Blog Posts by Sarah McColl, Shine staff

If you ever tire of brown rice and vegetables on your new year's journey to eating better, you needed look no further than the the contributions to the Shine Supper Club for a bit of inspiration. The recipes this month were so fresh (herb and veggie-stuffed summer rolls), so vibrant (winter detox salad), and so creative (lightened jalapeno popper dip, anyone?), we continually felt motivated on to keep eating well (well, most of the time). But as always, there must be a winner. We've narrowed the playing field to 8 finalists. Now it's time for you to vote for your favorite.

Voting will be open until 12PM PST Wednesday, January 23. The winning recipe to be featured on the Shine homepage and win a copy of The New Way to Cook Light. No purchase is necessary to participate, and the giveaway is open to U.S. residents who are 18 or older. The full rules for the giveaway can be found here.

A bowl of homemade popcorn and Dr. Danny Castellano? A perfect night.Whenever I'm trying to avoid the siren snack song of crisp, salty tortilla chips (which I can plow through a bag of myself, no problem), I turn to my old pal popcorn. Have you seen how much those 100-calorie microwave bags make? Enough to easily power a Mindy Project marathon (or, at least, an episode). But if your love of popcorn isn't something you're willing to die for this Saturday, National Popcorn Day, and if, frankly, you could care less about the health food aspects, allow us to suggest old-school stove-popped popcorn as 1) the world's best vehicle for butter and salt and 2) so much cheaper than store-bought. In other words: stop buying the microwave bags. Homemade tastes better (what is that orange stuff on the sides of the bags anyway?) and is nearly as easy as pressing the "popcorn" button on the microwave.

Related: Snacks for a Movie Marathon

Can't give up the microwave, no way, no how? Here's a trick: Pour 2 tablespoons of kernels into a paper lunch sack. Fold the

Can you please pass the kale and millet, because even the most die hard bon vivant among us has probably overdone it on the cheese and chocolate at this point. We're ready to eat greens, we want to put turmeric and ginger in everything, and we want to fit in our pants again. The Shine Supper Club to the rescue, with a recipes to hasten a return to sane eating. Bring it on.

To join us:

1. Write a blog post telling us about a healthy recipe you're cooking up this month by Sunday 11:59PM PST, January 20th. Be sure to include a photo and a recipe.

2. Mention and link to the Shine Supper Club in your post: http://shine.yahoo.com/supper-club/

3. Tweet @YahooShine with a link to your post and include the hashtag #shinesupperclub. Aren't on Twitter? Email the link to shine_sarahmccoll at yahoo.com. We will compile the links for all participants to include in their posts so all Supper Club members can share in the link love.

4. Finalists will be posted by 12PM Monday, January 21 with

Share your healthy winter recipes with the Shine Supper Club!January is all about fresh starts, even in the kitchen. We're celebrating the clean slate by rounding up healthy recipes: lighter winter fare that's fresh, delicious, and filled with fresh veggies, lean proteins and/or whole grains. The winning recipe this month will receive a copy of The New Way to Cook Light. Here's how to join us:

1. Write a blog post telling us about a healthy recipe you're cooking up this month by Sunday 11:59PM PST, January 20th. Be sure to include a photo and a recipe.
2. Mention and link to the Shine Supper Club in your post: http://shine.yahoo.com/supper-club/
3. Tweet @YahooShine with a link to your post and include the hashtag #shinesupperclub. Aren't on Twitter? Email the link to shine_sarahmccoll at yahoo.com. We will compile the links for all participants to include in their posts so all Supper Club members can share in the link love.
4. Finalists will be posted by 12PM Monday, January 21 with voting open until 12PM PST Wednesday, January 23. The

Canal House Cooks Every Day | Roast Prime Rib of BeefEvery once in a while, a recipe comes along with such stunning simplicity it makes us wonder how we've managed to make cooking so complicated. And when it comes to holiday entertaining—long guest lists, crowded grocery stories and a kitchen as busy as a bus station—we need all the help we can get.

Enter what will be your go-to holiday roast. A stately sight to behold, this roast prime rib (from the handsome cookbook Canal House Cooks Every Day, itself a testament to the "simple is best" philosophy) looks impressive but calls for three ingredients and two anything-but-taxing steps. Leaving you the calm presence of mind to care for other pressing holiday concerns, like cookie-baking and finding the perfect sequin dress for New Year's Eve.

Tips to keep holiday entertaining stress-free

Authors Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton prefer to roast large cuts of meat like this at a low temperature, "the gentle heat cooks them evenly throughout (which means beautifully rosy-pink

It's not hard to understand how this recipe got the most votes in our Shine Supper Club poll. Grandbaby Cakes has created the kind of showstopping holiday dessert--mud pie and red velvet?!--that makes our jaws drop. (And also explains why we so enthusiastically embrace quinoa and kale come January.)

What ingredient are you currently obsessed with? 
I'm currently having a serious love affair with brown butter.  I have always been obsessed with butter in every facet of my baking and eating!  My husband thinks I have a serious problem but I can't help it.  It is just so darn delicious.  A couple of months ago, I started mixing brown butter into my cookie recipes, and it was seriously life changing.  The nutty and complex flavor of it adds another dimension to baked goods.

What's your favorite food memory? 
I recently had the opportunity to tape a baking video with my big mama (grandmother) in Mississippi.  My husband taped us making her famous biscuit recipe, and I learned so much about her

The holiday recipes submitted to this month's Shine Supper Club were both naughty (eggnog, red velvet, chocolate, oh my!) and nice (fresh, jewel-toned veggies, a sight for sugar-sore eyes). We narrowed the entries down to the some of the most-shared recipes on our Pinterest board, and now it's time for you to vote for a winner. The poll closes 12/21 at noon EST, so get your votes in fast! Good luck and happy cooking!

(Supper Club members can copy the links below into their posts to share some link love):

Shine Supper Club Holiday Favorites:

Nice:
Julia's Album: Spicy Carrot and Lentil Soup
The Primlani Kitchen: Wild Rice with Cranberries
Scaling Back: Millet Pilaf with Butternut Squash, Mushrooms and Pomegranate

Naughty:
Caffay Way: Traditional Swedish Glogg (Mulled Wine)
Chew Out Loud: Brie en Croute
Crispy Bits & Burnt Ends: Ko-Jew Kimchee Latkes
Culinary Adventures with Camilla: Eggnog Cheesecake
Dining with Dusty: Chocolate-Dipped Hazelnut Cookies
Dinners, Dishes and

Deb Perelman | Smitten KitchenThe night my friend plucked a Ziploc bag from her tote and plopped a pirate's booty worth of marshmallow treasure on the bar in front of us one night at happy hour, we promptly forgot all about our cocktails. With a touch of salt and rich with nutty brown butter, these Rice Krispies treats surpass anything that comes wrapped in shiny blue plastic. And isn't that how we should always remake the classics? By elevating beloved flavors to something just ever-so unexpected-without losing any of the nostalgic charm.

Make the ultimate playlist for your holiday party

The genius behind this keeper is Deb Perelman, the woman who pens one of our original food blog loves, Smitten Kitchen. Deb is like the Internet version of the Barefoot Contessa, amping up recipes you already love until the flavors really sing-only she works her wonders in a downtown apartment with a sliver of a kitchen instead of a million dollar Hamptons mansion. In other words, she's one of us. The recipes in her