Today was the first day of my SECOND HOLIDAY HOME SHOW.
Sure, we had a LOT of pottery & jewelry for everyone… but we also had plenty of snacks & treats. Yes, lots of handmade cookies, OREOs & chocolate… but we also had some veggies for those trying to be good. Food always tastes better when served on handmade pottery! More treats tomorrow…

Any guesses of which plates emptied first???

Another reason it’s NATIONAL COOKIE DAY…
and NOT National Salad Day!!!

And what better way to celebrate than with some yummy cookies
on a pretty green platter?! One of my green, stamped platters with my friend Kristen’s cookies!!!
A perfect combination!

On a damp & rainy night here in Chicago, looks like Emma has settled in for a yummy night of soup! Remember, food always tastes better in handmade pottery! Thanks Emma!

For Kristen’s “First Dibs” Pottery Sale & Open House last night, she sent out electronic invitations… and reminders. But then she tempted me… err, I mean taunted me… with this photo. Yummy brownies on one of my platters!!! So… I had to go now, right?! It would have “rude” not to!!! HA!!!

What to do when the holiday leftovers are lingering a little too long?…
Well, make cranberry ice cream obviously!!!

That looks amazing Matthew… thanks for sharing!

So I started my Thanksgiving at my Dad’s place at Friendship Village… with his girlfriend Bonnie!
We had a great visit… but nothing “special” in the pumpkin pie category!

But then I drove down to Central Illinois for another “Friendsgiving” where the dessert spread was VERY IMPRESSIVE!!! With a LOT of homemade goodies… including pumpkin pie, cheesecake, apple pie, cookies & two “chess pies” that I had never had before. They were extra tasty… I’m sure because they were baked in a handmade ceramic pie dish! Thanks Kel & Kelly for hosting… and for sending me home with some sweet leftovers!

Tonight was the last class for my Beginning Wheelthrowing class… celebrating again with a potluck & a “trading-stealing-exchanging” game. Category for the trade was a “not-so-basic bowl”. While the theme for our potluck was “Dips And The Vehicle To Get Them In Your Mouth .”

I decided to up-my-game, and yet stay brand loyal… with Hot Cocoa OREO’s and a fluffy Hot Cocoa Dip!!! A double whammy of yummy goodness!!!

By the end of class tonight, I came away with this beautiful pie plate made by Christine… a former student who just wanted to be part of our game!!! And the last of Martin’s tart cherry pie-lets?… pocket pie?… fold-over… ??? Well, whatever you call them… they were AMAZING!!! And look pretty amazing in Christine’s retro striped pie plate too!!! Great game, great potluck & such talented students this session!!!

And there it is… hot out of the oven & just in time for the potluck at tonight’s Wheelthrowing class!!! A fun pie that tastes, smells & looks like apple pie… with absolutely NO APPLES!!! No apples, no apple juice, no applesauce… nothing!!! Just a bunch of boiled crackers!!! Go figure… but in a handmade pie dish to make it look a little nicer!

You gotta know the pressure I was under… knowing the Martin our “Top Baker” would be judging my efforts. I figured I could never win with a “real” pie… but maybe some bonus points for this quirky throwback recipe?!