You are on vacation or day trip, and have a few hours open. What is the first kind of shop you are likely to wander through?
If you are killing time online, where do you find yourself losing hours at a time that may generate present ideas?
It is the end of a long week, and you want to treat yourself to dinner / brunch / something out. What kind of food are you looking for?
Do you have favorite ways to spend time at home this year for which a gift could be useful? (Reading, crafting, listening to music, cooking, playing video games)
Are there any things you look for to bring warmth and comfort to the dark and cold days of winter? (Special teas, cocoas, snacks, blankets, candles, etc.)
Anything in particular you keep thinking you need in your room / house / life that is more exciting and giftable than an appliance?
Is there a local small business / coffee shop / restaurant that you are particularly taken with?
What is your favorite type of museum? (Any you would like a membership to?)
Is there anything that can be gifted that your life just needs in order to brighten your season? (Some years need grocery gift cards, acts of service, or prepped freezer meals more than sweaters under the tree)
Are there any specific holiday traditions you are looking forward to more than others this year?
Is there a holiday baked good you hope to have this year?
Self-involved request: I LOVE the idea of This is Magic, but I don’t want to be on Instagram for... all the reasons. After I look at 2 posts, I’m blocked. 😭 (The opposite of magic! Dark magic!) Would you two ever consider making it a Substack?? xo
This is the first year I have found honeynut squash and was able to make the (as written) pasta recipe from Weekday Vegetarians. Delicious. And now I'm seeing honeynut squash everywhere.
YUM: the squash/potato fritters sound perfect for getting me out of my weeknight vegetarian rut of making spaghetti squash + red sauce; and the braised short ribs are just what I want for a cozy weekend cooking project - thank you!
I cry! I WEEP. Because I happened onto honey nut squash only twice in my whole life and they have me in a chokehold! I'm in the Midwest and I can't take it anymore. I plan to try and grow my own this Spring, having never grown a single fruit, vegetable, or herb in my life. My live plants are getting me ready for it! Too rare for me to find, I have only roasted them and oooooh they're one of my top favorite foods I'm pretty sure. Can't wait to someday have them in fritter form!
Also, I ADORE the questionnaire idea for gift-giving! I am not the best at giving gifts, and I prefer not receiving random doodads just because there's a pressure to give SOMETHING. Maybe I'll bring this up this year to my dad; it's our first fully-here Christmas without mom (she passed a few weeks before Christmas so it was just a weird time for the entire family) so we're wanting to find new traditions for our new family dynamic anyway.
Oh yay! The questionnaire made mention! I need to steal your question about the causes you care about and add that to mine. The week the college kids come home for Thanksgiving is the absolute best! Enjoy your time.
Those fritters look wonderful, and I'll look forward to making them.
Sadly I have yet to find a honeynut squash. I even checked our local specialty grocery store. I live in the midwest so new items take a bit to show up here. If squash bugs weren't so bad I would consider trying to grow some in my backyard.
I’m very curious about you using the turkey parts to make gravy. I absolutely love gravy but the mad rush once everything is ready except the gravy makes a mess of me. I picked up some turkey legs and want to prep ahead of time - do I just throw them in with carrots, celery and onion? Let them boil for how long?
If anyone would already know this, it would be you, but in case you don’t! The
honey nut is the brainchild of Dan Barber when he wanted to create a squash with more flavor than the butternut. I first read about them on his 7 Row seeds site, and low and behold, we can now find them the West Coast! I would say they DO have more flavor than the butternut and so damn cute :)
In my own life, I’m wanting to slow down/lessen “stuff” at the holidays - but I also just fulfilled my life long dream (at least since age 15) of opening a stationery, gift and home decor shop and so want everyone else to buy ALL the stuff! 😄
I somehow forgot that we made the the Questionnaire Questions downloadable on our Like Magic account. Here is the link to that post with more details, or I've cut and paste them below: https://likemagic.substack.com/p/how-to-come-up-with-meaningful-gift
The Questions
You are on vacation or day trip, and have a few hours open. What is the first kind of shop you are likely to wander through?
If you are killing time online, where do you find yourself losing hours at a time that may generate present ideas?
It is the end of a long week, and you want to treat yourself to dinner / brunch / something out. What kind of food are you looking for?
Do you have favorite ways to spend time at home this year for which a gift could be useful? (Reading, crafting, listening to music, cooking, playing video games)
Are there any things you look for to bring warmth and comfort to the dark and cold days of winter? (Special teas, cocoas, snacks, blankets, candles, etc.)
Anything in particular you keep thinking you need in your room / house / life that is more exciting and giftable than an appliance?
Is there a local small business / coffee shop / restaurant that you are particularly taken with?
What is your favorite type of museum? (Any you would like a membership to?)
Is there anything that can be gifted that your life just needs in order to brighten your season? (Some years need grocery gift cards, acts of service, or prepped freezer meals more than sweaters under the tree)
Are there any specific holiday traditions you are looking forward to more than others this year?
Is there a holiday baked good you hope to have this year?
thank you so much for sharing this - I'm thinking of adapting it for our family "secret santa" gift exchange this year...
Cuando los mire me enamore 😍🤚💯
Self-involved request: I LOVE the idea of This is Magic, but I don’t want to be on Instagram for... all the reasons. After I look at 2 posts, I’m blocked. 😭 (The opposite of magic! Dark magic!) Would you two ever consider making it a Substack?? xo
see above!
I saw those fritters on DALS yesterday and had to make them immediately for lunch! I only had delicata, not honeynut, but it worked!
What an absolutely lovely idea for gift giving! Thanks for sharing that idea. I'm with you on leaning more towards experience driven gifts these days.
This is the first year I have found honeynut squash and was able to make the (as written) pasta recipe from Weekday Vegetarians. Delicious. And now I'm seeing honeynut squash everywhere.
Good for you for getting your stock done early.
YUM: the squash/potato fritters sound perfect for getting me out of my weeknight vegetarian rut of making spaghetti squash + red sauce; and the braised short ribs are just what I want for a cozy weekend cooking project - thank you!
You need to make a gift questionnaire for kids!
I cry! I WEEP. Because I happened onto honey nut squash only twice in my whole life and they have me in a chokehold! I'm in the Midwest and I can't take it anymore. I plan to try and grow my own this Spring, having never grown a single fruit, vegetable, or herb in my life. My live plants are getting me ready for it! Too rare for me to find, I have only roasted them and oooooh they're one of my top favorite foods I'm pretty sure. Can't wait to someday have them in fritter form!
Also, I ADORE the questionnaire idea for gift-giving! I am not the best at giving gifts, and I prefer not receiving random doodads just because there's a pressure to give SOMETHING. Maybe I'll bring this up this year to my dad; it's our first fully-here Christmas without mom (she passed a few weeks before Christmas so it was just a weird time for the entire family) so we're wanting to find new traditions for our new family dynamic anyway.
I've never seen honeynut squash and I live in DC (mostly shop at Safeway or Trader Joe's)
Oh yay! The questionnaire made mention! I need to steal your question about the causes you care about and add that to mine. The week the college kids come home for Thanksgiving is the absolute best! Enjoy your time.
Those fritters look wonderful, and I'll look forward to making them.
I love this questionnaire idea so much! Do you have any examples of more of the questions shared anywhere?
See above!
such a great idea, Tracy -- the gift that keeps on giving!
Sadly I have yet to find a honeynut squash. I even checked our local specialty grocery store. I live in the midwest so new items take a bit to show up here. If squash bugs weren't so bad I would consider trying to grow some in my backyard.
I’m very curious about you using the turkey parts to make gravy. I absolutely love gravy but the mad rush once everything is ready except the gravy makes a mess of me. I picked up some turkey legs and want to prep ahead of time - do I just throw them in with carrots, celery and onion? Let them boil for how long?
If anyone would already know this, it would be you, but in case you don’t! The
honey nut is the brainchild of Dan Barber when he wanted to create a squash with more flavor than the butternut. I first read about them on his 7 Row seeds site, and low and behold, we can now find them the West Coast! I would say they DO have more flavor than the butternut and so damn cute :)
In my own life, I’m wanting to slow down/lessen “stuff” at the holidays - but I also just fulfilled my life long dream (at least since age 15) of opening a stationery, gift and home decor shop and so want everyone else to buy ALL the stuff! 😄