Thanksgiving Turkey Recipes

For her recipe, you'll need a turkey, oil, cranberries, hot sauce, flour and cheese. “Put the turkey in the pan. Put the hot sauce on top of the turkey.A few years ago, my sister found a recipe for turkey that's steeped in brine and herbs for a day or so, then stuffed with apples, oranges and onions before roasting. It was, my whole extended family agreed, the best turkey ever.

Last year, my sister couldn't find the recipe. She found one that's similar, but without all the herbs. Then I found this one from Emeril Lagasse on foodnetwork.com. It may not be the very same, but it's gotten some great reviews. (Click on the link to see the recipe, photos and reviews.)

If you have a better one, please share! But for now, this is what I'm going with this year, unless by some miracle that other recipe shows up:

Ingredients:

Brine:

    * 1 cup salt
    * 1 cup brown sugar
    * 2 oranges, quartered
    * 2 lemons, quartered
    * 6 sprigs thyme
    * 4 sprigs rosemary

Turkey prep and stuffing:

    * 1 (10 to 12-pound) turkey
    * 1 large orange, cut into 1/8ths
    * 4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
    * Salt and pepper
    * 1 large yellow onion, cut into 1/8ths
    * 1 stalk celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
    * 1 large carrot, cut into 1-inch pieces
    * 2 bay leaves
    * 2 sprigs thyme
    * 2 sprigs rosemary
    * 1/2 bunch sage
    * 3 or 4 sprigs parsley
    * 1 1/2 to 2 cups chicken or turkey stock, for basting
    * One apple, cut into large chunks (my addition)

Turkey Broth:

    * 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
    * Reserved turkey neck and giblets
    * 1 large carrot, coarsely chopped
    * 1 onion, coarsely chopped
    * 1 large celery stalk, coarsely chopped
    * 1 small bay leaf
    * 3 cups turkey stock, chicken stock, or canned low-salt chicken broth
    * 3 cups water

Gravy:

    * 4 cups turkey broth
    * 1 cup dry white wine
    * 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
    * 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    * Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Brine:
Directions

To make the brining solution, dissolve the salt and sugar in 2 gallons of cold water in a nonreactive container (such as a clean bucket or large stockpot, or a clean, heavy-duty, food grade plastic storage bag). Add the oranges, lemons, thyme, and rosemary. Note: if you have a big turkey and need more brine than this, use 1/2 cup salt and 1/2 cup brown sugar for every gallon of water.

Remove the neck, giblets, and liver from the cavity of the turkey and reserve for the gravy. Rinse the turkey inside and out under cold running water.

Soak the turkey in the brine, covered and refrigerated, for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Remove the turkey from the brine and rinse well under cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels both inside and out. Place turkey, breast side up, in a large, heavy roasting pan. Rub breast side with orange segments and rub on all sides with the butter, stuffing some underneath the skin. Season lightly inside and out with salt and pepper. Stuff the turkey with the onion, remaining orange, celery, carrot, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, sage and parsley. Loosely tie the drumsticks together with kitchen string. Roast the turkey, uncovered, breast side down for 1 hour.

Remove from the oven, turn, and baste with 1/2 cup stock. Continue roasting with the breast side up until an instant-read meat thermometer registers 165 degrees F when inserted into the largest section of thigh (avoiding the bone), about 2 3/4 to 3 hours total cooking time. Baste the turkey once every hour with 1/2 to 3/4 cup chicken or turkey stock.

Remove from the oven and place on a platter. Tent with aluminum foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.

    * For the turkey broth

Heat the oil in a large heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the turkey neck, heart, andgizzard to the pan and saute until just beginning to brown, about 1 minute. Add the chopped vegetables and bay leaf to the pan and saute until soft, about 2 minutes. Pour the stock and 3 cups of water into the pan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the stock is reduced to 4 cups, about 1 hour, adding the chopped liver to the pan during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Strain the stock into a clean pot or large measuring cup. Pull the meat off the neck, chopthe neck meat and giblets, and set aside.
For the pan gravy:

Pour the reserved turkey pan juices into a glass-measuring cup and skim off the fat.

Place the roasting pan on 2 stovetop burners over medium heat add the pan juice and 1 cup turkey broth and the white wine to the pan, and deglaze the pan, stirring to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining 3 cup of broth and bring to a simmer, then transfer to a measuring cup. In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium high heat. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, to make a light roux. Add the hot stock, whisking constantly, then simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes.

Add the reserved neck meat and giblets to the pan and adjust seasoning, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Pour into a gravy boat and serve.

Urban Meyer Ohio State

Despite numerous reports saying he's all but set to become Ohio State's next football coach, Urban Meyer said Wednesday that is not the case.If Urban Meyer becomes the next Ohio State coach, it might be very difficult for the Taxslayer.com Gator Bowl to pass up a chance to match Meyer's future team against his past team.

Gator Bowl Association president Rick Catlett said pitting the Gators against the Buckeyes — if Meyer accepts the job as the next Ohio State coach — wouldn't need the caveat of the Buckeyes (6-5) beating Michigan (9-2) Saturday.

The Gator Bowl can select any bowl-eligible Big Ten team without regard to its won-loss record compared to other available teams. The only restriction is that the Gator Bowl must invite the Big Ten Championship game loser (Michigan State will play Saturday's Wisconsin-Penn State winner), if that team has not yet been selected by the Capital One, Outback or Insight Bowls.

"From a local standpoint, with this year's Gator team and coach Meyer entering the picture for Ohio State ... that would be a very attractive and entertaining matchup," Catlett said Wednesday. "But we're some time from having to make that decision and we don't know yet whether Coach Meyer will take the Ohio State job."

Even if Meyer takes the job, interim coach Luke Fickell would likely remain the coach through the bowl game. But the anticipation of Meyer taking over at Ohio State would put the Gator Bowl in the national spotlight from bowl selection day Dec. 4 through the game, which will be 1 p.m. Jan. 2 at Everbank Field.

Regardless of the Gator Bowl's matchup, ticket sales are going well. The realistic choices are that the Gator Bowl will be able to invite Florida, South Carolina or Auburn against Ohio State, the Penn State-Wisconsin loser, Iowa or Nebraska.

“Ticket sales are already going very well,” said Stephen Tremel, the Gator Bowl Association chairman. “If we’re able to invite Florida, there are a lot of Gator fans in this area who don’t have a chance to buy Florida-Georgia tickets, or Florida season tickets, and I think they’d support a game with Florida in it.”

The Gator Bowl has sold out the past three years, averaging 73,228 in actual attendance.

The only nagging question for the selection committee is how many Florida fans would actually arrive in town, producing room-nights, restaurant meals and other business for the First Coast. Inviting a Big Ten with fans that historically travel well, such as Ohio State, Penn State, Nebraska or Iowa, might make up for a possible lack of early-arriving UF fans, who might have a tendency to arrive on the day of the game.

The Gators aren't a lock for the game. If UF (6-5) beats FSU Saturday, it could spark the interest of the Chick-Fil-A Bowl, which might not want a rematch of the regular-season game between Clemson vs. Auburn (if the Tigers lose in the ACC championship game).

If that happens, Auburn or even South Carolina could fall to the Gator Bowl. Catlett said the association would be happy with either one.

“We’re in very good shape with these last two weekends coming up,” Catlett said. “We know Florida will sell tickets locally. But we also are confident that Auburn and South Carolina fans will be very enthusiastic.”

Plus, the Big Ten appears to be deeper this season than the SEC. The Big Ten has nine bowl-eligible teams and the SEC only seven. Tennessee needs to beat Kentucky, Vanderbilt has to beat Wake Forest and Mississippi State has to beat Mississippi for those teams to become eligible for the post-season.

“The Big Ten will have more available teams in the seven-to-nine victory area for us,” Tremel said. “That’s because we pick higher in the Big Ten [the fourth selection after the BCS] than the SEC [the fifth], Nebraska entered the Big Ten this year to strengthen that league and there’s the possibility that the Big Ten won’t get two teams in the BCS. All of that combines to give us some very good options.”

Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/sports/college/florida-gators/2011-11-23/story/gator-bowl-ponders-ohio-state-florida-matchup#ixzz1edLYqTMG

Unique Sweet Potato Recipes

From enchiladas to pasta to pie, there are many ways to serve sweet potatoes. Not only is this autumn powerfood versatile, but each dish delivers an. As Thanksgiving draws near, almost everybody is looking for a sweet potato recipe - whether that be pie, cornbread stuffing or even some delicious biscuits.

That being said, you may be surprised to learn that there is a sweet potato commission that loves to share all things sweet potato. I'm personally going to make myself some cornbread stuffing this holiday season, but we thought we'd include a few extra recipes for those with other tastes.

The following recipes are compliments of the North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Cornbread Stuffing

    * 2 1/2 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
    * 1 cup chopped onion
    * 1 cup sliced celery
    * 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
    * 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
    * 1 teaspoon ground ginger
    * 1 (16-ounce) package cornbread stuffing (about 5 cups)
    * 1/2 cup chopped pecans
    * 1 (124.5) ounce can) chicken broth

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a skillet, sauté sweet potatoes, onions and celery in butter for 7 to 10 minutes, or until onions and celery are tender. Spoon mixture into large mixing bowl; stir in parsley and ginger. Add cornbread and pecans and toss to mix. Slowly add chicken broth and toss to moisten. Place stuffing in a lightly oiled casserole dish. Bake for 30 minutes, covered. Remove cover and bake for 15 more minutes to thoroughly heat through and brown top of stuffing. Makes 8 servings or 6 cups.

Sweet Potato Biscuits

    * 1 1/4 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
    * 1 tablespoon baking powder
    * 1/2 teaspoon salt
    * 3 tablespoons shortening
    * 1 cup mashed cooked sweet potatoes
    * 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    * 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
    * 1/4 cup milk

Into large mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Using pastry blender or two knives, cut shortening into flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Blend in sweet potatoes and spices. Add milk all at once and stir with fork until mixture comes together. On lightly floured board, knead 10 times.

Roll out on lightly floured surface to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut with biscuit cutter dipped in flour. Arrange on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 12 minutes or until golden and puffed. Makes 18 biscuits.

Curried Sweet Potato Apple Soup

    * 2 large (1 pound) North Carolina sweet potatoes
    * 1 large (8 ounces) tart apple (such as Fuji, honey crisp or gala)
    * 1 tablespoon olive oil
    * 1 large onion, coarsely chopped (2 cups)
    * 2 to 3 teaspoons curry powder
    * 1 can (14 to 14-1/2 ounces) vegetable broth (about 1-3/4 cups)
    * 1-3/4 cups unsweetened apple juice
    * 3/4 teaspoon salt
    * 1 container (6 ounces) plain low-fat yogurt
    * 3/4 cup croutons, optional

Pierce sweet potatoes and apples with fork tines. Microwave sweet potatoes and apple on high until apple is very tender, about 6 to 7 minutes. Remove apple; set aside until cool enough to handle. Continue microwaving sweet potatoes on high until tender, about 4 to 5 minutes longer; set aside until cool enough to handle. Meanwhile, in large saucepan over medium heat, heat oil; add onion and curry powder; cook and stir until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add broth; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low; simmer 5 minutes. Transfer broth mixture to bowl of food processor; reserve saucepan. Halve sweet potatoes and apple; remove apple core; scoop potato and apple pulp from skin; add to processor. Add salt; whirl until very smooth, gradually adding apple juice through processor feed tube. Transfer mixture to reserved saucepan; bring to boil over medium heat. Whisk in yogurt; reheat just until hot; do not boil. Serve topped with croutons, if desired. Makes 4 servings (about 5-1/4 cups).

Island Spice Upside-Down Sweet Potato Cake

    * 1(20 oz.) can sliced pineapple (packed in natural juice)
    * 1 tablespoon butter
    * 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
    * 1 teaspoon ground ginger
    * 1/4 cup dried cranberries
    * 1(18.25 oz.) package spice cake mix
    * 3 eggs
    * 1/3 cup apple sauce
    * 1 1/2 cups peeled and grated sweet potatoes
    * Whipped cream (optional)

Drain pineapple, reserving 3 tablespoons and 1/2 cup juice. Set aside one whole pineapple slice; cut 6 slices in half. (Save remainder of pineapple and juice for another use.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put butter in a 9 x 2-inch springform cake pan and place in the oven until butter has melted; set aside. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, ginger and 3 tablespoons pineapple juice. Pour mixture into pan with melted butter and tilt to evenly distribute. Place whole pineapple ring in the center of the pan; arrange half slices in crescents around the center. Fill in spaces with dried cranberries.

In a bowl, combine cake mix (dry), eggs, applesauce, sweet potato and 1/2 cup pineapple juice. Using a fork, stir vigorously about 2 minutes, scraping sides until well mixed. Spread over pineapple in pan. Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cook 5 minutes. Invert onto platter, replacing any fruit that remains in the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature topped with a dollop of whipped cream. Makes 12 servings.

Green Bean Casserole

Food Network invites you to try this Green Bean Casserole recipe from Paula Deen.

Every Thanksgiving I brace myself for the inevitable: green bean casserole.Green bean casserole, invented by Campbell’s Soup in 1955, is adored by literally millions of Americans. I am not in this group. Our family, led by mother’s disdain for opening a can of creamed mushroom soup and dumping it on vegetables, ate peas and pearl onions instead.

Usually I allow myself an air of historic superiority as I dismiss green bean casserole when it is offered – surely the original Thanksgiving did not include a dish from a can.

But this year I may soften my stance a bit. I’ve been reading an informative and insightful cookbook, “Giving Thanks: Thanksgiving Recipes and History, from Pilgrims to Pumpkin Pie” by Kathleen Curtin, Sandra L. Oliver, and Plimoth Plantation.

You are probably well aware that no one knows for certain what was exactly shared and consumed at that first day of thanksgiving in 1621 sometime between Sept. 21 and Nov. 9 among the native Wampanoag People of Cape Cod and the settling English. The only eye-witness account of that day, written by colonist Edward Wilson to a friend back home refers to “fowl” and “deer.” And it wasn’t even really Thanksgiving. It was an annual harvest party.

The authors of “Giving Thanks” go on to explain how this harvest party evolved into the full-blown American tradition it is today. It is a fascinating read and will arm you with plenty of trivia to impress your friends and relatives around the dinner table, too stuffed to escape your self-indulgent soliloquy of facts they could care less about.

For instance, Abraham Lincoln may have declared the last Thursday of November as the annual date for our national holiday, but did you know this was largely because of the hard campaigning of the “Godey’s Lady’s Book” editor, Sarah Josepha Buell Hale? Ms. Hale was relentless in her pursuit to establish Thanksgiving as a national holiday and annually wrote letters for 16 years to the White House, all state governors, and each member of Congress extolling the virtues of a meal that brought people together to express gratitude. When Lincoln finally relented with his proclamation in 1863, Southerners refused to acknowledge the “Yankee” holiday.

But the Southerners eventually changed and perhaps I will, too, about green bean casserole. Here’s why: At the back of “Giving Thanks” is an incredibly eclectic array of “traditional” Thanksgiving dishes. There is everything from “Oyster Stuffing” to “Chinese American Rice Dressing” to “Finnish Turnip Casserole” to “Puerto Rican Roast Pork Shoulder.” And there is even a recipe for “Green Bean Casserole.”

Thanksgiving dishes have evolved and mixed and borrowed just like the unique peoples who have come together and adapted in their efforts to build a free democracy.

So, if a glob of canned soup in a Thanksgiving dish is really a nod to the convenient foods that temporarily freed mid-20th century American women everywhere so they could devote their thoughts and energies beyond the kitchen – for better or worse – then I concede. Green bean casserole has its proper place in the history of American Thanksgiving.

But I’ll need to change the recipe’s name – just to satisfy my preference for historical context. Please pass me the peas and pearl onions.

Feminist Green Bean Casserole
Adapted from “Giving Thanks”

Serves 8

1 10-3/4-ounce can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 16-ounce cans French-cut green beans, drained or 2 16-ounce packages frozen French-cut green beans, cooked and drained
1 2.8-ounce can French’s Fried Onions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, whisk the condensed soup, milk, soy sauce, and pepper until smooth. Stir in the beans and half of the onions.

Pour mixture into a 1-1/2 quart casserole dish. Bake for 25 minutes, uncovered until the mixture is hot and bubbling.

Stir well, top with the remaining onions, and bake for 5 minutes more, or until the onion topping is nicely browned.

Related posts on Kitchen Report: Peas and Pearl Onions, Cape Cod Cranberry Orange Relish, Pumpkin Curry Soup, Wild Rice and Fruit Salad, Thanksgiving Oatmeal Cookies

Pecan Pie Recipe For Thanksgiving

Pecan pie is the perfect complement to pumpkin pie on the Thanksgiving table There's no question that pie is a staple in American homes during the holidays. Pecan pie is the perfect complement to pumpkin pie on the Thanksgiving table.

There’s no question that pie is a staple in American homes during the holidays. Pie has that inevitable quality to bring together a family after a hard-earned holiday meal to enjoy some good old family tradition. An intimate family conversation that brings all family members closer every holiday is the cornerstone for every bite of pie.

The whole story, according to Wholly Wholesome, is few Americans realize the history that goes into the pies they enjoy today. Originally called a “coffin” (meaning “basket” or “box”), the pie was the beginning of every holiday meal. For hundreds of years, tracing back to our great ancestors, every meal was baked into a crusty shell and served warm with meat filling the interior. Then, pies were considered a necessity. Today, however, pies are considered a culinary delight. Our beloved pie is so special that it is now saved for family gatherings and a sweet treat after meals.

“Pies have been a central part of our family celebrations for generations,” explains Doon Wintz. “My sister, Bonnie, and I have a friendly competition at holiday meals. She makes her famous pecan pies and I make pumpkin or ice cream pies. It’s a real treat to pass along our family’s tradition through wholesome, natural and organic baked-goods. We understand the importance of family and how food brings them together in a really special way.”

Pies have a serendipitous appeal for every taste bud, from apple and pumpkin pies to blueberry and cherry and serendipitous tastes call for serendipitous recipes, including the one here for Bonnie’s Pecan Pie. Everyone can enjoy this Wholly Wholesome recipe this holiday season, including special dieters.

Aunt Bonnie’s Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

    * ½ cup sugar
    * 1 cup Corn Syrup
    * 4 Tablespoons Butter
    * 3 eggs (beaten lightly)
    * 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    * 1 pinch salt
    * 1 Nine Inch Wholly Wholesome Pie Shell (White, Whole Wheat or Spelt)
    * 2 Cups broken pecans (broken into small pieces)
    * 60 Whole Pecan halves (for top of pie)

Directions:

1. Combine sugar and syrup in a fry pan over a medium heat for 5 minutesMelt Butter into mixture

2. Set aside to cool (if you’re in a rush, put the pan on a bed of ice in the sink)

3. Preheat oven to 400 deg F.

4. Once cooled, add eggs, salt and vanilla

5. Fill pie shell w/broken pecans

6. Pour Syrup mixture over pecans until it’s just below the rim

7. Arrange Pecan Halves on top starting with the largest pecans around the outside in a circle and using progressively smaller pecan halves as you circles move towards the center. Be sure to save some nice small ones for the center.

8. Place on a piece of foil on top of a cookie sheet and place in the oven

9. Reduce oven to 350 deg F. and bake for 50 minutes or until pecans are nicely toasted, but not burnt.

The company's passion to create a natural baked goods product line that could deliver great tasting treats for ingredient-conscious consumers led to the savory pies, cookies, cakes, rolls, breads and pie crusts that Wholly Wholesome offers today, including organic, vegan and kosher. Evaporated cane sugar (ECS), also known as evaporated cane juice, is an important ingredient in Wholly Wholesome products as it leaves no carbon footprint. It is often listed as Organic Cane Sugar on the ingredients panel. In Wholly Wholesome mission statement, in referencing Our Planet, it says that the company follows “a path towards a sustainable future with a clear focus on the environment, social equity and economic growth.”

Anne McCaffrey Has Died

By Christopher John Farley Anne McCaffrey, author of the “Dragonriders of Pern” series, has died. She was 85 years old.Anne McCaffrey, author of the “Dragonriders of Pern” series, has died.
Her publisher Random House reportedly announced that the author passed away after suffering a stroke.

McCaffrey’s books about a distant planet in which some inhabitants rode telepathic dragons to combat deadly falling alien Threads are considered seminal works of fantasy fiction. The books combined mythic inspiration, sci-fi and adventure.

McCaffrey was born in Cambridge, Mass., and published “Dragonflight,” the first volume in her “Dragonriders of Pern” series, in 1968. “When is a legend a legend? Why is a myth a myth? How old and disused must a fact be for it to be relegated to the category ‘Fairy-tale’?” she wrote in the introduction to “Dragonflight.” McCaffrey’s 1978 book “The White Dragon” was a breakthrough in the series, and made the New York Times bestseller lists.

While much of fantasy fiction focused on male protagonists, McCaffrey’s works featured both men and women as risk-taking heroes and heroines. Her blend of the sci-fi and fantasy genres was also unique and groundbreaking. McCaffrey was the first woman to win a Hugo Award and the first female to win a Nebula Award; she won both sci-fi/fantasy writing prizes in the late 1960s.

Her books reimagined the ancient mythology of dragons, transforming them from enemies of men into friends, creating a psychological and emotional bond between humans and the fire-breathing creatures, and successfully tapping into a deep-seated fantasy most readers didn’t even know they had–the desire to ride on the back of  a dragon and fly across the sky.

In one of her last notes to fans on Oct. 27, 2010, she expressed her hope that she would be able to attend a convention celebrating her works,  writing “health permitting, I’ll be at Dragon*con 2011. I apologize that I won’t be able to do nearly as many appearances as I’d like (oh, to be even 20 years younger!) but I can’t think of a convention I’d rather attend in my 85th year!”

On Aug. 18 2011, her son Todd posted a note reading “Mum wants me to relay to you how terribly sorry she is to have to cancel this year’s appearance at Dragon*con. What seemed to be indigestion last week has now turned out to be something more serious – some incident with her heart, the full details of which are still to be determined by tests. Mum very specifically asked me to apologize to those who had hoped to see her there, saying: ‘Sorry that old age came up and bit me on the a**.’”

Urban Meyer To Ohio State

Tebow on Urban Meyer-Ohio State rumors : First-and-Orange is the authority on the latest breaking news and analysis about the Denver Broncos, written by Mike Klis, Lindsay Jones and Jeff Legwold. As everyone gets ready for the holiday tomorrow, it’s been all FSU and a lot of Urban Meyer mixed in. Looking ahead to the game this weekend, it will be important for both quarterbacks looking for a signature win this season.

Florida State’s EJ Manuel has two to his name in his career, being named the MVP of the 2010 Gator Bowl and leading the Seminoles to a win over Clemson last season. But John Brantley has 22 starts under his belt with no signature wins to his name.

Of the 14 games the Gators have won with Brantley as the starter, its difficult to find any where he was the difference between winning and losing vs. a good team. The best win of his career as a starter is arguably vs. Georgia last season, and injuries have limited his impact this season. So, this week’s game vs. FSU is his last real chance. The Gators (6-5) will go to a bowl, but beating a mediocre team out of conference wouldn’t be as impressive as beating a rival.

Urban Meyer to OSU: Former Florida coach Urban Meyer released a statement this morning refuting reports that he’s headed to Ohio State, but The Columbus Dispatch cites two OSU officials who say an announcement is coming next week. The New York Times also reports that Meyer’s hiring is closer to completion.

Charlie Weis dealing with hip pain: Although Florida offensive coordinator Charlie Weis has been dealing with hip pain for a while, he said he intends to keep coaching. Weis will get the hip checked out after the season, but for now is using a cane.

Defending Tebow: With Denver QB Tim Tebow improving to 4-1 this season as a starter, the critics haven’t stop. Of course, they probably haven’t since he was at Florida. But The New Yorker defends the former Gator.

Breaking down Florida-FSU: With the big game this weekend, FSU writer Coley Harvey and I broke down the matchup with CineSports’ Noah Coslov. Spoiler alert – we both thought the Seminoles would win.

Coming up: Florida’s availability is done for the week, so it’ll be a little quiet here until game day. Morning reads is taking a holiday break, so enjoy some turkey and we’ll be back on Saturday.

Breaking News Dancing With The Stars Winner

Dancing With the Stars closed out its 13th edition on Tuesday night, crowning a winner after weeks of competition.There's a certain excitement that comes with the final night of "Dancing with the Stars."It's part nostalgia (Look! Ron Artest really was a part of this once upon a time!). It's part spectator sport (If Karina Smirnoff doesn't win this time, she'll produce a Cossack sword and chop off Len Goodman's neck!). And it's part self-justification (I KNEW that Rob Kardashian would make it into the final two! I just KNEW it! Now where's my Cossack sword?!).So here we were, with the three finalists still being required to dance as much as twice more. The sneaky betting suggested that J.R. Martinez - happily, an ABC actor - and his partner Smirnoff, the only professional in the final never to have won, would be clutching that Mirrorball Trophy and singing "Kalinka" at the end of the evening.

This is how it turned out. But that information surely shouldn't have spoiled the 1 hour and 58 minutes of sheer filler and shiller that went before it.

The actual dancing required each pair to offer a reprise of their favorite dance of the season. Ricki Lake and Derek Hough went for their "Psycho" tango. You know, the one where Hough stabs Lake at the end. It was just as dramatic as it had been in its debut. Lake didn't seem to put a foot wrong. Her swoon of death was even convincing.

"This is one of the most memorable dances of this or any other season," said Len Goodman.

"You are a fighter that never gives up," mused Carrie Ann Inaba, in carnal solidarity with the last woman standing.

Rob Kardashian and Cheryl Burke reprised their foxtrot. You know, the one where little Rob wears a black hat with a green band. Unfortunately, just a few seconds into the dance, Kardashian almost lost his hat on Burke's elbow. He stopped to chuckle before continuing one of his better performances. His legs will never be those of a dancer. They are far too uncertain, far too much like a stilt-walker's. But he tried, bless him. He tried, which isn't so easy when your whole family is present.

"You even made that little hiccup look charming," said Bruno Tonioli.

"You've got the best footwork of almost any guy I've seen on this show," exaggerated Goodman.

J.R. Martinez took the risk of doing the jive, one of his weakest performances of the whole competition. Perhaps energized by his freestyle of the previous night, Martinez managed to give it a little more gusto, a little more rhythm, a little more Latino.

"You are such a catalyst for joy," said Inaba.

Goodman praised the band and the singers. "Fun, fun, fun," was Tonioli's considered opinion.

As for scoring, this would be done on a first to last basis. Kardashian was third, Martinez second and Lake first. This was peculiarly just and sober. Suddenly, with only 45 minutes gone, one star would be eliminated.

Stunningly, it was Lake. Perhaps she's been off TV for too long. Perhaps most of the voters endured serious problems with their eyesockets. Lake was certainly not the third best dancer. To place her below Kardashian was like placing Mozart below Milli Vanilli.

So it was down to Kardashian and Martinez. Surely Smirnoff, whose eyes could taste the prize and whose mouth would surely bite any hand that tried to touch that trophy, would impel her partner over the finish line.

They were charged with preparing an instant samba. In the meantime, we had to watch a whole history of the series. Well, we didn't have to. There was always the DVR to propel us to the finish line.

Who would have voluntarily watched Metta World Peace and Nancy Grace offering so much dancing grace that all we craved was a little peace?

Still, my own DVR paused independently just to catch Kristin Cavallari and Chynna Phillips, both of whom were eliminated far too early. I even thought I saw Carson Kressley twirling with professional Val Chmerkovskiy.

Before I could restart it, there was Chaz Bono and his partner, the sublime Lacey Schwimmer. There, too, was her dad - the celebrated West Coast swinger, Buddy Schwimmer. What proceeded was a highly inventive - is threesome the appropriate dancing term here? Probably not - in which Bono and Buddy buddied up to charming effect. Where was Cher when we needed her most?

With just 15 minutes left of this bloated extravaganza, Martinez and Smirnoff danced their instant samba. Martinez again struggled to stay behind the music. But he willed his hips and his lips into action, where others might have already faded. Kardashian and Burke followed. The former has managed to find elegance in his arms, while his legs would still look more comfortable beating a drum.

Here, he was desperately trying to take his moves from Burke, which meant that he was always half a beat behind her as he tried to mimic rather than lead. Still, he had a nice bright blue bowling shirt for the occasion.

Goodman offered them a one-person standing ovation.

Tonioli declared that Martinez could turn it on at will. He maintained his obsession with Kardashian's "bonbon."

Absurdly (and predictably) the judges all gave both pairs 10s. Which meant that, no, really, yes, actually, shockingly, staggeringly, Martinez and Smirnoff were announced as the champions.

Smirnoff looked like a golfer who had finally sunk the winning putt in a major after 20 years on tour. She leaped into Martinez' arms and wept with Inaban abandon.

Should your chosen star have not delivered as you would have wished, should you believe that the results were more unfair than the sands of time, please don't worry.

It'll all begin again in March, with new names desperate to regain a little profile. Will Cher compete? What about Glen Beck? That's the joy of this show. You just never know - until you do.

Thanksgiving Stunner

For sports fans, Thanksgiving Day is all about the NFL lineup. If you're planning to watch all the games, follow your favorite teams on Twitter, and see what fans everywhere are saying about the game. The undefeated and seemingly unstoppable defending champions from Green Bay sweep down into Detroit, where a determined bunch of Lions await.  That describes Thursday’s game at Ford Field, where the 10-0 Packers will tangle with the 7-3 Lions. But that was also the situation 49 years ago, the last time an undefeated N.F.L. team played on Thanksgiving. That was when the Packers — 10-0 and the winners of 12 straight games, including the 1961 N.F.L. championship — went to Detroit on Thanksgiving and fell in one of the more stunning losses of the Vince Lombardi era.

The Packers were a fearsome machine in 1962, featuring stars like Bart Starr, Jim Taylor, Paul Hornung, Forrest Gregg, Jerry Kramer, Ray Nitschke and Willie Wood. Through 10 games, they had outscored opponents, 309-74, winning by an average of nearly 24 points. “They had it all,” said Keith Dunnavant, the author “America’s Quarterback,” a recent biography of Starr. “Just about everybody on the team was at their peak.”

Yet the Lions were nearly their equal, especially on defense, where they had five future Hall of Famers, including middle linebacker Joe Schmidt and defensive backs Dick  Lane, who was nicknamed Night Train, and Dick LeBeau.

“We all felt we had a better football team,” Schmidt said. But it would be the front four of Sam Williams, Alex Karras, Roger Brown and Darris McCord — the original Fearsome Foursome — that left an imprint that day, Brown in particular.

The Lions were still smarting from their previous meeting with the Packers. On Oct. 7, Detroit had gone into Green Bay with a 3-0 record and a confidence that they could gain control of the division.  The Lions led, 7-6, with a little under two minutes remaining, and faced third-and-8.  

Lions quarterback Milt Plum dropped back to pass. But receiver Terry Barr slipped in the mud, and the ball sailed into the arms of defensive back Herb Adderley, who raced down the Green Bay sideline to the Lions’ 18.  Hornung would end up kicking his third field goal of the game, and the Packers escaped with a 9-7 victory.

The Lions’ locker room exploded in anger, with the defense blaming the offense for the defeat.  

Two weeks later, Detroit lost, 17-14, to the Giants, so the Thanksgiving Day rematch with Green Bay was a game the Lions had to win to catch the Packers.

 Detroit fans camped out overnight in the bitter cold to snap up the few remaining bleacher tickets still available.  Tiger Stadium was filled with 57,598 fans and millions more tuned in to CBS for the noon start.  “Everyone watched that game,” Brown said recently.  “God and his 12 disciples were watching.”

Green Bay was a 7-point favorite to stay unbeaten, but it had shown some vulnerability.  The Packers needed a fourth-quarter touchdown and two goal-line stands to defeat Baltimore, 17-13, the previous weekend. Hornung, the N.F.L.’s reigning most valuable player, had injured his knee six weeks earlier and would miss the game. And guard Fuzzy Thurston, the man responsible for blocking Brown, was dealing with his mother’s death earlier in the week.

Green Bay’s plan was for Starr to neutralize the Lions’ rush with a short passing game, but Detroit’s defensive coordinator, Don Shula, saw it coming, and had his secondary play close to the Packers’ receivers.

“It was the perfect scheme,” Dunnavant says.  “They jammed them up.”

.

Though not grouped with the best linemen in N.F.L. lore, Brown was a terror, 6 feet 5 inches and 300 pounds of bad news, the first player to combine enormous size with the speed and agility to beat opposing linemen. He sacked Starr for a 15-yard loss on Green Bay’s first series, an early announcement that Thurston and Gregg and the rest of the Packers’ line would be in trouble.

“We confused their blocking with twists and stunts, and they lost their poise,” said Schmidt, who went on to coach the Lions.

Brown added, “We did all kinds of nutty things to get to Starr.” He added that Thurston could have had a howitzer, “and he wouldn’t have stopped me; he was overwhelmed.” 

After the sack, Boyd Dowler shanked a 15-year punt.  It took only three plays for Detroit to score, with Gail Cogdill beating Wood for a 33-yard touchdown. Things did not get better for Starr on the next Packers possession. He was sacked for a 9-yard loss by “a whole host of Lions,” according to the official play-by-play report. 

Simple Pumpkin Cheesecake Trifles

Nothing is sadder for a proud baker than someone turning down dessert because they’re just too full. Instead, offer bite-sized desserts that no one can resist. Mini pumpkin cheesecakes fit the bill and aren’t as temperamental as a full-size cheesecake can be.Sometime in the 3rd century B.C., a Greek-born Lybian librarian, Callimachus, wrote about a long-forgotten physician by the name of Aegimus. (FYI: Both were probably named that way to confuse you and perpetuate the stereotype that all Ancient Greek names ended in 'us.' )

Anyway, according to Callimachus, the doctor revolutionized the culinary world, by penning the first-ever book on cheesecakes. (Before that, Aegimus just wrote boring medical stuff, like the first-known work on pulses.)

Some years later, Rome's colonization of Greece helped popularize the custardy concoction in the West. Cato the Elder, a war-mongering Roman statesman, gave two recipes for cheesecake in De Agri Cultura, his farming manual. Cato's "libum" variety can be prepared without flour, with two pounds of cheese mashed with a mortar; the "placenta" version calls for spelt flour and curdled sheep's milk.

Neither approach sounds very appetizing. But the dessert's spread worldwide has resulted in many regional influences and improvements, such as the addition of sweeteners or fruit marmalades.

Some approaches, like the vegan pumpkin cheesecake at Little Atlas (6 W. 4th St.), have wound up evolving away from dairy altogether.

This sandwich shop -- the takeout-only version of Second Avenue's Atlas Cafe -- sells a slice of the milk-free selection for $5.50.

The portion features a thick, Gollum-like skin and mysteriously foamy whipped topping -- but the pastry only looks rubbery, burnt, and menacing.

The "cheese" part tastes thick, creamy and cool, with faint hints of semi-sweet gourd. The crust, more cookie-like than graham crackery, has the air of anise, cardamon, and cinnamon.

Even the unidentifiable white fluff pleases. The pouf has the nostalgia-triggering vibe of cheap frosting -- the kind found on school cafeteria brownies and childhood birthday cakes.

Unique Turkey Recipes

Last Monday, we started with some new and unique ways to make some of the classic Thanksgiving Favorites.  Today’s recipes are on cooking your Turkey!  There are several ways you can cook a turkey.It's that time of year again — time to give thanks, celebrate the season in good company and bring out those tried-and-true Thanksgiving recipes.

Portsmouth Patch and sister sites across New Hampshire want to know about those dishes that always have a place on your Thanksgiving table and those that are making their debut this year.

Have a creative spin on cranberry sauce? Are you known for famous stuffing that friends and relatives talk about long after all the Turkey Day leftovers have been gobbled up?

This is your opportunity to find out what your neighbors are cooking. Give a recipe and get one from your Nashua neighbors.

If you have a recipe you would like to share, send it to Editor Robert Cook at robert.cook@patch.com by Nov. 23. Feel free to include a short history of how the recipe came to be or how long it's been on your family's Thanksgiving table, though the simple recipe would be great by itself. We'll share the recipes leading up to Thanksgiving to give you time to gather those ingredients, hit the kitchen and get cooking!

Sweet Potato Pie

The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, is no longer with us but we can all have a little bit of Jacko with us this year as we gather for Thanksgiving.Heavy rains the past couple of years mean demand for pumpkin has been greater than supply. And when demand surpasses supply, hoarding tends to follow. In fact, the grocery store shelves near my homes in Pennsylvania and Connecticut were bare until October. And this year may not be much better. Irene destroyed the crops in upstate New York and and early cold snaps may have resulted in premature harvests in many pumpkin producing states.So if you find the shelves bare this holiday, know that sweet potato is almost a dead ringer for pumpkin. No need to bake the sweet potatoes when you can microwave them to a fork-tender state in just 10 minutes. Puréeing the sweet potato filling in a blender before pouring it into the pie shell guarantees a light silky texture and using bold spices and evaporated and condensed milks – both sweetener and dairy in one – result in a highly flavorful, substantial pie filling.

If you find plenty of pumpkin on the shelves, this sweet potato pie easily converts to pumpkin. Simply substitute a 15-ounce can of pumpkin for the two sweet potatoes. So whether it’s sweet potato or pumpkin this holiday, this is your go-to pie recipe.

Sweet Potato Pie

Makes 1 9-inch deep-dish pie

You can also make this pie with canned pumpkin substituting 1 can (15 ounces) pure pumpkin for the 2 cups of cooked sweet potatoes

1 pre-baked 9-inch pie shell
2 sweet potatoes (about 12 ounces each), pricked with a fork
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 can (14 ounces) canned condensed milk
1 cup evaporated milk
2 eggs plus 2 yolks

Whether you’re using homemade or boxed refrigerated dough, have pre-baked pie shell ready. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees F. Microwave sweet potatoes on high power until fork-tender, 9 to 10 minutes. When potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel them and mash flesh with a fork.

Along with ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and salt, add mashed sweet potatoes to a large saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until potato starts to stick to pan bottom, about 5 minutes. Add condensed and evaporated milks; cook until sputtery. Whir eggs and yolks in a blender. With blender running, add a cup or so of the hot pumpkin mixture, a large spoonful at a time, to temper eggs. Add remaining pumpkin mixture; continue to puree to form a silky texture filling.

Pour warm filling into warm pie shell. Bake until a thin-bladed knife inserted into the center of the filling comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack until warm or room temperature. Serve.

Green Bean Casserole

Green bean casserole is among the most popular Thanksgiving recipes for 2011. The classic green dish has been a trending Google search for the last two weeks.So I put out a humble little list of shopworn holiday expressions that have outlived any usefulness, even in journalism, and people call me a Grinch (people are so predictable) and accuse me of thought policing. I figure they’ll start reaching for rope and looking for high tree limbs once I disparage that loathsome Thanksgiving green bean casserole.

You can see what I said a year ago, and how the public responded.

I am not a bigot.* If my mother and grandmother were still cooking green beans the whole morning with potatoes and a chunk of pork for flavoring, I would gladly tuck in. If Kathleen, my wife, were to steam them and serve them with a sprinkle of sea salt and a dash of lemon juice, they would be grand. I had them in Florida years ago battered and deep-fried. (Southerners would eat lint if it were battered and deep-fried. Come to think of it, just about any American would.)

But dousing them with Campbell’s condensed cream of mushroom soup, which looks like something that has already been though the digestive tract once, is a survival of American culinary practice better abandoned.

Thanksgiving is still nearly five days away. There is still time to save yourselves, and your families.



*With turkey, either. I’ve eaten it with the traditional chestnut, cornbread, and sausage-based dressings. I’ve had it—well, once—with sauerkraut, in the Baltimorean fashion. I’ve eaten it with mango salsa, which I still think is the best accompaniment. There is no point in being doctrinaire about turkey.

Marking The Kennedy Assassination

On the 48th anniversary of JFK's assassination, Errol Morris posted a video interview with Josia Thompson, author of Six Seconds In Dallas. The decades tick on, but the nation's fascination with and collective grief for John F. Kennedy's assassination remains constant, even today as we mark the 48th anniversary. Above you can see a stabilized version of the famed Zapruder film, still the best document we have of the event — a fact which in itself is mind-boggling, given how a Presidential appearance these days would be shot from every angle, by fifty or eighty news outlets, not to mention every bystander's cell phone camera.Today the NYT brings us this terrific documentary short from the brilliant Errol Morris about "The Umbrella Man" — a man who stood along Kennedy's procession route that day in Dallas with an open umbrella, despite the fact that it was sunny outside. The man's presence seems sinister, and multiple conspiracy theories tried to account for his presence, but once the man finally came forward in 1978 the real truth about him and his umbrella was totally weird and non-sinister. As Kennedy assassination chronicler Josiah Thompson says, when you start to feel certain about some sinister explanation for a fact, "Forget it man. You can never on your own think of all the possible non-sinister, perfectly valid explanations for that fact."

Meanwhile, in Dallas, where the anniversary usually slides by without much fanfare — the city, collectively, still feels a little guilty about the whole thing — they're preparing for a 50th anniversary event in 2013 and raising money to restore Dealey Plaza. The Book Depository, don't you know, has become something called the Sixth Floor Museum. And today the LA Times runs this photo of some creepy tourists in Dallas posing for a photo on the X-marked spot in the road where Kennedy was shot.

And this month marks the publication of a new book by Stephen King called, simply, 11/22/63. The premise: An English teacher goes back in time, to 1958, with foreknowledge of the Kennedy assassination, and spends five years trying to prevent the assassination from happening. It's a Boomer fantasy of sorts, trying to imagine a different story for Vietnam, etc, if Kennedy had lived. As one critic writes in the AP, "After all the rotting corpses and sharp-toothed clowns, after all the ghosts and aliens and possessed cars and possessed dogs, could this, at long last, be the thing that truly haunts Stephen King? Could the master of American horror, he who bravely shepherded us through the unspeakable in the 2000s, the 1990s, the 1980s and the 1970s, be afraid of the 1960s?"

Also, it's said that Kennedy was the first President to "pardon" a turkey at the White House, choosing a 55-pound beast and letting it live instead of eating it.

Pecan Pie Recipe For Thanksgiving

Dessert can be nearly as important as the main course for Thanksgiving feasts. And with so many options to choose from, it’s hard to decide whether to stick with the classics or try something new. So we’ve pulled the best traditional and unusual pie recipes from our Recipe Finder for your consideration:Using whole pecans halves make a big difference in this pie. It is possible to use chopped pecans, but whole pecan halves make for a beautiful presentation and are nicer to bite into.

Ingredients:

Dough for 1 (9-inch) pie crust
3 eggs
1 cup dark corn syrup
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
5 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled to room temp.
1/2 Tbsp vanilla extract
2 cups pecan halves
Unsweetened whipped cream for serving (optional)

Instructions:

1. Drape the dough into the plate, leaving about an inch overhang. Decoratively crimp edges.



2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.



3. Beat eggs just until yolks and whites are well-mixed. Add syrup, brown sugar, room temperature melted butter, and vanilla extract. Mix well. Gently stir in the pecans, taking care not to break them. Pour into pie shell.



4. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees. Bake 20-25 minutes more, or until just set. The interior should no longer be syrupy, and a knife inserted into center will come out clean.



5. Remove from oven and let cool. Serve slightly warm, topped with unsweetened whipped cream if desired. Serves 6.

Urban Meyer Ohio State

That the Buckeyes' job came open less than a year after Meyer left Florida is certainly not what he expected, but it will likely be an opportunity he can't pass up. As it is, his current employer (ESPN) has reported that Meyer has spoken with Ohio State officials and there's "mutual interest." Meyer has left himself wiggle room.Has ESPN analyst Urban Meyer agreed to become the next Ohio St. Buckeyes head coach? He denied it earlier in the day during an ESPN broadcast when asked by an ESPN associate, though neither of the other ESPN broadcasters in the booth asked whether he's been in touch with Ohio State in the first place.

Luckily, ESPN is now reporting he has. The network's report lines up with what Buckeyes blog Eleven Warriors reported earlier in the week -- that Meyer is waiting to see just how hard the NCAA comes down on Ohio State, but that there's strong interest on both sides.

No word from ESPN on whether half of ESPN will be joining Meyer in Columbus, as another Internet report alleged. But now that the network is reporting Meyer is in talks with Ohio State, you can go ahead and pencil it in as a done deal. Pencil, I said.

JFK Kennedy Assassination Anniversary

Tuesday marks the 48th anniversary of one of the most tragic events to take place on American soil -- the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. It has now been 48 years since President John F. Kennedy was cut down on the streets of Dallas by rifle shots fired by Lee Harvey Oswald, a self-described Marxist, recent defector to the Soviet Union, and ardent admirer of Fidel Castro. The evidence condemning Oswald was overwhelming: the bullets that killed President Kennedy were fired from his rifle, the rifle was found on the sixth floor of the warehouse where he worked and were he was seen moments before the shooting, and witnesses on the street described a man firing shots from that location. When a policeman stopped Oswald on foot to question him about the assassination, Oswald pulled out a pistol and shot him before fleeing to a nearby movie theater where he was arrested, still carrying the pistol with which he had killed the policeman. Two days later Oswald was himself assassinated while in police custody by a night club owner distraught over Kennedy's death. For understandable reasons, these events had a disorienting effect on the public mind.

For many who came of age during that era and were taken with Kennedy's style and idealistic rhetoric, his very public murder, recorded in amateur films and news photos, was a shock that they could never quite get over. Returning to it again and again as the years passed, they could not help but feel that the disasters that followed -- the war in Vietnam, the urban riots, the assassinations of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Nixon's election -- were somehow connected to that irrational act of violence that claimed President Kennedy's life. If somehow the act could be undone or understood, or blame for it fairly apportioned and punishment meted out, then the world might again be set right, or at least partly so. But it could not be undone, and it proved nearly as difficult to understand or explain, at least in terms satisfactory to the assumptions of the age. And so before long the JFK assassination came to be encrusted in layers of myth, illusion, and disinformation strong enough to deflect every attempt to understand it from a rational point of view.

The central myth of the JFK assassination was that a climate of hate inspired by the far right created the conditions for President Kennedy's murder. A single assassin may have pulled the trigger, but he was put up to it by an undercurrent of hatred and bigotry that President Kennedy tried but failed to subdue. On this view President Kennedy was a martyr, somewhat like Abraham Lincoln, to the causes of civil rights, racial justice, and an elevated liberalism. JFK's assassination was a tragic but richly symbolic event for many Americans who saw it as a vivid expression of an ongoing battle in American life between the forces of light and darkness.

This explanation for the assassination did not drop out of thin air but was circulated immediately after the event by influential leaders, journalists, and journalistic outlets, including Mrs. Kennedy, President Johnson, Chief Justice Earl Warren, Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, James Reston, Russell Baker, and the editorial page of the New York Times, columnist Drew Pearson, and any number of other liberal spokesmen. Mrs. Kennedy took the lead in insisting that her husband was martyred by agents of hatred and bigotry. Within days of the assassination, she elaborated the symbolism of Camelot and King Arthur's court to frame the Kennedy presidency as a special and near-magical enterprise guided by the highest ideals. The eternal flame she placed on his grave site invokes King Arthur's candle in the wind as imagined by T. H. White in his Arthurian novel, The Once and Future King, later the basis of a Broadway musical that was popular during the Kennedy years.

These were the myths, illusions, and outright fabrications in which the Kennedy assassination came to be encrusted. Despite all evidence to the contrary, they are still widely believed. In fact, the Kennedy legend, incorporating the myths about his assassination, is closely intertwined with the history of modern liberalism: JFK has come to represent a liberal ideal and his assassination the threat posed to it by the forces of the far right.

Ali Fedotowsky Robert Martinez Split

After a year and a half of dating and three postponed wedding dates, Ali Fedotowsky and Roberto Martinez broke up this month, a rep for the reality star said.The 27-year-old former Facebook employee and accepted insurance agent Martinez's proposal on the finale of The Bachelorette's sixth season in 2010.Another reality television fairy tale has ended unhappily.

Ali Fedotowsky and Roberto Martinez have broken up, their rep confirms.he couple became engaged in 2010 on the sixth season finale of “The Bachelorette.”

In an official statement, the rep announces, “Ali Fedotowsky and Roberto Martinez have ended their relationship. As they go through this difficult time, we ask that you respect the couple’s privacy.”

Fedotowsky has not mentioned the split on Twitter, last writing on Sunday, “Feeling very thankful for all the beautiful, kind, giving people in my life. Which is fitting since its the start of Thanksgiving week!”

Kurt Busch Lets Jerry Punch

It has come to light this season that NASCAR has been involved in the business of secretly fining drivers who stray from the company line. Criticizing penalties already levied or the latest in innovations can prove to be costly for the offending participants.The New York State Athletic Commission will allow boxer Antonio Margarito to fight against Miguel Cotto on Dec. 3 at Madison Square Garden, ending a drawn-out saga that orginally saw the NYSAC reject Margarito's application for a license a few weeks ago, then take a good part of Tuesday afternoon deliberating on whether or not to grant him a license.

Margarito had flown to New York on Monday to be examined by the commission's hand-picked eye specialist, Andrew Goldstein, at the request of the commission.

Margarito suffered serious eye injuries a year ago in his fight at Cowboys Stadium against Manny Pacquiao, including a broken orbital bone. He developed a cataract in his right eye and had it surgically removed, and an artificial lens implanted. Generally, the NYSAC does not allow a person to fight in the state with the types of injuries Margarito incurred.

The three-person commission had rejected Margarito's application for a boxing license several weeks ago, but Top Rank, the promoter for both Cotto and Margarito, sought an appeal. Margarito had gotten clearance to fight from his eye surgeon, Alan Crandall. But the commission wanted their own doctor to check Margarito out. He flew in on Monday and was examined by Goldstein.

Top Rank President Todd duBoef said afterwards, "I'm incredibly happy about the result, and that the commission was able to see that when the top medical evidence came in, that they were willing to consider it. That to me was incredible.

"But we had nothing to hide. That's what we were always saying. We've got nothing to hide, he's got nothing to hide and we wanted to be heard, not to go on deaf ears.

"It's an incredible fight for boxing. This whole show in New York has all come together and to see this thing possibly fade away was what was so disheartening."

The commission was more than an hour late for the meeting Tuesday and then deliberated for several hours before making its decision.

The statement by commissioner Edwin Torres, who was standing in for Melvina Latham, the chairman who had On a conference call with reporters ealrier Tuesday, Cotto, the WBA light middleweight champion, who has a large Puerto Rican following in the New York City area, dropped a bomb when he said he would not fight if the bout was moved from New York.

"I signed for this for New York," Cotto said when asked about the possibility of the fight moving elsewhere. "I didn't sign this fight for somewhere else. I'm going to fight in New York. I'm not going to fight in another place. I'm not going to present myself in any other state. New York State. If New York says and the medical people from the commission say that Margarito is not able to fight because of his eye, any commission has to respect that."

Thus, it appears that the HBO pay-per-view card will proceed as scheduled on Saturday, Dec. 3 at Madison Square Garden.

Ryan Braun Is MVP

Ryan Braun Is MVP, Ken Williams’s Lobster Was Compromised, And Other Hot Fucking Stove DevelopmentsRyan Braun was looking out at the Pacific Ocean from the balcony of his home in Malibu on Tuesday morning as he waited for a phone call telling him whether he had been selected National League most valuable player.

When the call came that he had won, he said he reacted with great emotion.

"It's pretty incredible," he said.

Braun, who learned to play baseball on youth fields and high school diamonds in the San Fernando Valley before becoming the top hitter for the Milwaukee Brewers, received 20 of a possible 32 first-place votes and 388 points in voting from members of the Baseball Writers' Assn. of America.

He beat out Matt Kemp of the Dodgers, who received 10 first-place votes and 332 points. Prince Fielder of the Brewers finished third with 229 points.

"I'm happy for Ryan," said Kemp, who congratulated him first on Twitter and then during a call with reporters. "I knew it was going to be close. He deserves every bit of this award."

Braun complimented Kemp, saying, "Matt is one of the best players in the game. The season he had will always go down as one of the greatest in Dodger history. If he had won the MVP, I couldn't have argued with him winning."

The award is still a goal for Kemp, who last week signed a $160-million contract extension.

"I've got eight more years in L.A. to try to win that award," he said.

Braun led the Brewers to a franchise-record 96 wins and the NL Central Division title and batted .332 with 33 home runs, 111 runs batted in and 33 stolen bases. Kemp batted .324 with 39 home runs, 126 RBIs and 40 stolen bases, but the Dodgers finished 111/2 games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL West.

"I'm extremely proud to win this award for the city of Milwaukee and the fans who believed in me," Braun said.

Braun, who turned 28 last week, is the first player from Southern California to win an MVP award since 2000, when San Francisco Giants second baseman Jeff Kent and Oakland Athletics slugger Jason Giambi were honored. Kent attended Huntington Beach Edison High; Giambi graduated from West Covina South Hills.

Robin Yount, a Woodland Hills Taft High graduate who played for the Brewers from 1974 to 1993, was the AL MVP in 1982 and 1989.

Braun has become a baseball hero to a growing number of constituencies, from Granada Hills High, where he was a three-time All-City player; to the University of Miami, where he was an All-American; to the Brewers, where he is signed through 2020 and has become the face of the franchise since he joined the team in 2007 and was selected NL rookie of the year.

He is also the first Jewish player since Sandy Koufax in 1963 to be an MVP.

"The potential impact is incalculable in that it confers a real privilege and responsibility on him," said Rabbi David Woznica of Stephen S. Wise Temple in Los Angeles. "He becomes a role model."

At Granada Hills, an announcement was made over the high school's public-address system informing students of Braun's accomplishment.

"Wow. That's terrific," said Steve Thompson, who coached Braun at Granada Hills. "I'm thrilled to death for him. He's a terrific young man. I'm very proud of him."

Granada Hills is also the school that produced an NFL MVP in John Elway. Another high school in California, San Mateo Serra, boasts an NFL MVP and NL MVP in Tom Brady and Barry Bonds.

Braun mentioned that one of his defining moments on the path to success came when he was a freshman at Granada Hills. He was supposed to play for the junior varsity, but a senior failed to show up to set up the field on the day of a game, prompting coaches to pull Braun out of class and stick him in the varsity lineup at second base.

"The first time up, he got a base hit," Thompson said. "The second time up, he hit a home run. The third time, he hit a double, and the rest is history."

Megyn Kelly Refs Shouting Match

There’s a reason this man is showing up in all the great artworks of history, pepper-spray can in hand, expression of utter, unmoved nonchalance firmly in place under the bulky helmet as he sprays protesters in the face. On America Live Friday afternoon, host Megyn Kelly played referee in a shouting match between Fox News liberal embed Alan Colmes and conservative radio host Mike Gallagher over supposed outrage at Democratic support for Occupy Wall Street. Colmes chided Gallagher, and the media, for focusing on the actions of a small number of protesters, but what really set Gallagher off was Colmes’ comparison of OWS to the Tea Party.

At issue are reports of violence, sexual assaults, arrests, and attention-getting moments of silence at OWS protests, which Gallagher says prove that “these occupy wall street dregs are a bunch of anarchists, they’re lawless thugs, and it’s been nice to see the entire country turn against them.”

While he’s right that the movement has waned in popularity, Colmes points out that this is more a function of the media’s “if it bleeds, it leads” fixation on conflict. “The media, of course, wants to focus on the small group of people that are causing disruption,” Colmes says, “but I think it’s also important to urge them to peacefully demonstrate, to take the lead of what Gandhi and Martin Luther King talked about, the whole list of things you can do not to lose sight of the larger message, which I think is a good one.”

Gallagher predicted that the Democrats would pay a price for their support of Occupy Wall Street. “Democrats have stepped in it in a big way,” he said, “and the big picture you raised, Megyn, is to wonder about the support, the unfettered support that Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and all the rest of them, I haven’t heard a single democrat denounce these lawless thugs.”

His characterization is an oversell (everyone from President Obama to Mitt Romney has expressed some sort of sympathy for the movement’s underlying frustrations, hardly “unfettered support”), but he’s right that Democrats are more closely associated with the Occupy movement than Republicans, and if the movement becomes identified with the peripheral violence, Democrats could pay a price. However, there’s no indication that public support for proposals like those contained in the President’s American Jobs Act has been affected at all.

Things really got heated, though, when Colmes suggested that the Occupy and Tea Party movements “have a lot in common,” eliciting a comical, “How DARE you!” from Gallagher.

“You are utterly disingenuous,” Gallagher said, prompting an objection from Colmes over the personal attack. “Zip it for a moment,” Gallagher shouted, “and let me respond to your scurrilous comparison to the Tea Party movement, a bunch of patriots who love the Constitution, who aren’t breaking the law. Are you kidding me, Alan?”

Much has been made over the difference in the way the media covered the Tea Party and the Occupy protests, and while there are some fair gripes to be made, the assumption that it’s ideological is, in my opinion, a mistake. It’s true that the media was quick to publicize the flaws and the misbehavior of some in the Tea Party movement, and that coverage of the Occupy movement has been, in many ways, more favorable.

What critics like Gallagher ignore, though, is the fact that the Occupy movement gained momentum with the press, and sympathy from the public, based on early images of police attacking non-violent protesters, a pattern that has continued. There’s no way to know how the media would have covered Tea Partiers clashing with police, but it’s a safe bet that pepper-spraying a little old lady makes the news, either way. To reverse the equation, how would the media react if Occupiers were bringing firearms to protests, as some Tea Partiers did?

Thanksgiving Google Doodle

With storms possible and crowds definite, experts warn: Get to the airport early for Thanksgiving travel. Traveling? You'll have company. Here are the top 10 destinations for Thanksgiving:Google began its Thanksgiving celebrations early this year by putting up a holiday-themed Google Doodle on Tuesday afternoon.

The Doodle features a child-like drawing of a turkey whose feathers and wings move when your cursor runs over it. The Doodle also has a “G+ Share” prompt which lets you post it to your Google+ account. If you don’t have an account, then Google, which is eager to expand its social network of 40 million plus, will let you create one as well. A “Link” prompt also lets you share it the old-fashioned way wherever you want.

The Doodle is a change from last year’s Thanksgiving tribute, which went up on Thanksgiving day and was composed of turkey, cranberries and other dishes spelling out Google’s name.

Amber Avenue

The star-studded event at Saks Fifth Avenue in Santa Barbara benefitted The Dream Foundation. Barbra Streisand presented her good friend, Donna Karan, with the founders award.  She outspoken actress talked candidly about how much she appreciates everything Donna has done for the foundation.
It is most fitting that The Dream Foundation is honoring her. Donna dreams big, and keeps at it until it becomes a reality. Donna dreams for you, for me, for all of us. She brings people and their dreams together.

PHOTOS: Leah Michelle Calls Barbra Streisand Her IdolThe Dream foundation is the first national organization that makes dreams come true for adults. The foundation combines high fashion, world-class entertainment and unique cuisine. Amber Riley, Naya River and Pia Toscano performed at the event as well. However the highlight of the evening was the runway show of Donna Karan’s spring 2012 collection.

Canon Singapore

Nuance has announced that Canon Singapore will be making Nuance's eCopy Scan-To-Cloud technology available as a standard feature on its ImageRunner Advance MFPs. The technology takes advantage of Nuance's OmniPage cloud service to apply OCR to document captured with the MFPs. The documents can currently be captured to three destinations: Evernonte, GoogleDocs, and/or SalesForce.com. The application interface is embedded in the touchscreen of the MFP.

According to a Nuance spokesperson, "Canon Singapore is the first MFP distribution entity to offer access to the eCopy Scan-to-Cloud service, and the only one at the moment. Nuance is making this service available to other distribution partners, and they expect that additional partners will begin to offer eCopy Scan-to-Cloud over the coming year."

Eddie Peng

Eddie Peng successfully made a comeback with “Jump Ashin!”, and even got nominated for Golden Horse’s Best Actor Award along with his idol Andy Lau, Ge You, and others. He expressed that he has already gone to Ethan Ruan's home and touched his Golden Horse Award for good luck. When asked if he was confident in winning, he laughed, “I’m keeping calm. When my mom heard the names of the other nominees, she said, ‘How can you possibly win? It’s good enough that you got nominated!’”

Eddie's schedule has been jam-packed; after completing the filming for his upcoming movie, “Love”, he immediately flew to Hong Kong to promote his new movie, “夏日樂悠悠” (Love You You). Right now, he is in Beijing filming the movie, “太極” (Tai Chi), directed by Stephen Fung, which will keep him occupied for the remainder of the year. He will then be filming another new movie with Andy Lau titled, “寒戰”.

When the Golden Horse nominations were announced, Eddie was in the middle of filming a movie, “I originally thought that I would scream, but it was too surprising and unbelievable, while very moving. Coach Ashin was even more excited than I was. The moment he heard the good news, he shouted, ‘Sweet!’” Last year’s winner Ethan Ruan did not forget to text to congratulate him, but he laughed, “I didn’t receive it, and when he called me later, he immediately scolded me for not turning my cell phone on.” Eddie believed that his chance of winning is very low, “In the past, I’ve gotten trophies for basketball and swimming. I’m already very happy to be nominated for Golden Horse.” Eddie will be flying back to Taiwan to attend the ceremony next month.

Singnet Email

oin the talented performers from The Arts Attic Centre and Sunflower @ AMK Hub Childcare Centre as they present Wolf & the 7 Kids and a creative adaptation of a local play No Parking on Odd Days by well-known playwright, Kuo Pao Kun. This is a programme by children for children between five to 12 years of age.

Today, 3.30pm to 4.00pm, Bishan Public Library, Activity Room, 5 Bishan Place, #01-01. Free admission. www.nlb.gov.sgFrench Movies 2011: La Fille Coupee en Deux (A Girl Cut in Two)

A young woman, Gabrielle, is pursued by two very different men. One is an older, married author, and the other, a young, mentally unstable heir to a pharmaceutical fortune. Both have flaws which are immediately obvious. The married Charles can be dismissive, while Paul is threatening and possessive. As Gabrielle chooses one over the other, it becomes evident that the spurned lover is unable to handle his loss. In French with English subtitles.

Today, 7.30pm. Alliance Francaise Theatre, 1 Sarkies Road. Tickets at S$7.20 from Sistic. www.alliancefrancaise.org.sg

Dust: A Recollection TheatreWorks presents a play that explores an expanded definition of the term "ghosts", based on the Hokkien short story in Chen Swee-Teng's Bak Teng (Diced Meat) written in 1979. Unfolding over decades within a flat, it begins with a couple who persuaded a young man to sell his apartment. In the ensuing sounds of demolition and concrete debris falling, an old man awakens and comes to life. Dust: A Recollection offers an artistic tribute to the living, dead, neglected and forgotten spectral landscapes of modern Singapore and is conceived, written and directed by visual art collective Vertical Submarine.

Until Saturday, 8pm, 72-13, home of TheatreWorks on Mohamed Sultan Road. Tickets at S$38, S$25 for senior citizens and S$10 for students/NSFs. Call 6737 7213 or email tworks@singnet.com.sg to book. www.theatreworks.org.sg



The Singapore International Youth Choral Festival

Be enthralled by choral music performed by top-notch youth singers from Finland, Latvia, Malaysia and the Philippines in this four-day choral extravaganza organised by the co-curricular branch of the Ministry of Education. Today's performance will feature the Kuala Lumpur Children's Choir as well as the Jazep Medins Boys Choir from Latvia, with guest performance by The Singapore Symphony Children's Chorus.

Until Thursday, 7.30pm, Concert Hall, School of the Arts, 1 Zubir Said Drive. Tickets at S$10 from Sistic.

ASTD-STADA Asia Pacific Conference 2011

Participate in this conference organised by The American Society for Training & Development to find out how you can maximise the potential of workplace talents. Choose from 75 sessions held over three days and glean useful tips about workplace learning from a line-up of speakers comprising world-leading expert strategists, innovators and thought leaders. There will also be an exhibition and book-signing sessions open to the public, whereby famous authors such as motivational humourist Scott Friedman and social learning expert Tony Bingham will be available to sign their books.

Nov 16 to 18, 9am to 6pm, Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre. Registration fee of S$1,500 for conference. Free admission to exhibition and book signing sessions. To register, visit www.asapconference.com.



Post O-Levels Parents Seminar

Find out what is the next step your child can take after completing their O-levels. Register for this workshop to find out how to best give your children advice at this crossroads in his or her education path. In this session, parents will be able to find out the different teaching and learning styles in Polytechnics, and whether it is the best form of education for their children. Consultant psychiatrist Dr Adrian Wong will also shed light on how to engage and guide your teens to make informed decisions.

Nov 19, 9am to 1pm, Ngee Ann Polytechnic Convention Centre, 535 Clementi Road. Free admission. To register, call 6460 7004 or visit www.np.edu.sg/ss/ps.

Blake Takes Oath

The city should use technology to its advantage, Ben Blake said Monday night after being sworn in as Milford’s first Democratic mayor in more than 20 years. But, he said, the city should not let technology rob it of its identity and character.Surrounded by family, friends and allies on both sides of the aisle, Assemblyman Troy Singleton assumed the oath of office today as an assemblyman from the 7th District.

“It means a lot,” Singleton told PolitickerNJ.com between committee meetings. “I started my career in government as an intern, then a staffer. It’s very emotional for me, and I had a flood of memories.”

In attendance in support of the new assemblyman were his wife and three children, his grandmother and extended family.

Singleton and Assemblyman Herb Conaway (D-7) ran and won together this year in one of the most combative contests statewide.

“One thing stuck with me as I was first going to do this in April,” said Singleton, 38, of Willingboro. “I sat down with Lizzy Morris, who’s the longtime matriarch of Burlington County Democratic Party politics. She’s in her 90’s now, and what she told me was ‘there’s no substitute for hard work.’ I took that to heart, and knocked on 4,700 doors. Standing here now I can confirm, ‘there’s no substitute for hard work.’ These are the types of things that came back to me today.”

After his swearing-in this morning, Singleton took his seat on the higher education committee and is scheduled at 2 p.m. to assume his place on the commerce committee.

“Our focus first and foremost now must be employment,” said the assemblyman, who said he plans to sponsor two economic development bills.

Regarding Gov Chris Christie’s education reform agenda, Singleton anticipates supporting the basic outline, and does not have a problem supporting the Opportunity Scholarship Act pilot program.

“I’ve been pretty consistent,” he said. “Often the educational gap between urban and suburban students in this state is too wide. I’m glad to see my friends in the NJEA are embracing educational reform.”

Eager to undertake a full, two-year term in office, Singleton said, “I will promise hard work and dedication to the residents, and I will bring honor to the 7th District.”

Singleton is employed as the President of the Carpenter Contractor Trust and as a member of the Carpenters Local 715. He served in several governmental and policy positions, most notably as Chief of Staff to former Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts. 

He filled the seat vacated by Jack Conners who retired to serve as Director of Veterans Affairs for Camden County.

Oasia Hotel In Singapore

Located in the charming enclave of Novena, convenient for business and leisure travellers, Oasia Hotel Singapore will provide more than a welcome respite to visitors.Far East Hospitality’s newest hotel brand, Oasia, launched last month with the opening of its flagship property in Singapore. Located in the charming enclave of Novena, convenient for business and leisure travellers, Oasia Hotel Singapore will provide more than a welcome respite to visitors. The Oasia brand has been developed around three key values – thoughtfulness, respect and care – and these have been translated across all facets of the property from its hotel and room design, through to its service and guest experience. The brand aims to reflect the best of Asian hospitality.

“For busy travellers, we wanted to create a feeling of warmth and cosiness,” said Mr Raphael Saw, Chief Operating Officer, Hospitality Business Group at Far East Organization. “Staying at Oasia, guests will be truly looked after, and feel rejuvenated and relaxed.”

With a reassuring calmness and understated elegance, Oasia Hotel Singapore combines pleasant scents, high quality cotton bedding, ambient lighting and premium amenities, with the latest hardware, services and facilities expected of a prime city centre address.

Oasia’s staff will be the very essence of the hotel experience with services extending to iPods preloaded with genres of music and a choice of room scents – just some of the ways in which guests will be cared for.

The hotel has been designed by award winning Japanese architect-cum-designer, Takashi Sugimoto from Super Potato, in collaboration with Singapore architectural firm, Ong & Ong. Both firms are known for their cutting-edge designs and use of natural elements.

Oasia Hotel Singapore is a Journey of Discovery:

Walking into Oasia Hotel, guests are enthralled by the lobby – with its high ceilings, large wooden seating area and a breathtaking stone wall – all features which are characteristic of Super Potato design.

The hotel’s leisure ‘oasis’ on the 8th floor of the property is a tranquil terrace featuring bamboos, stones and natural surroundings: it includes a fitness centre, tropical roof terrace and sunken deck chairs in the pool providing great respite from the fast paced city.

Four Club Suites and 100 Club rooms, styled by Super Potato, are designed to provide new levels of unobtrusive comfort and luxury. Each club suite offers a private and residential ambience with an additional lounge that provides the luxury of space for business or leisure needs.

Oasis Club guests can enjoy exclusive access to the hotel’s 24-hour club lounge, The Living Room. Here daily breakfast is served alongside complimentary cocktails and canapés from 6-8pm and guests can stay connected to the outside world via the complimentary wifi service. Oasia Club guests can also swim and unwind in one of the highest hotel pools in Singapore surrounded by greenery and panoramic skyline views on the 22nd floor.

224 Deluxe Rooms and 88 Superior Rooms styled by Ong & Ong boast spacious bathrooms with rain shower, 40” LED interactive IP television and an iPod compatible sound system. All rooms are equipped with high speed Internet access to help business travellers manage the demands of international travel.

The hotel has 2,400 square feet of meeting facilities including three function rooms and a boardroom for seminars, corporate functions and intimate banquets. Zaffron, located at the lobby level, is the hotel’s all day dining restaurant and features an international a la carte menu and daily buffets. Also within the hotel there are three restaurants, Japanese, Chinese and Italian located on the first and second floors.

Oasia Hotel Singapore is well connected to major expressways and directly linked to Novena MRT station. The hotel is located in Novena’s up and coming medical hub and offers direct access to the new Novena Specialist Centre (NSC) as well as an around the clock medical helpline. A multitude of shopping malls are within easy reach of the hotel including the Square 2 shopping mall. For the shopping enthusiast, Orchard Road, Singapore’s hottest shopping district, is only two MRT stations away. Local eateries such as Newton Food Centre are also within close proximity.

PSLE Results Out Thursday

The results of the 2011 Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) will be released this Thursday, Nov 24. Pupils may obtain their result slips from their respective schools from 12pm.
Eligible pupils will also receive option forms to select secondary schools. Pupils are required to hand the option forms to their parents.
The results of the 2011 Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) will be released on Thursday.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) said pupils may obtain their result slips from their respective schools from 12noon.Eligible pupils will also receive from their respective primary schools, their option forms to select secondary schools.MOE said the results of Secondary 1 postings will be out on 21 December.Nan Chiau High School, which has been designated a Special Assistance Plan school from January next year, will admit only Express course students offering Chinese or Higher Chinese as a Mother Tongue Language.

And two more schools - Victoria School and Cedar Girls - will take in their first batch of Secondary 1 students in the six-year integrated programme.

SEA Games 2011 Final Football Match

I think this totally deserves a post here. Congratulation to Malaysian football team for having successfully maintained the first position in South East Asia in football sport. That is a great job of winning the final match against Indonesia an hour ago, when it was still 21st November 2011 night, after scoring 4-3 penalty kick wins. And yes….that means another gold medal for Malaysia in the medal tally of 2011 SEA Games in Palembang and Jakarta, Indonesia which is going to end tomorrow.Malaysian goalkeeper, Khairul Fahmi Che Mat is urging his teammates to rise up from their fatigue and close the 2011 curtain by defending the gold medal in the football final of the 16th SEA Games against Indonesia tomorrow.

The final match would take place at 7pm local time (8pm in Malaysia) at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Senayan.

The match is likened to a repeat of the Indonesia-Malaysia match in the quarter-final where Malaysia won by a solitary goal before both teams qualified for the semifinals.

According to Khairul Fahmi, or Apek, if the win could be defended, the Under-23 football squad would bring the high morale created to the 2012 Olympic qualifying group contest two days later, against Syria at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium.

"I am only hoping all of us (players) can give a gold medal and defend the championship as a present to Malaysians," he told Bernama at the lobby of the hotel where the Malaysian squad are staying here, Sunday.

The Kelantan-born player said he believed his teammates could boost Malaysia's dignity to its highest level in front of the Indonesian fans who would provoke and taunt the Malaysians.

"We will not bow to their taunts and the boos will make us more enthusiastic to show them who is greater.

"What is important is focus. We do not want to lose the opportunity to touch gold because the Under-23 team is taking part in the games for the first time," he said.

He said the heat would be on him as Indonesia would strive to tear open the Malaysian goal through the attacking trio from Papua New Guinea: Patrick Wanggai, Titus Bonai and Oktovianus Maniani.

"I hope the people of Malaysia will pray that we succeed and I believe our defence is the best. Any mistake, and they will have a chance at goal," he said.

The 22-year-old goalkeeper said the 'never say die' spirit demonstrated when beating Indonesia and Myanmar must be maintained if victory were to be repeated against Indonesia tomorrow.

"We are quite tired after three matches with only a day of rest in between but winning the gold medal is our priority because we are shouldering a huge challenge for the country.

"Winning the football match is like winning the whole SEA Games and also upholding Malaysia's dignity.

Starting with the match against Indonesia at the final of Group A on Thursday, the squad then met Myanmar for the semi-final decider last night, and would meet Indonesia again tomorrow night.

SITEX IT Show 2011

Officially, it’s called SITEX … unofficially people call it the November IT Show or November IT Fair.
But whatever you call it, over 900,000 visitors went to SITEX last year and spend over S$52 Million dollars at the event … would you be joining those numbers this year and what would you be buying?
Excited for  the last IT show in 2011 in Singapore at Singapore Expo (Halls 4B, 5 & 6; 11am-9pm)?

SITEX is the launch pad for Singapore’s best infocomm and consumer electronic products. It’s the infocomm event of the year where consumers come face to face with innovative technologies in computer hardware and software, digital products, wireless applications and solutions from world renowned brands.

SITEX is not only about Value Bargains but MORE. It encompasses a learning platform packed with activities for the modern generation to get acquainted with the latest galore of Infocomm and consumer electronic offerings in the market.

Riding on last year’s success, you can expect more than 900,000 visitors and over 500 brands spread across 269,000 sq ft of exhibition hall space.
SITEX Lucky Draw

SITEX rewards you for your purchases at the show. Accumulate $100 in a single receipt and stand a chance to win 10 x $2000 cash PLUS a X’mas gift of your choice.

Female shoppers will stand to win attractive mystery prizes throughout the 4-day show. Simply present a single receipt of minimum $200 at the Lucky Draw Redemption area (entrance of Hall 5) and you will be entitled to a lucky dip.

Thoughts On Natalie Wood

Lana Wood, sister of the late Natalie Wood, is speaking out about the newly re-opened investigation into the actress' death, which took place 30 years ago this week.The Natalie Wood case was never a closed case in her Lana’s mind, which, she said, is why she welcomed Friday's news of police re-opening the investigation.
With much fanfare, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's office reopened its investigation on Friday into the 1981 drowning of actress Natalie Wood.I still remember hearing about Wood's disappearance and eventual demise on CBC Radio. At the time, I wasn't familiar with her movies but I did remember her from a TV commercial which aired shortly before her death and I have never forgotten her face.

I have a feeling that little will come from this investigation. Potential witnesses who may be interviewed are dealing with recollections from thirty years ago. Although forensic technology has advanced considerably, there is no guarantee any new information will come to light should investigators opt to exhume Wood's body.

As with most things Hollywood, we can expect a great deal of sensationalism and not a great deal of substance in this matter.

Christina Aguilera

At last night's American Music Awards, Adam Levine and Christina Aguilera anchored a rendition of their hit, "Moves Like Jagger," which had famous faces in the crowd up and dancing.At the 2011 American Music Awards in Los Angeles Sunday, the singer joined Maroon 5 on stage during "Moves Like Jagger," clad in one of Herve Leger's curve-hugging bandage dresses, which she teamed with sky-high Christian Louboutin heels and a wildly frizzy hairstyle.

PHOTOS: What all the stars wore at the 2011 AMAs

The songstress, her major cleavage and silver skin-tight mini instantly received backlash on blogs and Twitter, sparking speculation that the 30-year-old, who's already a mom to one, may be pregnant.

PHOTOS: Christina Aguilera's Crazy, Sexy Music Video Style

Fans and critics in the cyber world aren't the only ones who've been slamming Aguilera for her fluctuating weight. In August, Kelly Osbourne had some choice words for the star on an episode of E!'s Fashion Police.

PHOTOS: Stars who've been bullied for their weight

"Maybe she is just becoming the fat bitch she was born to be," Osbourne, 27, chimed in after Joan Rivers criticized the singer for a too-tight outfit. "I don't know. She was a c**t to me. She called me fat for so many f***ing years. So you know what? F**k you! You're fat too."

Padma Lakshmi

Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi is mourning the death of her longtime lover, Theodore Forstmann, who passed away from brain cancer on Sunday at the age of 71, RadarOnline.com has learned.Theodore “Teddy” Forstmann has died. The philanthropist and well known business leader died at the age of 71. Forstmann was romantically linked with Top Chef host, Padma Lakshmi. It was recently reported that the couple was happily dating.

The New York Times added that Forstmann had been diagnosed with brain cancer.

People reported the news early this afternoon. The billionaire was never married to Lakshmi, but the couple dated for the past few years. The couple made headlines when Lakshmi gave birth to a baby girl, Krishna in February of 2010. Forstmann was not the father of Lakshmi’s child. (Venture capitalist Adam Dell was later revealed as the father.) Lakshmi is currently in a custody battle over Krishna with Dell.

Forstmann had also been linked the Princess Diana in many accounts.

Condolences have been expressed all throughout the Wall Street and business community in regards to the news of Forstmann’s death. Forstmann was known for investing in companies ranging from Gulfstream Aerospace to Dr. Pepper.

Forstmann is survived by his two sons, Siya and Everest. Forstmann is also survived by his four sibilings, Anthony, John, Marina and Elissa.

Best Turkey Recipes

Malaysians, comprising of diverse ethnic groups, celebrate a variety of festivals and holidays, each culture having its own unique celebrations. Even Thanksgiving, which is celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada has also caught on here. My local friends celebrate the holiday each year. Thanksgiving in Canada is celebrated on the second Monday of October and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. This Thursday is Thanksgiving Day in the United States.Over here in Kuala Lumpur, Thanksgiving dinners can also be enjoyed in most of the 5-star hotels. Of course, turkey will be on the menu with all the right dressings, deserts and such. What would Thanksgiving be without turkey, eh?This being Thanksgiving week, chefs at home would be busy sourcing and shopping for ingredients to cook up a delicious turkey dinner. Thanksgiving isn't Thanksgiving without a turkey, after all it is the star or centerpiece of the meal.If you would like to try something different this year, i.e., cook your turkey a different way from your usual, here are some Thanksgiving turkey recipes you can check out - deliciously seasoned, glazed, stuffed, or rubbed turkey recipes with homemade gravy. Recipes are compiled by Kara Rodemer on Delish.All recipes can be found on the Delish website where there are also more turkey ideas and recipes, stuffing how-to's as well as answers to your questions on turkey. Let's have a sneak peek.Butter-Basted Roast Turkey with Mushroom Gravy
The star of Thanksgiving will be this roast turkey, glazed with a buttery herb sauce and encircled by fresh herbs and fruits. Serve this with a lighter-than-expected Sourdough Mushroom Stuffing.
Apricot-Glazed Turkey with Fresh Herb Gravy
The gorgeous mahogany color of this roasted turkey comes from a glaze of lemon-infused apricot jam.
Citrus-Marinated Turkey
Jose Garces prepares this turkey in the same style as a traditional Yucatán dish called cochinita pibil, a slow-roasted pork marinated in citrus and annatto paste (made from achiote seeds, the condiment adds an orange hue to foods). Brining and marinating the bird make it especially succulent.
Herb-Roasted Turkey
Stuffed with onion, apple, lemon, orange, and fresh herbs, this turkey will fill the house with a tantalizing aroma. Make sure you show this beauty off at the table before you carve it. Garnish your serving platter with fresh herb sprigs and citrus wedges.