This is Mama Miche today in my magic kitchen: Roast Beast (Grinchy shout-out)

I am a sucker for Christmas movies. The classics that I grew up watching with my Momster are my favorites to watch with my family, and honestly, the season isn't quite right if I don't see ALL my favorites. Every version of Dickens, "A Christmas Carol" from Mr. Magoo to "Scrooged," "It's a Wonderful Life," "Miracle on 34th Street," and every single Rankin/Bass animated movie and Charlie Brown...obviously I could go on and on.

My question is about the characters like Scrooge and the Grinch. Through the course of their individual stories, their characters transform to be the epitome of the spirit of Christmas, and yet, if you call somebody Scrooge or Grinch, it is implied that this is pre-transformation. Why?

Potato latkes. Where do I begin to tell the story of how great a food can be? Latkĕs or latkēs, through the years, have sparked controversy. And more than one controversy beginning with the pronunciation. Do you say Latka, or latke? Is it CHanukkah or Hanukkah? Oy! so much to unpack. As most people know, during the festival of lights, Hanukkah, Jewish people eat a lot of food that is cooked in oil, one of the most delicious being latkes. We eat food cooked in oil because of the miracle of the oil lasting eight crazy nights when there was only enough for one night.

You have probably heard me say before the way to sum up any Jewish holiday is: we fought, we won, let's eat! And just about every Jewish holiday has particular foods associated with them. Matzah and Passover. Apples and honey for Rosh Hashanah, Sufiganot (donuts) and latkes for Hanukkah.

This is Mama Miche, and today in My Magic Kitchen: Brussels sprouts with bacon

Brussels sprouts are one of my favorite vegetables. I've kinda sorta always liked them, on and off, throughout the years. The only way we had them growing up was the frozen with butter sauce kind, and usually, I liked them. Not always. Sometimes, they tasted bitter.

But as I got older and moved out on my own, it wasn't until maybe my 40s that I started buying fresh Brussels sprouts and roasting them, just with a dash of salt and pepper. Perfection. This is my other favorite way to eat them. Bacon takes it to that next-level chef's kiss.

Today in My Magic Kitchen: garlic mashed potatoes

In my never humble opinion, mashed potatoes are the epitome of comfort food. They go with just about any main course and any other side. Garlic mashed potatoes are just my favorite way of making them because I love garlic, and I'm not afraid of vampires. That's right! Let Mama Miche make your kitchen magic!

This is Mama Miche, and today in My Magic Kitchen: Green Bean Almondine (with crispy shallots)

Green beans. I don't know very many people, if any, that don't like green beans. I know many people who don't like broccoli, cauliflower, or squash but most like green beans. They are quite versatile vegetables, with so many ways to prepare them that are delicious and nutritious. This recipe is one of my favorites!

Try it, and let Mama Miche make your kitchen magic!

This is Mama Miche, and today in My Magic Kitchen: YaYa’s Sweet potato casserole

I don't know about anyone else, but holiday meals make me very nostalgic. Thanksgiving has always been a favorite of mine. Why? It's all my Momster’s fault. She made amazing Thanksgiving feasts. Totally a feast! Not your run of the mill dinner. And prepping for the Big Bird day are my earliest memories of helping her in the kitchen. She gave me big responsibilities. At least, that's how it felt. I made a chopped salad every year. That was my job. I assisted with everything but the salad was all mine to make. I took great pride in making it colorful and delicious.

My favorite side that was a staple at every Thanksgiving spread my Mom hosted was her sweet potato casserole. My daughter requested it so it was time to teach her to make it. There's a new chef in the house! Helping Mama Miche make your kitchen magic.

This is Mama Miche and today in My Magic Kitchen: Miche's Famous Tata

First, get yo' minds out of the gutter! Tata is short for frittata. And for now, my Tata isn't famous yet. But it's yummy, easy to make, and perfect for any meal, but it's especially delicious for Yom Kippur Break Fast. Everything is delicious when you haven't eaten in 25 hours.

Of course, we'll have bagels, lox, and cream cheese with all the accouterments. Whitefish, sometimes there are blintzes, apples, honey, and maybe a round challah if I have the time to bake one or buy it. But it must be a round challah for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur because it signifies the whole year. In every Jewish holiday meal, food signifies something else that has to do with why we celebrate that holiday.

This is Mama Miche, and today in My Magic Kitchen: Honey sweet chili chicken

The catch-all Jewish New Year greeting for the entire season is “Shanah tovah” (שנה טובה), which means “Good year.” The words “u’metuka” (ומתוקה), and sweet, are sometimes appended to the end.

I tell people, quite honestly, that I'm Jew "ish." My Momster wasn't very religious and did not keep a kosher kitchen. We didn't usually go to High Holy Holiday services when I was growing up. Once in a while, we would go to my orthodox Jewish paternal grandparents' synagogue, which was very austere to me. I sat upstairs with the women, separated from the men, as tradition dictates. (Cue music from "Fiddler on the Roof", "Tradition")

Today, in Mama Miche’s Magic Kitchen, we are making breakfast burritos for Mother’s Day Brunch.

Mother’s Day is this coming Sunday and it is a bittersweet day for the motherless daughters with children of their own.

I remember one Mother’s Day after my parents divorced. Immediately after, my Momster and I lived in a one-bedroom apartment for a couple of years and it wasn’t a nice place. It wasn’t a clean building, so keeping critters out was hard.

My grandmother didn’t like us living in those conditions so she helped us move across the street to a new building. She had already moved into a place of her own in the building and offered to help my mom with the rent for our apartment so we could be safer. She wanted us to be in a clean apartment in a building with a doorman. And I had a bedroom all to myself again.

I cooked them Mother’s Day dinner for the first time in that apartment. I was around 10. My grandmother could be a nasty piece of work and she quickly tore apart the menu. She didn’t like this or didn’t like that about the meal. My Momster said she loved it, just like Moms do. My mom was often caught in the middle of disagreements between my grandma and me. I don’t think I ever cooked anything for my grandmother again.