Thanksgiving 2005 is tucked away and it is officially the Christmas season.

My family and I ate out for Thanksgiving this year.

We had lunch at the Castle here in Natchez and it was wonderful. My only regret was that at about 9 p.m. there was no pie to be found at my house &8212; I really wanted a piece of pumpkin pie. But I guess that was outweighed by the fun we had without doing any dishes.

Speaking of pumpkin pie, the night before Thanksgiving a friend of mine was getting ready for her family&8217;s holiday dinner and asked me about recipes for that perennial favorite.

Using a recipe from a cookbook, she had made more filling than she expected or had pie shells for. The remedy for that situation is easy. Simply spray a baking dish with nonstick spray and bake it crustless. It is the way I prefer my pumpkin.

As for recipes, I confess, I have tried many different ones, from pumpkin cheesecakes to streusel-topped pies. But my favorite is the one on the back of the Libby canned pumpkin, not the pie filling. So if you are planning on pumpkin pie for Christmas, you might want to give that recipe a try. Like I said, it has been a standby at my house for many years.

And since we are getting ready for Christmas I am looking for your ideas for yummy food columns. Please send me your recipes for any of the following: food gifts, side dishes, soups and any meat that you prepare other than turkey or ham.

You can e-mail me at

christina.hall@natchezdemocrat.com

. We will run those as space allows, and we can all benefit from some new ideas. I for one, need some something new on my table. I am afraid we have gotten in rut at my house and I don&8217;t want the holiday table to be that way also. Of course there will be some old family favorites that we can&8217;t do without. My grandmother&8217;s dressing recipe is just the best and Joyce has to bring her broccoli casserole.

So many of you have written, called or stopped me on the street to ask about my new job. It wasn&8217;t very bright of me to tell you that I was going to a new job and then not tell you who it was with. I am working with the staff of South Mississippi Homecare and Hospice. So thank you for caring and no, we aren&8217;t moving. Good heavens, I am barely unpacked from our move a year ago. As much as I love to repaint and wallpaper I don&8217;t imagine the Hall family will move from this spot for a very long time. We live in a great neighborhood with just the right blend of older kids and younger kids.

Welcome to the holiday season and remember to send your recipes!

Christina Hall

can be reached at

christina.hall@natchezdemocrat.com