firehouse Arts Center in Pleasanton. The Pacific Coast Repertory Theater presents this lighthearted romantic comedy on Saturday at 8PM. For tickets, click here. 

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