• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Joy the Baker
Joy the Baker
  • Cookies
  • Bread
  • Cakes
  • Pies
  • Recipes
    • All Recipes
    • Cookies
    • Birthday Cake Recipes
    • Biscuits
    • Muffins
    • Cupcakes
    • Drinks
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch
    • Dinner
    • Fruit
    • Nuts
    • Buttermilk
    • Chocolate
    • Vanilla
    • Holiday
    • Healthy
    • Gluten-Free
    • Vegan
  • Blog
    • Baking 101
    • Tips
    • Beyond the Kitchen
    • Let It Be Sunday!
    • New Orleans
  • Camp Joy

It’s November: a series of observations

November 4, 2016 by Joy the Baker 39 Comments

It's November!

This month marks the time of year when questions like, “What are you doing for the holidays” need to be answered with actual thoughts and plans.  I got about 7 minutes into a plan for Thanksgiving before my crazy-brain fluttered off to something far less important. To beg the question… what are you doing for the holidays?  Will you be googling ‘how to brine a turkey’ on Wednesday the 23rd around 9:45pm?  It’s ok.  People like What’s Gaby Cooking are hooking it up bigtime with Thanksgiving mania.  

I feel like November is the month when I need to manage my expectations. It’s not family expectations… those people are lovely and put very little pressure on me.  It’s mostly my own expectations of work and progress, and seeing everyone on the Internet seeming to do things really very well / better than meeee.  The focus at this point in the year is to hustle (drag?) myself to the end of the year feeling like a champ and not a flop.  It’s all perception and managed expectations and I’m in charge of how my brain interprets those things… dangit. 

•  Speaking of champs: the Cubs won the World Series and that’s how all of baseball ended, and no one ever played again because it’s over now right? We all enjoyed it, amen. 

•  Sometimes I put Sia on really loud and sing along and I’m nearly completely convinced that I am Sia…. and then I wonder how I put out so many great albums so quickly… and then I pat myself of the back. Go MeSia. 

•  Sometimes you have to date someone who can REALLY sing to finally understand that you can not sing at all (but you should still do it anyway in your car/house/shower alone).

•  Happy Birthday who our favorite Scorpios, especially those whom we have dated, fought with, and stopped dating.  Just me?  Maybe that’s just me. 

•  On this day in 1842 Abraham Lincoln married Mary Todd.  Peace be with them.  Thanks for all the crap you went through to try to make us better. We’re in an awkward phase right now but y’all knew what fear and anger looked like. We still have some of that. 

•  Is Mercury in retrograde?  Just checking. 

•  I would encourage you to invest in yourself this month by watching the Amazon show, Goliath.  It’s beautiful and surprising and so well done and I LOVE when shows actually take place in Los Angeles… and the music is really great too! 

•  Also consider this: Savory Cheesecake with Roasted Vegetables. 

• November means we are days, hours, minutes away from enjoying the best Sweet Potato Pie (without exaggeration) EVER. 

It’s November.  We’re good. We can look ourselves straight on in the mirror and really believe it. 

xo Joy

Previous PostNext Post

Categories: Beyond the Kitchen

Previous Post: « Ina Garten’s Apple Pie Bars
Next Post: »

Reader Interactions

All Comments
I Made This
Questions
  1. Sonya

    November 9, 2016 at 6:20 pm

    You crack me up!! Keep being you.

    Reply
  2. Karen

    November 5, 2016 at 6:31 pm

    I just saw Sia in New Orleans on Thursday and it was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen/heard. Your writing gives me similar chills. Thank you for your words and thoughts and food. They are a thing of beauty. Sia would agree, I’m sure.

    Reply
  3. D'Arcy

    November 5, 2016 at 9:06 am

    Joy, I love you. Also, I’m just discovering Sia, which album should I buy first? Anyone? Halp!

    Reply
  4. Sara

    November 5, 2016 at 7:55 am

    I feel like as long as you have the main goal of staying sexy and not getting murdered everything else falls into place. ????

    You have a book you are releasing into the world which gives you the best excuse to do what you can do and no more!

    Reply
    • joythebaker

      November 5, 2016 at 6:46 pm

      You know you’re speaking directly to my heart, right?

      Reply
      • Sara

        November 6, 2016 at 7:42 am

        What’s funny to me is I was thinking about how it reminds me of your and Tracy’s podcast and then I saw that on Instagram and fist pumped. It is so hard to explain what makes it so good without sounding weird.

        Reply
  5. Elizabeth

    November 5, 2016 at 7:38 am

    Love reading your blog. Thanks.

    Reply
  6. Lauren

    November 5, 2016 at 2:44 am

    You are one of the people on the internet who seems to be doing everything really very well/better than meeee! Always refreshing to read that the bloggers I follow feel the same way about others on the interweb. Funny how easily we lose our perspective when we look at a screen.

    We don’t have Thanksgiving in NZ, but I usually bake some cookies to take to work anyway. Any suggestions?

    Reply
  7. Kim

    November 4, 2016 at 11:06 pm

    Happy November to you. May it be your best yet. ????

    Reply
  8. Marilyn

    November 4, 2016 at 7:53 pm

    Real life is happening on this post, girl! Embrace Winter! Think fluffy scarves!

    Reply
« Older Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

RELATED POSTS IN Beyond the Kitchen

Baking 101: How To Read A Recipe

Welcome to the wonderful world of baking where flour, butter, and our collective sweet tooth’s (teeth? teeth’s??) come together to create an absolute mess in our kitchens. Dirty every dish, I say! In the name of cookies, of course. Whether you’re a seasoned baker, or just tying up the apron strings for the first time,…

Read More

You Have To Make Karlee’s Peach Butter

I have the same regret every September: I didn’t eat enough summer peaches. It never fails. Every July I take peaches for granted. They’re stacked high at the grocery store and though they never do, I think they’ll last forever.  I throw a mega watermelon in my cart, grab a bag of cherries, and head…

Read More

My 5 Best Pantry Organization Tips

Friends, hi! You know Virgo season is hitting hard this year when even I take to the pantry with new canisters and labels.  Virgo season would have us holding ourselves to our highest standards and I’ve taken that on, and I’ve taken it personally. I’m working with two pantries these days. In the Houston kitchen…

Read More

Primary Sidebar

Fresh baked emails, delivered to your inbox

Receive recipes from Joy the Baker and updates on events at The Bakehouse.

HI! I’M JOY!

Welcome! This has been my little corner of the internet since 2008!

I’m a baker, photographer, cookbook author and teacher.  I live laugh love in New Orleans. 

MORE ABOUT JOY AND THE TEAM

BOOKS + Magazines

2023 CAMP JOY SUMMER ZINE – get it here!

JOY THE BAKER 2022 SUMMER MAGAZINE

JOY THE BAKER 2021 HOLIDAY MAGAZINE

JOY THE BAKER 2020 HOLIDAY MAGAZINE

HOMEMADE DECADENCE

OVER EASY: SWEET AND SAVORY RECIPES FOR LEISURELY DAYS COOKBOOK

JOY THE BAKER COOKBOOK

MY FAVORITE CAMPING GEAR

SHOP MY FAVORITE GEAR HERE! 

joy the baker on facebook joy the baker on twitter pinterest-social instagram-socialbloglovin-social

DRAKE ON CAKE

Passionate from miles away since 2015.

CHECK IT OUT ON INSTAGRAM

Drake on cake instagram.

 

BREADS YOU’LL LOVE

close up of strawberry shortcake recipe with soft whipped cream

Dad’s Biscuits Make The Best Shortcake

jambalaya buttermilk biscuits in a row

Smoked Sausage Jambalaya Buttermilk Biscuits

inside of warm cinnamon roll on plate

How To Make The Best Single Serve Cinnamon Roll

LET’S MAKE COOKIES!

a stack of white chocolate macadamia nut cookies with a bite taken out of the top one with milk

Classic White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

wider shot of lemon bars stacked on a plate with a bite taken out of one lemon bar

My Favorite Classic Lemon Bars Recipe

completed recipe close up shot of a blondie so the toasted almonds, chocolate chips, and sea salt can be seen

My Best Classic Blondie Recipe

Footer

Instagram

joythebaker

📚Baker, author of books, lover of butter
🎂Creator @drakeoncake
📝Inquiries megan@underscoretalent.com

joythebaker
We’re About to Be Friends featuring @grossypelos We’re About to Be Friends featuring @grossypelosi and his gigantic meatballs! ♥️🤝🤯
Chai-Spiced Sugar Cookies #taylorsversion made wit Chai-Spiced Sugar Cookies #taylorsversion made with an old sugar cookie recipe I made back in 2009 (like whaaat?) and a boatload of warm autumn spiced @taylorswift added to the dough.⁣
⁣
This cookie recipe explodes on my site every September and for good reason. We’re fall girlies and we love a little nutmeg glaze. ⁣
⁣
Find the full recipe linked in the profile! Xo
I don’t know what it is about this year, but I j I don’t know what it is about this year, but I just need more light-hearted fun, more hugs, more breakfast made by mom, and more coffee walks in the sand. Let’s do autumn now, nice and steady.
🥯🥯 for the weekend, babes! Save this no-yeas 🥯🥯 for the weekend, babes! Save this no-yeast bagel magic for your Sunday morning. ⁣
⁣⁣
Two Easy No-Yeast Bagels⁣⁣
1/2 cup self-rising flour⁣⁣
4 tablespoons greek yogurt (plus a teaspoon or two more if needed)⁣
1 large egg, beaten for egg wash⁣⁣
1/3 - 1/2 cup grated gouda or gruyere⁣⁣
Everything bagel seasoning⁣⁣
3 tablespoons baking soda with 2 cups of boiling water. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray the paper lightly with nonstick spray. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
In a small bowl, use a firm spatula to work together the flour and yogurt. Add a few teaspoons of yogurt if it feels dry and knead into a cohesive ball for 5 minutes or so. Sprinkle with a bit more flour if it gets overly sticky. Cover with a damp paper towel and gather your toppings. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Divide dough in two and roll each piece into a roughly 8-inch rope. Bring the ends around and pinch into a circle. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Sprinkle the bottom of the prepared pan with grated cheese in two spots.  Pour boiling water over the baking soda and float each bagel in the water for 20 or so seconds.  Use a slotted spot or spatula to transfer the bagels on top of the cheese.  Brush lightly with egg. Sprinkle with more cheese and everything bagel seasoning. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Bake for 20 - 22 minutes until deeply golden and bubbling.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes before slicing and smearing with cream cheese.
The secret to really great muffins is eating them The secret to really great muffins is eating them warm, with a big smear of butter and a sprinkle flakey sea salt. ❇️ This goes for any muffin but is especially delicious on these a Vegan Carrot Zucchini Harvest Muffins because they have so many veggies they’re basically a salad. ❇️ Full recipe linked in the bio! Xo
This fall the ultimate chocolate chip cookie is pa This fall the ultimate chocolate chip cookie is packed with oats, @guittardchocolate baking wafers, and candy coated chocolate pieces from @traderjoes. ✌️ It’s the perfect weekend bake, babes! Full recipe linked in the profile!
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Copyright © 2023 · Joy the Baker
All rights reserved. Violators will be whupped and sent to bed with no dessert · Privacy Policy

Scroll Up