After I received a Women's Health magazine in the mail I found an article on healthier side dishes for Thanksgiving. That article inspired me to do a Thanksgiving-themed meal for me and Britney before she goes back to South Carolina for the holiday (tomorrow night!) and I go up to Granby (Wednesday morning). I knew it was going to be a bigger ordeal than I'd previously done because of all the dishes I wanted to prepare, but luckily I had a good chunk of time this Sunday afternoon to get them all made, with Britney's help of course.
The thing I found most surprising about this meal was how familiar it ended up being. While the recipes were twists on the familiar, all the recipes were somewhat familiar. For example, I've already made a rice pilaf with apricots in it this semester. The green bean dish and the cranberry dish were almost replicas of what we do as a family for Thanksgiving. I'd say the newest dish was the smashed sweet potatoes, but even that wasn't too far off the mark with other smashed winter veggies I've had before.
I'm very excited to say that I have plenty of leftovers for Britney's and my lunches tomorrow, with enough food to probably last me until Wednesday when I leave for break!! YUM YUM YUM! Happy Turkey Day! Gobble Gobble (those would be the turkeys that I did not help eat!)
Per ½-cup serving: 175 cal, 10 g fat (3 g sat), 18 g carbs, 541 mg sodium, 4 g fiber, 5 g protein
Pass the... Green Beans With Shallots
No need to sabotage a perfectly good vegetable by drowning it in a pool of cream of mushroom soup and deep-fried onions. This lean bean dish delivers just as much flavor and crunch, and it sidesteps two-thirds of the belly-bloating sodium you'll find in a casserole.
1/4 cup olive oil
4 large shallots, peeled and quartered
2 Tbsp reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 lbs green beans, trimmed
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. While water is heating, pour olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add shallots. Reduce heat to medium-low and sauté until shallots are soft, about 10 minutes. Add chicken broth, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper; stir well. Remove from heat.
3. Add green beans to boiling water and cook for 5 minutes. Drain. Toss beans with shallot mixture. Serve immediately.
Makes 8 servings
Per ½-cup serving: 107 cal, 7 g fat (1 g sat), 12 g carbs, 181 mg sodium, 4 g fiber, 2 g protein
Pass Up... Traditional Stuffing
Per 1/2-cup serving: 265 cal, 11 g fat (2 g sat), 38 g carbs, 865 mg sodium, 3 g fiber, 6 g protein
Pass the... Brown Rice Pilaf With Apricots And Almonds
Make your stuffing with whole-grain pilaf instead of traditional stuffing and you'll trim 61 calories and seven grams of fat. Not only will those slow-to-digest grains help keep you full, but they've also been shown to blast ab fat.
1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 3/4 cups medium-grain brown rice
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup finely chopped Vidalia onion
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
2 tsp lemon zest
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1. Combine chicken broth, 1¾ cups water, and ¾ teaspoon salt in saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add rice. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 40 minutes.
2. Ten minutes before rice is finished, heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add onion and sauté until just soft, about 5 minutes. Add apricots, lemon zest, 2 tablespoons water, and ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper. Stir well and remove from heat.
3. Once rice is cooked, remove from heat. Let stand covered 5 minutes. Uncover and toss with onion mixture, parsley, and almonds. Serve. Makes 8 servings
Per ½-cup serving: 204 cal, 4 g fat (1 g sat), 37 g carbs, 203 mg sodium, 2 g fiber, 5 g protein
Pass Up... Cranberry Sauce
Per1/3-cup serving: 225 cal, <1 g fat (0 g sat), 57 g carbs, 2 mg sodium, 4 g fiber, <1 g protein
Pass the... Cranberry-Pear Sauce
Cranberries are weight-loss superstars. Studies have found that they contain organic acids that may help dissolve fat deposits, plus enzymes that may boost metabolism. Too bad we tend to dump sugar over them to temper their tartness. The pears in this dish add sweetness, which means you can use half as much sugar as most canned sauces.
1/2 cup sugar
12 oz fresh cranberries
3 Bosc pears, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1. In a large saucepan, bring 1 cup water, sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a boil. Stir well.
2. Add cranberries, pears, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves; stir well to combine. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until cranberries burst.
3. Remove from heat. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Makes 8 servings
Per 1/3-cup serving: 112 cal, 0 g fat (0 g sat), 29 g carbs, 62 mg sodium, 4 g fiber, 0 g protein
Two pictures of this glorious dish because I love cranberry sauce so much. The one thing I'd say is that I cooked it a bit too long so the berries all popped and it was more like jam than cranberries, but the taste was still the same fantabulous thing!
Even though this picture is blurry, this is a more accurate representation of my sauce's color. SO GOOD!
Pass Up... Candied Sweet Potatoes
Per ½-cup serving: 315 cal, 7 g fat (3 g sat), 61 g carbs, 153 mg sodium, 5 g fiber, 2 g protein
Pass the... Chili-Spiced Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Not only is this dish practically fat-free, but the chili powder contains capsaicin, which studies have shown may inhibit fat cell growth and help people consume fewer calories. And cinnamon is no slacker spice either: It keeps your blood sugar stable and your appetite in check, so you won’t be tempted to go back for second helpings.
4 large sweet potatoes (3½ lbs total)
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
2 tsp orange zest
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp chili powder
1. Bake the sweet potatoes in a 425°F oven until they are soft, about 70 minutes. Remove sweet potatoes from oven and allow them to cool slightly.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together orange juice, orange zest, brown sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, cinnamon, and chili powder.
3. Scoop sweet potatoes out of skins and place in a large mixing bowl. Pour orange juice mixture over sweet potatoes, mash well, and serve.
Makes 8 servings
Per ½-cup serving: 191 cal, <1 g fat (0 g sat), 45 g carbs, 169 mg sodium, 6 g fiber, 3 g protein
I doctored this dish up a bit with some apple-cider vinegar, a bit more salt, pepper and chili pepper. Also, I broke off the tip of my spatula as I was mixing it up in the food processor because the potatoes wouldn't all get chopped up so I was trying to help out...CAREFUL with that tactic!
Happy Thanksgiving!! :D What a rainbow of colorful food!!!
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