If you've never indulged in a cup of real, homemade Belgian hot cocoa, you simply haven't lived.  Ok, you've lived, but you've deprived yourself of one of the great hot beverages known to mankind—even families as far back as the 17th and 18th centuries sipped it at dinner—and we can't think of a perfect time to whip up a batch than holiday time.  It's a pretty rich treat, so we like to half the recipe below, because it will only keep a few days in the fridge.  We like to add a dash of orange liquor, creme de menthe, or just drink as is, but because it's so rich, we serve it in espresso cups or shot glasses.  This is not for your giant "I Hate Mondays" Garfield mug.

Don't laugh at us for listening to talk radio, we know it's a little old school, but it's also a savvy way to fill long commutes with hours of smart tips. We recently heard a turkey tidbit from food scientist and chef Harold McGee, which clarified a lifetime of confusion about why it is exactly that we can never get the turkey cooked evenly all the way through. It's common sense, really, but turkey meat is completely uneven, and if cooked separately, would require totally different cooking times and temperatures.

24/Savvy Food: Columbia, SC

Turkey probably comes to most people’s minds when they think of Thanksgiving dinner. Unless they’re vegetarian. But we vegetarians like to feast during Thanksgiving, too. So what’s a host or hostess to do if an herbivore joins the dinner table on Turkey Day?

If you have several vegetarians on the guest list, you might consider adding Tofurky to the menu. Tofurky is a vegan soy product that has a texture and taste so similar to turkey even meat eaters might enjoy it. If you are not ready to go down the soy road, though, there are plenty of other bird-less entrees you can offer alongside your turkey...

These are a savvy favorite at our house in fall when potatoes, sweet potatoes, yellow and green squashes and eggplant beckon to be made into comfort food.  Homemade "Taro" Chips (in quotes because we've never gotten our hands on an actual taro root to throw into the mix) are extremely easy to make and provide a bounty of crunchy healthy goodness for the whole family without any mystery ingredients that cause the digestive system to collapse.  It helps to have a mandolin—that indispensable slicing gadget—but cutting by hand is perfectly fine.