Once again, our friends over at MyRecipes.com have everything you need to celebrate the holidays. Looking to give gifts of food this year? Check out these ideas:

Gift-Worthy Holiday Jams, Spreads, & Sauces: Pick a traditional flavor like apple butter or cranberry-orange marmalade, or give them something unique like sun-dried tomato jam or peachy barbecue sauce.   

Gifts from the Oven: Gingerbread people, pound cake, biscotti and more!

Give the Gift of Candy: Sugared cranberries, candied orange rind, fudge, and other easy-to-make goodies to give as gifts.

Heartwarming Breads: Find the perfect baked goods to bring to family dinners or potlucks, such as flaky dinner rolls, cranberry-sweet potato quick bread, and orange-pecan muffins.

Are you fretting over the cost of a traditional Thanksgiving smorgasbord? Once again, I scour the Internet so you don’t have to, so fret not! MyRecipes.com has everything you need to low-cost holiday entertaining. A few cost-saving articles to check out:  

Money-Saving Appetizers

Budget-Friendly Holiday Side Dishes

Looking to break tradition and try something new this Thanksgiving? Read up on Fresh Takes on Thanksgiving Menus, including a turkey-less menu and a Thanksgiving menu for two.

Finally, complete your turkey day by finding the Perfect Wine for Thanksgiving, then saving some money with the Top 20 Wines Under $20.

When it comes to selecting cooking oil, there are lots of choices: vegetable oil, canola oil, sunflower seed oil, sesame seed oil, and more. But the one that stands far above the rest is olive oil, for its virtue both in and out of the kitchen.

Olive oil has been touted for it’s heart-healthy benefits, but new research also suggests that polyphenols in olive oil may inhibit the bacterium that causes most stomach ulcers (ReagAge.com). Looking to add a little olive oil to your diet? Try this simple recipe from Eating Well magazine:

Herbed Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

3 tbsp fresh chopped herbs (such as thyme, rosemary, marjoram or chives)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Serve with bread for dipping, or saute with veggies for a quick and easy side dish.

When olive oil isn’t providing a healthy boost to your insides, it can offer a beauty boost to your outsides. Here are some low-cost, all-natural personal care ideas from Vital Juice Daily:  

Hands and feet: Rub a generous amount of olive oil on your hands and feet-cover with gloves and socks. Wake up with silky soft digits!

Nails: Soak dry, brittle nails in a cup of olive oil for 10 minutes. Rub the excess into your cuticles to help seal and repair.

Skin: Apply after a bath or shower, while skin is still moist. Wrap yourself in a terry cloth robe, if possible, before jumping into bed to avoid greasing your sheets.

Lips: Dab some on rough, chapped lips to smooth dead skin.

Hair: To repair split ends and give your mane new shine massage a few tablespoons into scalp and hair before shampooing. Cover with a shower cap and leave for 20 – 30 minutes.

Face: Dab a little on a Q-tip and wipe debris and makeup away.

Want your olive oil to work just a little bit harder? Check out this article on 25 Alternative Uses for Olive Oil, including fixing a stuck zipper, conditioning leather and stopping a throat tickle.  

Photo Credit: Curbly.com

Check out this video segment on cupcakes from the Associated Press: Cupcakes a Sweet Spot in Sour Economy.

Also, watch the informational video on peeling and dicing butternut squash and red onions, which features easy to follow, step-by-step instructions. Perfect for Thanksgiving!

Jenn’s Cook Book has received almost 15,000 hits since its inception in June 2007 (there are archives from August 2006-February 2007 from another site). As the holiday season begins, look for more recipes including some baking and other seasonal favorites as well as another one of my (in)famous Special Projects!

While I am tinkering with new recipes in the kitchen, please continue to enjoy Econofest Quickies: quick items to help save money while still eating and living well. Look for other updates coming soon…I cannot give all the details away, but we may have a different look and feel by the end of the year.

In the meantime, please enjoy Chocolate Cake in 5 Minutes from Dizzy Dee (disclosure: I haven’t tried it yet, so please let me know if it works!).