We host our annual holiday party next weekend. That means I'm doing a lot of prep cooking and baking this week.

I'm making cream scones, chocolate chip tea cookies, and banana breads. Those are getting frozen and will be defrosted the night before. The day before the party, I'll be prepping spinach balls and an egg dish. And those are just the things that need to be prepped. We also fill the table with veggies, charcuterie, and a very popular cocktail meatball. This year, oven space permitting, the husband wants to add a baked brie.

My mantra is that no one should go away hungry. That means I usually end up making WAY too much food. Some things do get eaten completely, but there are usually leftovers to put away. I've finally gotten smart about that. The baked goods can be refrozen. Then, instead of lunch meal prepping for the following week, I just make myself a lunchbox of random goodies. It's less work after a long week of extra cooking, tastes great, and reduces food waste. All wins in my mind!

How do you handle party leftovers?

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Still working on House of Sky and Breath. Maas added an entire new section of her world in this book. It's incredible and I bet it would look great on the screen. There are also many new characters but, since they're not being info dumped, it's been easier to remember them. I do want to note that our leads seem to lack the chemistry of her other books. It might be that her world is so big that they don't get as much attention.

*Books shared here are affiliate links for Bookshop.org

• Notre Dame looks brand new. [WaPo - gift link]

• Most of those food sell/use/best by dates are pointless. [The Atlantic - gift link]

• Erase that ear worm with science! [NPR]

• The policy choice that caused food deserts. [The Atlantic - gift link]

• How to talk about book bans. [Book Riot]

• *laugh-crying in academic* [McSweeney's]

• A lovely essay on measuring cups. [David Lebovitz Newsletter]

• Neil deGrasse Tyson interviews Anthony Bourdain. [StarTalk]

• Ways to save money and curtail unnecessary spending. [Life Kit]

• Cutting government waste is a good idea - but *this* is going to be chaos. [The Daily]

• Scissors being put together. Oddly interesting. [@robmartinez]

• I have to admit, Hot Frosty surprised me. It's cheesy and everything you would expect from a cheaply made holiday romance, but I found it delightful. It doesn't pretend to be anything more than what it is. The script is lacking but the slightly better than average acting helps keep this one afloat. [Netflix]

• I was not expecting much from Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story. It did, however, star two of my preferred Hallmark actors. While there is romance in this movie, I found that the story focused more on family and community. I liked that switch. Careful when you watch this one, it may make you want to eat some barbecue. [Hallmark Channel]

• The husband did our meal planning this week. He remembered that I mentioned wanting salmon so he put spicy honey balsamic salmon bowls on the menu. It was phenomenal. The husband made this and there were a lot of components to throw together, but the result was one of the best dishes I've eaten in a while. It was full of perfectly matched flavors. This one got saved to our family recipe file. [Half-Baked Harvest]

• Lately, when we make pasta, it's been basic pasta and meatballs. The husband decided we needed to have burst cherry tomato basil chicken rigatoni. It's so good. You could easily skip the chicken with this one, but it's a really good addition. We had leftover pasta but not chicken, so the husband added some leftover bacon we needed to eat. He said it was good. [Ambitious Kitchen]

The White House holiday decorations have been unveiled. I am a sucker for white lights and greenery. [NPR]

Need a playlist for the season? Cozy Christmas Jazz might just hit the spot.

What I think it looks like when I spend the day baking.