• I made Ina Garten’s recipe for brown-butter skillet cornbread. 
• It was deliciously moist, with the perfect combination of sweet and savory flavors. 
• The cornbread was a hit at Friendsgiving years ago. Now I make the dish for every Thanksgiving.

When I decided to cook a few dishes for Friendsgiving, there was no question that Ina Garten would be my source of inspiration.

As a huge pasta lover, I knew I had to test Garten’s recipe for overnight mac and cheese. And I’m a firm believer that no Thanksgiving table is complete without carbs, so I also made her Parmesan smashed potatoes. 

That already seemed like plenty, but then I stumbled on a photo of Garten’s brown-butter skillet cornbread in “The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook.” In the dish’s description, Garten writes that it was the “best cornbread I’ve ever made!”

That was all I needed to hear — time to get baking!

Ina Garten’s brown-butter skillet cornbread needs only a few basic ingredients.

To make Garten’s cornbread, which serves 10 to 12 people, you’ll need: 

• 3 cups of all-purpose flour
• 2 cups of whole milk 
• 1 cup of fine cornmeal (Garten says this makes moister cornbread than medium grind)
• 1 cup of sugar 
• ½ pound of unsalted butter 
• 2 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten 
• 2 tablespoons of baking powder 

I began by melting the butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat.

I continued to heat the butter until it became browned but not burned, listening to Garten’s advice to “watch it very carefully!” 

Once the butter was ready, I poured it into a bowl and added the milk and eggs.

I whisked the milk into the butter before cracking two eggs into the bowl.

I have to admit, I forgot to lightly beat the eggs before adding them to the mixture — but it didn’t seem to affect the cornbread at all. 

I added my dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

I added the flour, sugar, and cornmeal, along with the baking powder and some kosher salt. 

I whisked all the dry ingredients together, then made a well in the middle.

Barely five minutes had passed, and my batter was almost ready. 

Then I poured the butter-and-milk mixture into the well.

Per Garten’s instructions, I stirred everything together with a rubber spatula until it was just combined. The “Barefoot Contessa” star said it’s OK if the batter looks a little lumpy. 

My batter was almost ready. But first, it needed to rest a little (relatable).

Garten’s recipe calls for the batter to sit for 15 minutes. She said this step is essential to getting the best cornbread possible, so be patient!

After the 15 minutes were up, I poured my batter into the skillet.

Make sure you don’t wipe out your cast-iron skillet after melting the butter. Just throw the batter right in.

I smoothed the top, sprinkled it with sea salt, and threw the cast-iron skillet into the oven.

Garten’s recipe says to bake the cornbread for 35 to 40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. After 35 minutes, I stuck a knife in the middle, and it came out clean, so I knew it was ready. 

One thing to note: If you’re using an 11 ½-inch skillet, Garten recommends baking your cornbread for only 25 to 30 minutes. 

My cornbread came out a gorgeous golden brown.

Garten’s brown-butter skillet cornbread makes for a beautiful centerpiece at the Thanksgiving table. (We all know no one really cares about the turkey.)

But would it taste as good as it looked? 

You could feel how moist the cornbread was just by cutting into it. Everyone at the table agreed it was one of the best they had ever tasted.

I could write an essay on how much I love this cornbread. It was so moist and fluffy, with the sweet and savory elements working together in perfect harmony. We were all stuffed, but everyone at the table couldn’t resist getting seconds of the bread. 

“The salt really brought out all the flavors,” my friend Oliver said. “10/10, would recommend.” 

“So delicious,” my fellow taste tester Kayla added. “The outside had a nice salty and crunchy texture, while the inside was moist and sweet.” 

Garten’s cornbread has earned a permanent spot on my Thanksgiving menu.

There’s no doubt in my mind that Garten’s brown-butter skillet cornbread was the star of our meal. It was perfectly baked and still tasted just as moist when we ate leftovers a day or two later.

Seeing that cornbread come out of the oven, so beautiful and golden, made me feel like I was about to get a Paul Hollywood handshake.   

Now I look forward to making it every Thanksgiving.

• “Saturday Night Live” roasted Elon Musk, played by Jeremy Culhane, during “Weekend Update.”
• Culhane’s Musk tried to distract the audience from his expensive US midterm election fumble.
• “I’m in the news because my car did a flip,” the actor said.

Elon Musk had a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad week following the US midterm elections. And “Saturday Night Live” seized the opportunity.

The “SNL” crew didn’t hold back during the “Weekend Update” segment, when comedian Jeremy Culhane portrayed the tech billionaire discussing his US midterm election fumble. The real Musk donated at least $446 million ahead of the midterm elections to conservative political action committees, including a large chunk to supporting conservative candidates in Texas.

Ultimately, it didn’t matter. Texas, alongside several other traditionally red states, turned blue this election cycle.

During the segment, host Colin Jost said Musk is in the news for “wasting” money on the midterm elections.

“Uh, no, I’m in the news because my car did a flip. My car did a flip, remember? It was like a frickin’ Hot Wheel,” the impersonator said. “It was like poof! And then bah! But I was like, totally chill. I was like, ‘Thug life!’ Imagine.”

Tesla flaunted its next-generation Roadster in October by kick-flipping it in the air during a demonstration.

Culhane’s Musk had a similar answer when asked about his decision to halt production of Tesla’s Cybertruck. Musk made the announcement two days after the midterm election.

“Hey, remember when my car did a flip? It was epic. It was like poof, pah! But everyone was like, “Whoa!” But I was just like, ‘Hold my beer.’ Imagine,'” the comedian said.

At the end of the sketch, Culhane’s Musk decides to show off a new fictitious Grok feature called “vulgar roast.”

“Elon Musk, you’re the worst thing South Africa has ever done,” fake Grok said. “When you’re on TV, it feels like an episode of ‘Hate on the Spectrum.'”

Fake Grok added: “Maybe if you have 100 more kids, one of them will talk to you.”

The fallout from the blue wave that swept the midterm elections was swift for Musk. His net worth fell by $33 billion in one day, while shares of Tesla and SpaceX tumbled.

• I spent years working as an international flight attendant, constantly traveling and chasing success.
• I traded my demanding career for a part-time receptionist job with a much calmer routine.
• At 36, I’m happier prioritizing my mental health, marriage, and the small joys of everyday life.

I was born in a small town in Ukraine, raised with the quiet, persistent belief that to succeed, I had to work three times harder than anyone born in a big city. In my early adulthood, my biggest mistake was assuming that only major cities could offer real opportunities — and that I could simply squeeze my mental health into my schedule whenever I happened to have time for it.

Moving to Kyiv in my early 20s felt like the ultimate dream: a chance to prove I belonged. But to survive there, I felt I had to fit a precise, demanding system. It wasn’t enough to simply stay healthy; you were expected to hold a premium membership at a high-end fitness center just to prove your worth to others. You had to maintain an active, highly visible social life, eat at the right places, and project total composure. Everything was about trying to impress others.

I chased corporate beauty standards, ignoring every warning sign of burnout

After I graduated from college, I set my sights on becoming an international flight attendant for Ukraine’s national carrier. When I landed the job, I thought I had made it. Instead, impostor syndrome hit me on day one. I felt like I was constantly falling behind my peers, so I ran as fast as I could to outrun the feeling.

I improved my English, started learning Spanish, and took on a summer schedule so punishing I was barely ever home. I spent years living out of a suitcase, navigating time zone changes, early-morning wake-up calls, and strict corporate beauty standards. I measured my worth entirely by my exhaustion, treating a packed calendar as proof that I mattered. Saying “no” to friends because of work became a badge of honor.

Looking back, I knew I was burning out, but I was too overwhelmed to stop. I believed that as long as I was busy, I was safe from failure.

I had my first panic attack

Then, life shifted violently. After having my son, the pandemic grounded the aviation industry. Not long after, war broke out in Ukraine.

We didn’t choose to leave our home or plan to emigrate — war made that decision for us, uprooting our family overnight. We ended up settling in a small Ontario town — the exact kind of tranquil environment I had spent my youth trying to escape. When I first arrived, I was terrified. It was so overwhelmingly still and peaceful that, for the first time in my life, I started to hear my own thoughts.

My body, conditioned by a decade of high-tension striving and constant mobility, couldn’t handle the sudden stillness. Shortly after arriving, my first panic attack hit me. In the stillness, a painful truth surfaced: I had never once allowed myself to just stay with myself. My mind had always been stuffed with the next goal, the next achievement, or the next deadline. I initially believed that this small town marked the end of my ambition, but as the silence forced me to look inward, I realized I had spent nearly 10 years chasing an illusion.

I leaned out and found community

Unlearning that mindset wasn’t immediate; slowing down turned out to be a skill I had to learn from scratch. In the fall of 2022, I found a part-time job as a receptionist in Canada, where I still work today. For the first time in my professional life, I wasn’t navigating a massive corporate hierarchy or competing with thousands of employees. Working alongside just three colleagues in a calm atmosphere, I joined a community where people actually knew my name.

Instead of chasing the next status symbol, I made learning who I actually was my top priority. I no longer pay for an expensive gym membership to impress anyone; instead, I feel fit and strong through my home workouts. Practicing yoga in peace and serenity without a studio full of strangers makes far more sense to me now.

It turns out I love early mornings. I love making my own sauerkraut and keeping a sourdough starter alive to bake rye bread. Baking fresh cinnamon rolls for our neighbors as a small thank-you for their support became one of the most grounding, relaxing rituals of my new life. I started learning French — not to climb a career ladder or get immigration points, but purely for the joy of the process. There are no deadlines now. I take my time, allow myself to feel stuck, and share my struggles openly with my tutor.

Slowing down saved both my mental health and my marriage

Now, at 36, I build my daily life entirely around my mental health, rather than trying to squeeze my well-being into the leftover cracks of a high-stress career. I refuse to operate in panic mode anymore. Opening my eyes to this required hard choices — letting go of old ambitions, old habits, and even certain relationships. Today, I don’t maintain a big circle of friends, but I make intentional time for the special people in my life.

Above all, this inner shift saved more than just my own peace — it transformed my marriage. In my old life, I was always home in body, but absent in spirit; my mind was constantly preoccupied with ambition. As I traded endless chasing for small, quiet moments of joy, my husband and I found a depth of connection we hadn’t known was missing. Forced to flee our home because of war, we faced a crisis that could have fractured our relationship. Instead, choosing a simpler, more intentional life together bound us closer and made our family resilient in ways speed never could.

I no longer want to fit in. I prefer to belong — and there is a profound difference between the two. Through simple daily rituals, writing my weekly column, and the gentle warmth of a small community, I finally found the peace I spent a decade trying to chase in the skies.

• Mariah Smith stopped letting her kids use the smart TV after her daughter saw a scary trailer.
• She replaced streaming with VHS tapes, DVDs, and old-fashioned technology like Game Boys.
• A year later, she says her kids watch less TV, argue less, and are more creative.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Mariah Smith. It has been edited for length and clarity.

After my youngest child was born, we were all in survival mode, and it felt like the TV was always on to keep my older two kids entertained.

I knew I needed to do something about the amount of screen time they were having, but I was too exhausted to do much about it.

And then I didn’t have a choice.

My 8-year-old found a horror film

We’ve got a smart TV, and when you turn on the menu, completely unwarranted advertisements for movies and shows pop up in the toolbar.

My 8-year-old managed to find a trailer for a horror film, something really scary about an exorcism. It was awful and led to her being frightened at night.

One night, I lay with her in bed as she cried and thought, “We’re done with the TV.”

I hid our remote the next day and told my two older kids it was broken until I could figure out what to do about screens. The first few days without TV weren’t great. They were constantly asking to watch something.

But surprisingly, they adjusted much more quickly than I had imagined, and within a week, they rarely asked to watch a show.

We started watching VHS

I started looking for fun technology they could use instead. We got a boombox and CDs and started listening to the radio. I found my old Game Boys, and we played with those too.

The kids loved all of it. It felt like new technology to them, even though it was from two decades ago.

I remembered my parents had kept all of the VHS tapes we watched as kids, all the classics. After buying an old TV, I brought the tapes to our house, and we started watching TV the old-fashioned way.

They were fascinated.

It’s been a year since we started using the little TV and VHS tapes, and I’m so pleased with the results.

I can leave them to watch stuff alone

As a mom trying to juggle three young kids and everything else life throws at me, I can’t always sit down with my children to watch TV.

Now, I can leave them to watch something and trust that they’ll be safe. Everything they watch has been vetted by me because I’ve seen all the films before. There won’t be any age-inappropriate adverts popping up unexpectedly.

I feel like I have much more control over what they’re watching, and that I’m able to keep them safer this way.

The kids argue with each other less and are nowhere near as agitated as they used to be.

Because the TV isn’t always on anymore, my older two children have become more creative. My daughter has taken up embroidery and knitting.

I’ve noticed that, for some reason, the children disengage much more easily from this little TV with the VHS player than they did from our big smart TV. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s the smaller screen or the slower-paced storylines. Either way, it’s easier to turn off without a total tantrum.

They also can’t choose to watch YouTubers like they can on streaming services. I don’t want my children watching YouTubers, but I found it nearly impossible to remove that option from Netflix or Disney+.

Using VHS tapes creates a barrier of sorts to watching TV, so we watch a lot less of it now. It’s not as simple as pressing a button and having thousands of options available. You have to make sure the tape has been rewound, sit through the trailers, watch the film, and then rewind it again afterward. Once the film is over, the TV goes off. It feels like a natural ending.

What has surprised me most is how my own body has reacted to less TV and less background noise. My nervous system doesn’t feel as overwhelmed as it once did. I feel much calmer.

We’ve recently added DVDs to our collection because there’s more variety available. My kids love Bluey, so we’ve bought DVDs with all the episodes.

Although it started as a quick decision to switch to VHS tapes, I’m incredibly grateful we did it. It’s not that we’ve gone backward in time, but that we’ve found a slower, calmer way of living that works far better for our family.

• Director Alex Gibney has made documentaries about both Elon Musk and Elizabeth Holmes.
• He told Business Insider that Musk shares key similarities with the disgraced Theranos founder.
• He said both were able to “convince people of things that they knew not to be true.”

If anyone could find a connection between Elon Musk and Elizabeth Holmes, it’s director Alex Gibney.

The Oscar-winning filmmaker has made movies on both polarizing figures. In 2019, he made the Elizabeth Holmes documentary “The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley.” His latest doc is “Musk,” a close-to-four-hour examination of the richest man in the world.

In a recent interview with Business Insider, Gibney explained how Musk’s rise reminded him of Holmes, who came to prominence in the 2010s as the founder of Theranos, a health technology company that boasted it could run hundreds of medical and diagnostic tests using only a few drops of blood. She’s currently in prison for defrauding investors.

“I think there is a similarity with Elizabeth Holmes,” Gibney told Business Insider. “What was rattling around in my head through this was ‘confidence man.’ Musk, like Holmes, was able, through force of confidence, to convince people of things that they knew not to be true. That became a superpower.”

See the full clip below:

Or read the full interview with Gibney.

• I live in California and love visiting new towns and cities off the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner route.
• One of my favorite places to visit is Ventura, a coastal city with great food and thrift shopping.
• I love how easy it is to get around Ventura without a car, and an Amtrak ticket from LA is just $22.

Given the opportunity, I’d happily travel everywhere by train. Luckily, I live in Southern California, where I can easily explore neighborhoods up and down the coast via the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner.

This beautiful coastal train runs all the way from San Diego to San Luis Obispo, and I’ve discovered tons of cool towns and cities simply by exploring the stops along the route. One of my favorites is the city of Ventura: It’s an easy, $22 day trip from my nearest train station in Los Angeles.

Ventura is a historic beach town north of LA with a wealth of attractions, from relaxing, surfer-laden beaches to eclectic shopping and delicious food.

The train ride to Ventura is short and affordable

A one-way ticket from the Hollywood Burbank Airport station costs just $22 and gets me to Ventura within an hour and a half.

One of the perks of traveling by Amtrak, instead of by car or bus, is the café car experience. If I don’t have time for Starbucks in the morning, I’ll grab a coffee and a vegetarian breakfast burrito with cheese, eggs, and potatoes (and then douse it in hot sauce or ketchup).

I also love that Ventura’s beach is just a block from the train station. This means I don’t have to pay for parking or fight for a good beachside spot.

The beach is typically the first place I go upon arriving. I walk south toward the pier, down the paved promenade that runs along Surfers Point.

Sometimes, I’ll roam the pier and get a fish taco or elote from Beach House Tacos. But usually, I just sit in the sand with a good book and lounge for an hour or so, relaxing in the sun.

Before I leave the beach, I like to indulge my inner child and use the swing at the small playground right on the sand. Swinging toward the ocean always makes me feel like I could soar right over the waves.

Downtown Ventura is full of thrift shops and quirky small businesses

One of my favorite reasons to take a day trip to Ventura at all (besides the beach) is to go thrifting. The downtown area, especially Main Street, has a plethora of vintage and thrift shops.

Coalition Thrift Store is always at the top of my list. It has an incredible, reasonably priced selection of both modern and vintage pieces. I run a vintage shop on Etsy and source some of my finds from there.

I’m also a huge bookworm, so the used bookstore, The Calico Cat Bookshop, and romance novel store Smitten are usually next on my list.

From award-winning fish tacos to tiki drinks, Ventura has a great food and drink scene

When hunger strikes, I’ll usually grab some pub grub at one of the gastropubs in the area, like Finney’s Crafthouse. I’m also a fan of Spencer Makenzie’s, which has a fish taco that locals voted best in Ventura. Eating seafood when I’m next to the ocean is a must.

Depending on my mood later in the day, I’ll either grab a fun drink at VenTiki Lounge to chill out or a vanilla chai from Palermo Coffee & Gifts as a pick-me-up.

My last stop of the day, however, is always Tony’s Pizzaria, just a block from the train station. I’ll grab a slice of cheese pizza for my trip home.

My favorite part is spending a day without driving

Ventura is such a great day trip because, unlike most of LA, it’s easy to explore on foot. I can get my steps in, then relax with my feet up on the train ride home.

If I’m taking the train after 8 p.m., I might even treat myself to a cocktail during Amtrak’s after-hours happy hour, something that’s impossible to do while driving.

By the time I get back to LA, I’ve squeezed a beach day, some shopping, and plenty of good seafood into a 12-hour day trip — all without ever having to set foot in a car.