In October, we celebrated our soup mixes. For November, our minds have turned to Thanksgiving and planning a meal that is both satisfying and healthy. The holidays are prime time to pack on a little extra weight, so we’ve asked some of our favorite food bloggers to bring some healthy dishes to our virtual table. We’re kicking the month off a little early in order to bring you all of these great recipes in time to add them to your menu. We hope you enjoy them! 

Not being from the South myself, Succotash always puts me in mind of Sylvester the Cat who liked to quip,”Thufferin Thuccotash!” in his lispy cat voice. This traditional Southern dish from Krista of Budget Gourmet Mom is definitely not one you have to suffer! This dish is light, yet flavorful, and makes a great side for Thanksgiving. Of her blog, Krista writes “As a wife and the stay-at-home mom to four boys I have my hands full!  When I am not making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or cleaning up the mess from them I am writing for my blog, Budget Gourmet Mom. We may eat on a budget but that doesn’t mean it can’t be gourmet food.”

Traditional Southern Succotash

• 1 small Onion, diced
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
• 2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Large Lima Beans, soaked (about 1 cup dry)
• 2-1/2 cups Yellow Corn, frozen
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh Thyme
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 strips of Bacon, cooked and crumbled (optional)

In a medium saucepan heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and garlic and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes.  Add the bell pepper and lima beans, lower the temperature and cover.  Cook another 15 minutes.  Toss in the corn and season with thyme and salt and pepper.  Cook until beans are tender and the corn is thoroughly cooked, another 7 minutes.

Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with extra thyme and bacon, if desired.

In lieu of yet another turkey sandwich,  why not try one of these fabulous recipes with all of your leftover bounty? Here are 10 great ideas, in no particular order for putting some zing back into your leftovers.

1. Cranberry Turkey Enchiladas: If you’re sick and tired of the Thanksgiving flavors- this might be just the thing for you. This dish uses leftover turkey and cranberry and puts a pretty creative spin on them. (Courtesy of Recipe Girl)
2. Linguine with Turkey, Thyme and Petit Pois: A nice pasta dish that blends peas, turkey and thyme into a creamy (and EASY) delight. (Courtesy of Under the High Chair)
3. Barbecue Pulled-Turkey Sandwiches: take that moist, delicious turkey and make a totally different kind of turkey sandwich- one that is perfect for watching football and lounging about. (Courtesy of Bon Appetit)
4. Turkey Pot Pie: this combines leftover turkey, onions, butternut squash and cranberries to create a whole new food perfect for dinner after a tiring day of work (or shopping if you’re one of those folks). (Courtesy of The Food Network) Allergen friend version available here from Cybele Pascal.
5. Turkey Banh Mi: why not take that turkey sandwich to a new level with a little Asian flair. Crusty baguettes filled with turkey, cucumber, carrot and spicy Sriracha mayo. (Courtesy of Martha Stewart)
6. Turkey Empanadas: these little pockets of puff pastry are not for those looking for a break from Thanksgiving flavors, rather they celebrate all that is wonderful about Thanksgiving. Turkey, stuffing, gravy and mashed potatoes mingle together in a delicious pocket of goodness. (Courtesy of Bon Appetit)
7. Potato Croquettes: tasty little potato appetizers made from leftover mashed potatoes.  (Courtesy of The Food Network)
8. Turkey, Sweet Potato and Watercress Salad: use up leftover turkey and sweet potatoes for a lighter take on some of those heavy Thanksgiving foods. (Courtesy of Martha Stewart)
9. Turkey Gumbo: put a Southern flair on your turkey soup. After the indulgence of Thanksgiving, this soup is a perfect way to get yourself back in order- not only does it use up some leftover turkey and vegetables, but it’s healthy and flavorful too. (Courtesy of Steamy Kitchen)
10. Turkey Shepherd’s Pie: almost all of the Thanksgiving leftovers go into this dish.  A lovely, warming dinner on a blustery cold day. (Courtesy of Simple Bites)

 

 

In my humble opinion, gravy is one of the best things about Thanksgiving dinner. I was a bit surprised when  gluten free gravy, was listed as one of the foods that intimidates you the most about Thanksgiving. And a quick internet search will reassure you- you are not alone. It’s been a hot topic online these days and I’ve been on the hunt for some great resources for you guys to help take the worry out of gravy. I will also be sharing some pie crust tips and stuffing how-to’s later in the week, as those were also on the most-intimidating list.

The most fool-proof way to make gravy? Follow a recipe from someone you trust and try it first. If it’s your first time or a dish that freaks you out a bit, there is always someone who has a great recipe and who knows how to avoid the pitfalls. This weekend, try your gravy recipe and make sure it works. If it’s not working, you still have time to find out why.

How do you know if a recipe is good? What I do is look at 4 or 5 recipes for something and find the common ground. In this case- almost all of the gravies I have found that are gluten free use Sweet White Rice Flour.  If you find an outlier, save it for another time. Tried and true methods are the key! Now is not the time to play around, unless you are utterly confident and have a fall back plan.

I’ve gone ahead and done that part for you- each of these recipes would be one that I would make for Thanksgiving dinner. I still urge you to find the time to try it first, no one wants Thanksgiving dinner without gravy… well, almost no one.

Gluten Free Girl has a beautiful video and offers some great insight into making a delicious gluten free gravy. Check it out here: http://glutenfreegirl.com/gluten-free-gravy/ In fact, if you click on this link, you get a whole slew of amazing gluten free Thanksgiving recipes complete with main dishes, sides, salads and baked goods.

Elizabeth Barbone via Serious Eats offers very similar advice, an easy recipe and some great tips for converting your gluten free gravy to also be dairy free.

A long standing Thanksgiving tradition at our house is serving Irish Soda Biscuits made from our Irish Soda Bread Mix. There’s something about Thanksgiving that draws me towards biscuits and rolls in place of bread.  I love using the Irish Soda Bread Mix because it takes all the work out of making biscuits from scratch; enough work is already going into the meal. This adaptation is easy and oh-so-delicious!

Irish Soda Biscuits

Ingredients 2 Cups Irish Soda Bread Mix 1/4 Cup Oil 1/3 – 1/2 Cup Water

Directions

Mix oil and 1/3 cup water. Stir into 2 cups of Irish Soda Bread Mix. If dough seems dry, add one tablespoon of water at a time, mixing to combine after each, until dough reaches proper consistency.  Gather into ball. Roll or press out on floured board to about 1 inch thick. Cut into biscuits. Place in ungreased pan. Bake in 450°F oven for 8-10 minutes. Makes 8 biscuits.

Pie Crusts are one of the easiest recipes to make vegan. Often times the recipe is naturally vegan when it calls for vegetable oil rather than butter, shortening or margarine. A basic pie crust usually calls for flour(s), ice water or milk, a little salt and a fat. Cold water or milk is usually used since it helps the crust have a flaky texture.

Here are a few pie crust recipes and how you would veganize them.

Flaky Whole Wheat Pie Crust
Instead of butter, use vegetable shortening or non-dairy margarine. Earth balance makes a great non-hydrogenated margarine that is even available soy-free. Spectrum makes a non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening that would be good to use as well.

Wheat Pie Crust with Egg
There are a few options to replace the egg in this recipe which is mostly used as a binder. You could use our Vegetarian Egg Replacer, Flaxseed Meal or even just cornstarch. For any of these options, to make one egg just combine 1 Tb of the product with 3 Tb of water and mix. Add this to the recipe as you would the egg.

Buttermilk Pie Crust
This recipe calls for both butter and shortening. You can use the vegan options I mentioned before. Using just one form of solid fat will work, but the results will not be quite as light and fluffy. For the buttermilk, measure out soymilk instead (or another milk alternative) and mix in 1 tsp of lemon juice and let stand a few minutes.

Easy as Pie Crust (Gluten Free)
Anytime a recipe calls for milk, a milk alternative can be used. Soymilk tends to perform the best, but almond milk, rice milk, oat milk, hazelnut milk, coconut milk and hemp milk are all available as well. Make sure to use a non-dairy margarine for making this recipe as well.

Almond Oat Pie Crust
This gluten free recipe is naturally vegan, so just make as directed and enjoy!

If you have any further questions about veganizing a pie crust, please let us know. Happy baking!

Writing By Chelsea Lincoln

I freely admit that the question of my favorite Thanksgiving dish has taken me a few days to answer and commit to one dish. “All” is not an option for this post. I finally settled on Cranberry Sauce because it’s one of the unsung heroes of the Thanksgiving table (and someone else already claimed stuffing).

I’m not sure why, but as a kid I just couldn’t get enough of the canned jellied cranberry sauce. It was always a dish that was a last minute thought and pretty much always came out of the can. Since then, my family has graduated to making cranberries from scratch and I still love them. In fact, I think I love them even more!

There are so many ways to eat cranberries and the flavor pairs so well with all of the other dishes. I’m pretty sure half the reason my mom even served cranberry sauce was to put it on a turkey sandwich the next day. Yum!

Flavor aside, cranberries are one of the healthiest foods you can eat—especially on a day filled with butter-smothered indulgence. Cranberries are an excellent source of vitamin C and dietary fiber. They help prevent inflammation and support the immune system. You can read more about the amazing health benefits of cranberries here.

Most recipes call for copious amounts of sugar to balance the tartness of the cranberries, so I’m not sure what the net benefit of eating cranberry sauce might be beyond the pure gastronomical pleasure.

Here is the simple recipe for basic cranberry sauce from Simply Recipes.com that I’m going to try this year: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/cranberry_sauce/

Do you make your cranberry sauce from scratch?