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Recipes for National Cocoa Day

There’s something about hot chocolate that brings to mind winter, and the holidays, and cozy nights in. It’s warming, and delicious, and always feels like you’re treating yourself a little bit. Well, it is winter, and the holidays are certainly fast approaching, so with the excuse that National Cocoa Day was on December 13th, here are a few twists on the classic hot chocolate recipe for you to try at home. Unicorn Hot Chocolate This recipe is colorful, playful, and sweet! It’s a fun variant for fans of white chocolate. Ingredients: 1 cup of white chocolate chips 2 cups of milk 2 cups of half-and-half 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract Pink food coloring Whipped cream and sprinkles for garnish Directions: Combine your white chocolate chips, milk, half-and-half, and vanilla extract in a saucepan on your stove. Then, heat the ingredients over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture is hot. You don’t want it to boil, just to heat. When it’s hot, whisk in your food coloring until the resulting color is your preferred shade of pink! Then, simply split the drink into mugs, and top with whipped cream and sprinkles. Peppermint Hot Chocolate Peppermint is another classic holiday flavor, so combining it with hot chocolate will make you feel doubly festive. Ingredients: 1 ¼ cup of whole milk ¼ cup of cream ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 1 tablespoon of sugar 1 tablespoon of peppermint baking chips ½ tablespoon of cocoa ½ tablespoon of vanilla extract Whipped cream for garnish Directions: Combine your milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat, and bring the mixture to a boil. When it’s boiling, remove it from the heat, and add your cocoa, chocolate chips, and peppermint chips to the mixture, and whisk until everything is melted together and the mixture is smooth. Then, pour your drink into individual mugs, and top with whipped cream! Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate This is a creamy, decadent recipe that’s basically peanut butter cups in a mug. Ingredients: 2 cups of milk ½ a cup and 1 tablespoon of chopped up peanut butter cups ¼ a cup of powdered sugar ¼ a cup of unsweetened cocoa powder 2 tablespoons of creamy peanut butter ¼ tablespoon of salt Whipped cream, for garnish Directions: Heat your milk in a saucepan over medium heat, until it’s hot but not boiling. Then, whisk in your powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and salt until the mixture is smooth. Add in your peanut butter and the ½ a cup of chopped peanut butter cups, and whisk again until it’s all melted in and combined. Bring the mixture to a boil, and let it boil for about one minute, or until it begins to thicken, stirring regularly as it does. Then, remove your saucepan from the heat. Split your drink into mugs, and top with whipped cream and the remaining peanut butter cups! We hope you enjoy these recipes! Let us know in the comments if you give them a try, and how they turned out.

Local Gilbert Bakeries for National Brownie Day

National Brownie Day is December 8th, and we want to take the opportunity to highlight some local Gilbert bakeries that are great options for fulfilling your chocolate-y cravings! Rise Up Bakery Rise Up Bakery is a local shop that’s been family owned and operated since 2014, and provides baked goods made from scratch every day with fresh ingredients. They like to give back to the community as well, holding high school fundraisers and giving tours of the bakery to school groups and scout groups. They have a whole section dedicated to brownies and bars, including a festive candy cane brownie, a peanut butter brownie, a caramel brownie called carmelita, and more. It’s a delicious option for all your brownie needs. Cinnaholic Cinnaholic features online ordering, so you can take it easy. They sell classic homemade fudge-style brownies, and a whole assortment of cookies and edible cookie dough, if you want something to go with it. They also have some seasonal items like wreath cakes and gingerbread house rolls. Their baked goods are all freshly baked, and vegan, for those who want that option. The Great Gadsby Bakery The Great Gadsby Bakery’s website is currently being renovated, but their Facebook page has all the necessary information to know what they sell! They have a rotating menu, and do call-in orders for pickup. They have a special holiday menu, including a holiday dessert box if you want an assortment of goodies, which feature delicious salted caramel brownie squares! This is another family-run bakery. We hope you liked this selection of local bakeries for National Brownie Day! We’re a big fan of pointing out some incredible local shops that our residents might not have been to before, and we hope this could help inspire you for the next time you want to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Gilbert Holiday Celebrations

The holidays are on their way, and our local Gilbert area is celebrating in its own special ways! We’re a big fan of ensuring our residents are up-to-date with some of the fun happenings going on in town, so we want to bring your attention to a few of the things going on for the holiday season. Gilbert Water Tower Light Show From now until January 3rd, you can through downtown Gilbert and past the Gilbert Water Tower to the sounds and sights of the holidays! You can tune into the radio at 88.9 FM and hear holiday songs every thirty minutes from 5:30 PM to 10: PM every day, and the lights in the Heritage District and on the water tower will synchronize to the seasonal sounds! It should be pretty, and a nice way to brighten up your regular commute. Menorah Lighting for Hanukkah After December 10th, there will be a menorah lit in Gilbert for each night of Hanukkah, which goes until December 18th! The lightning will take place at Water Tower Plaza, which is located at 45 W Page Avenue, Gilbert AZ, 85233, and it’ll be on top of the hill south of the Gilbert Water Tower. This could be a nice thing to see without needing to infringe on social distancing guidelines, and will be nice for the holiday! Holiday Lights Map If you’re decorating for the holidays, you can submit a photo of your light display here , where it will be added to an interactive map for those of us that want to take a drive around town and take in the creativity of different displays! There’s going to be three sets of prize packs offered if you submit by December 16th, and they’re all stocked with local treats! Even if you’re not decorating yourself, the interactive map is a great way to find places nearby to take a look at some of the excellent displays going up and get in the holiday spirit. Happy holidays, residents! We hope the season treats you well.

Thankful Tree Craft

Happy Thanksgiving, residents. To help you celebrate the holiday, we’ve got a suggestion for a fun family craft to try. The craft is called a Thankful Tree, and it’s a great, and fairly simple, way to remember some of what you’re thankful for this year and in the years to come. What you’ll need: A selection of small branches and twigs to tie together to create a tree. You can alternatively bend 16 gauge craft wire together to form the tree shape, but that’s a bit more difficult. Ribbon or twine to tie together your twigs at the base, and a jar or vase to keep them in. Red, orange, yellow, and brown construction paper. Scissors. A hole punch. A pen. What to do: Collect small, thin branches and twigs to use. You want to construct a tree-like shape with them by allowing them to point out in different directions at the top. Tie them together towards the bottom, still allowing them to fan out naturally on top, and place them in a properly sized vase or jar. Cut leaf shapes out of red, orange, yellow, and brown construction paper. Kids who are old enough to handle scissors can help with this part, and you can mix and match different leaf shapes. Hole punch one corner of each leaf. Place the hole punched paper leaves in a bowl on the table next to the Thankful tree, along with a pen. Through the week of Thanksgiving, or however long you want to do it (you could even keep doing it for the rest of the month, or longer!) members of the household can come pick a leaf, write one thing they're thankful for on it, and hang it on the tree. For families, it might be nice to read off the leaves aloud on Thanksgiving together, or at another chosen time. It’s a great reminder of everything we have to be grateful for! We hope your celebrations are wonderful, and once again, happy Thanksgiving!

Side Dishes for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and with any luck, that means a night of delicious food, plus leftovers, even if the crowd around the dinner table may need to be slightly smaller this year. Whatever you have as your centerpiece, we feel that what truly makes a Thanksgiving dinner special and unique is the choice of side dishes, which can truly bring a personal flavor to the feast. We have here a couple of great recipes for Thanksgiving side dishes that may be worth trying out next week! Roasted Brussels Sprouts This recipe is highly customizable based on your tastes! It’s fairly easy to roast Brussels sprouts, and you’d be surprised by how delicious they are when they’re crispy on the outside and a little bit soft inside. This is the recipe for the most basic, tasty Brussels sprouts roasting, and then after they’re finished there’s a thousand different ways to flavor them. We’ll narrow it down by giving you a couple of suggestions! Ingredients: 1 pound of fresh Brussels sprouts Sea salt and black pepper, to taste Extra-virgin olive oil Directions: Preheat your oven to 425 degrees, and line a baking tray with parchment paper or tinfoil. Take your Brussels sprouts, and wash them, and then pull off some of the looser exterior leaves. Then, slice them in half lengthwise, and put the sliced halves in a bowl. Toss them with your salt, your pepper, and drizzles of olive oil, until coated. Then, place them on your lined baking sheet! You want to roast them for 30 to 40 minutes, until they’re tender and easy to pierce with a fork, and golden brown on the edges. Once you’ve removed them from the oven, you can flavor them in a variety of different ways: garlic powder, red pepper flakes, lemon juice, cheese, or a bit of cooked bacon are all delicious possibilities! You can combine as many toppings as you’d like, and feel free to experiment. Herbed Mashed Potatoes Mashed potatoes are a delicious stable of the Thanksgiving table, and this is a guaranteed way to bring them up a notch. Garlic and herbs are delicious in potatoes, so this is an absolute hit at dinner. Ingredients: 4 pounds of golden potatoes, which should come out to around eight 2 cups heavy cream 8 sprigs of thyme 2 sprigs fresh parsley 1 bay leaf 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter 6 black peppercorns Kosher salt Directions: First, wash and peel your potatoes, and then cut them into quarters. Place your peeled and quartered potatoes into a large pot, and add in enough cold water to fully cover them. Bring the pot to a boil. Add in 2 teaspoons of your Kosher salt, and then reduce your heat and simmer until the potatoes are slightly tender, which should take around 15 to 20 minutes. While the potatoes are simmering, place the butter, cream, and all your herbs (bay leaf, parsley, thyme, and peppercorns) into a small saucepan, and bring it to a boil. Once it’s boiling, reduce the heat and simmer the mixture for 3 minutes, and then take it off the heat. When your potatoes are slightly tender, drain them, and leave them in the pot, this time without the water. Strain your cream mixture into the bigger pot with the potatoes. Add ¾ a teaspoon of the Kosher salt, and mash the potatoes with the cream mixture until they’re your desired mashed potato consistency. Then, serve! This is obviously best hot, but should store in the fridge and reheat well if you desire leftovers. Fig and Rosemary Cranberry Sauce This is a fairly simple recipe to make that will nonetheless wow the family at your table by bringing something new to the usual cranberry sauce, and sound impressive to boast about cooking. It only takes four ingredients, including dried figs that rehydrate as they cook. Ingredients: 1 cup of chopped dried figs 12 ounces of cranberries, either frozen or fresh ½ of a sprig of rosemary ½ of a cup of honey ½ of a cup of water Directions: Put a medium saucepan on your stove, and put all your solid and liquid ingredients into it -- the figs, the cranberries, the rosemary, the honey, and the water can all be combined here. Then, heat the saucepan on the stove, bringing your mixture to a boil. You can stir occasionally while this is happening. Once it’s boiling, lower the heat, and let the mixture simmer. Continue to stir occasionally while the mixture simmers for 15 to 20 minutes. You want your cranberries to burst, and your sauce to thicken. When that’s finished, you can remove the rosemary (it’s not very fun to chew on its own, and you wanted it for the flavor!) and serve your sauce either at room temperature or warmed, depending on preference. Delicious! Happy Thanksgiving, residents! We hope this gave you some ideas for your own holiday feast, and we’d love to hear from you in the comments about what you’re planning to make.

Gilbert Fire and Rescue's Toy and Clothes Drive

Our very own Gilbert Fire & Rescue is beginning their annual “Collecting Clothes & Toys for Gilbert Girls & Boys” drive soon, in partnership with Gilbert Public Schools! With Thanksgiving coming up this month, this is a great time to remember all you’re thankful for by making a difference in the lives of other Gilbert families. The drive runs from November 23rd to December 14th, and requires the clothes and toys you give to be new and unwrapped. You can drop off your boxes of donations at the Gilbert Fire Administration, at 85 E Civic Center Drive, or at the Gilbert Municipal Building at 50 E Civic Center Drive. You can stop by anytime from Monday through Thursday, from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm. It’s also possible to help virtually, by shipping your items to the Gilbert Fire Administration, instead! We think this is an incredible opportunity to help out the people in our Gilbert community, and would love to hear from you about the donations you make! As we ramp up into the holiday spirit, it can help warm our hearts and remind us of what’s truly important at this time to give back when we have the opportunity to. Even a small donation can make a huge difference for a family in our area. The Gilbert Fire & Rescue team is also looking for Holiday Heroes to sponsor Gilbert children’s holiday wishlists. You can register here and a representative from Gilbert Fire & Rescue will reach out to you to arrange any details! Thank you, residents, for your part in making the community, and our neighborhood, wonderful.