Ryan and Cheryl Scott discuss Thanksgiving 2024 recipes, giving back, new movies, and the Magnificent Mile Festival of Lights

CHICAGO (WLS) — This week on Windy City Weekend, Ryan and special guest co-host Cheryl Scott sit down with 103.5 KISS FM’s “Fred Show” host Paulina Rowe for a chat with the host!

Paulina has a great opportunity to raise the festive mood! Join her for fun at the European Chalet banquets and get your photo taken with the man in red himself, Santa Claus.

They will have local vendors as well as cookies, hot chocolate and coffee! You can take a photo with Santa by donating $10 to Chicago Unity and Parenting! It’s the perfect way to create lasting memories with your loved ones!

Cookies with Santa is Sunday, December 1st from 10:00am to 3:00pm at the European Chalet, 5445 S. Harlem.

RIVER CITY CHURCH GIVES BACK IN THANKSGIVING

Thanksgiving is a time to get together with the family to enjoy a great meal! But not every family has the opportunity to serve a turkey to the table.

To help combat this in their community, Bishop Rodney and Pastor Stephanie Hutton of River City Church in Chicago Heights host a Thanksgiving Food Drive each year! Their purpose is simple; to provide as many families as possible with a full Thanksgiving meal.

The Huttons have spent the past 15 years collecting cash and food donations to pack boxes of ingredients, pies and even a full turkey. They then deliver the packed boxes to people in the community who need it most. Last year they reached their goal of feeding 100 families, and this year they want even more!

You can help support their mission by dropping off food at River City Church in Chicago Heights. You can also donate online at https://www.rivercitychicago.org/.

ALESI IN THE KITCHEN

Thanksgiving is just two weeks away, and if you’re not sure what to bring, Alessi has you covered. Chef Ted Pappas at Brookhaven Market in Arlington Heights teaches us how to make a hearty risotto with wild mushrooms and truffles.

Risotto with wild mushrooms and truffles

Ingredients:

• Vigo Arborio rice – 1 cup
• Risotto with porcini mushrooms Alessi – 1 package
• Alessi Extra Virgin olive oil – 2 tablespoons
• Black truffle oil – 2 teaspoons, for watering
• Fresh mushrooms (a mixture of cremini or shiitake), sliced ​​- 1 cup finely chopped
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 3-4 cups of heated chicken broth
• Leave a cup of chicken stock if traveling with this dish
• Fresh thyme – for decoration
• Salt and pepper to taste

recipe:
Sauté the onions and mushrooms: Heat 1 tablespoon Alessi Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add 1 more tablespoon of Alessi Extra Virgin Olive Oil, stir in the fresh mushrooms and cook until golden.

Make the risotto: add the Vigo Arborio rice and stir for 1-2 minutes. Add 1 cup of the warm broth, stirring constantly until the liquid is completely absorbed. Continue to add stock in small portions, stirring until each addition is absorbed before adding more.

Mix the bag of porcini mushroom risotto: Add the Alessi porcini mushroom risotto along with any seasonings in the bag and finish with the remaining stock. This gives it a multi-layered savory flavor with a rich mushroom flavor. Return to low heat and cook for 18-20 minutes until creamy.

Finish with truffle oil: When the risotto is creamy, add the black truffle oil. Salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish and serve: Top with fresh thyme and serve. If you take the dish on the road, wait until it is served, sprinkling it with fresh thyme.

And to really impress the family, Chef Ted also shared his recipe for delicious appetizer kebabs!

Antipasti kebab

Ingredients:

• Artichoke hearts marinated Vigo – 1 can
• Alessi sun-dried tomatoes – 1 can
• Vigo Castelvetrano olives – 1 can
• Mozzarella balls – 24 pcs
• Meat salami – 12 slices folded in half
• Fresh rosemary – for decoration
• Alessi Balsamic Reduction (optional) – for rain
• Vigo Mixed Italian Olives (alternative) – 1 can as an alternative to Vigo Castelvetrano olives
• 24 bamboo skewers

recipe:
This recipe prepares two different versions of kebabs with antipasto.

Artichoke Heart, Mozzarella Ball, and Salami Skewers: Add 1 Vigo Marinated Artichoke Heart, 1 Mozzarella Ball, and 1 Folded Salami Per Skewer. Repeat until the desired number of skewers is used up.

Sun-dried tomatoes, mozzarella ball and green olive skewers: add 1 Vigo Castelvetrano olive, 1 sun-dried Alessi tomato and 1 mozzarella ball per skewer. Repeat until the desired number of skewers is used up.

For added flavor, drizzle Alessi Balsamic Reduction over sun-dried tomatoes, a mozzarella ball, and green olive skewers.

Alternatively, use Vigo Blended Italian Olives instead of Vigo Castelvetrano Olives for an extra layer of flavor.

Be sure to visit BrookHaven Market in Arlington Heights for your Thanksgiving meal!

And don’t forget to follow them on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/brookhavenmkt/?hl=en.

ROEPER REVIEWS: SPEND OR PROVIDE

Ryan and Cheryl preview upcoming films with film critic Richard Roper.

“Real pain” – SPENDS
In Real Pain, Jesse Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin are cousins ​​who go on a tour of Poland in honor of their recently deceased grandmother.

“Return of the King” – WIRE
Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley is a new Netflix documentary about Elvis’ 1968 comeback.

“Red One” – SAVE
Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans and Lucy Liu open the Christmas season in the comedy Red. It is about the rescue of Santa Claus after he is kidnapped from the North Pole.

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS “MAGINE MILE”.

Ryan and Cheryl were joined throughout the show by Chicago’s Own Pack Drumline. Drumline will be a part Wintrust Magnificent Mile Festival of Lights next weekend

The magic of the Chicago-style holidays is recreated for audiences across the country with spectacular entertainment, beloved Walt Disney World Resort characters, sparkling ships, Santa and dazzling fireworks as more than a million twinkling lights on Michigan Avenue set the stage for the broadcast-fantastic Wintrust Magnificent Mile Lights Festival.

The Wintrust Magnificent Mile Lights Festival will begin on Oak Street and travel down Michigan Avenue on Saturday, November 23 at 5:30 p.m. ABC7 Eyewitness News anchors Cheryl Burton and Ryan Chiaverini will co-host the broadcast with ABC7’s Judy Hsu. and Hosea Sanders, who brings sparkle and excitement to the street.

You can watch the parade right here on ABC7 airing Sunday, November 24th from 6:00-7:00 PM on ABC7 Chicago. Encore broadcasts will be released on Sunday, December 1, at 3:00 p.m.; Sunday, December 8, at 4:00 p.m.; and Sunday, December 15 at 11 p.m

The Wintrust Magnificent Mile Lights Festival Parade will be available on demand and streamed on abc7chicago.com and on ABC7’s Connected TV apps on Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku.