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Thanksgiving Recipes

Looking for new recipes to add to old family favorites, or just a few ways to cut down on holiday calories? Relax. We've done the work for you - a classic Thanksgiving menu (two kinds of pie included!), served up with a healthy twist.

Roast a Perfect Bird

You can't go wrong with turkey at Thanksgiving - or any other day of the year. Low in fat and high in protein, white turkey meat is a good source of iron, zinc, phosphorus, potassium and B vitamins.

Yummy Mashed Potatoes Recipe

Mashed potatoes get a makeover with these healthy tips. Pairing potatoes with olive oil instead of butter, or plain yogurt instead of sour cream, helps keeps the flavor high but the fat low.

Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

# Ingredients Measures
1 Garlic cloves 8 to 10
2 Potatoes, quartered 2 lbs
3 Light sour cream 1/3 cups
4 Fat-free milk 1/4 cup
5 Snipped fresh oregano, rosemary, or thyme 1 tbsp
6 Salt 1/2 tsp
7 Black pepper 1/4 tsp

Directions

  1. To roast garlic, wrap unpeeled cloves in foil. Bake in a 400-degree oven 25 to 35 minutes or until cloves feel soft when pressed. When cool enough to handle, squeeze garlic from peels into a small bowl.
  2. Meanwhile, put potatoes in a large saucepan with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower heat to maintain a simmer and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain potatoes; return to saucepan.
  3. Mash potatoes and softened garlic with a potato masher or an electric mixer on low speed.
  4. Add sour cream; milk; oregano, rosemary, or thyme; salt; and black pepper. Beat until light and fluffy

Stuffed Acorn Squash With Apples and Cranberries

Studded with cranberries and chopped apples, this festive dish is packed with nutrition: Squash delivers disease-fighting beta carotene, while the fruit adds powerful antioxidants. Using a meat alternative gives a healthy dose of protein.

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

# Ingredients Measures
1 Medium acorn squash 2
2 Olive oil, separated 1 1/2 tsp
3 Crushed red pepper 1/8 tsp
4 Garlic, minced 4 cloves
5 Sliced scallions 1/2 cup
6 Coarsely shredded (prepackaged) carrots 1 cup
7 Ground turkey or ground beef alternative 1 bag (12 oz)
8 Medium Granny Smith apple, peeled, diced 1
9 Fresh lime juice 3 tbsp
10 Dried cranberries 1 cup
11 Mirin (rice wine) 1/4 cup

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Halve squash crosswise, seed and place cut side down in 1" of water in a 9" by 13" pan.

  1. Bake for one hour while preparing stuffing.
  2. Discard water and replace squash in pan, cut side up.
  3. Heat oil and crushed pepper in 10" frying pan over medium-high heat.
  4. Add garlic, scallion and shredded carrots. Sauté 3 minutes.
  5. Add beef alternative and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
  6. Drizzle diced apple with lime juice.
  7. Add to pan with cranberries and mirin. Lower heat to simmer and cook 5 minutes.
  8. First spray the flesh of each squash with olive oil and divide the filing among the four halves.
  9. Cover each with foil and bake for 10 minutes, or until heated through.
  10. Serve with jellied cranberry sauce.

Brussels Sprouts With Bacon and Sunflower Seeds

Picky eaters will be begging for more of this delicious, nutrient-rich side dish. Bacon complements the Brussels sprouts beautifully, while the sunflower seeds add extra crunch and lots of heart-healthy vitamin E.

Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

# Ingredients Measures
1 Brussels sprouts, trimmed 1 lb
2 Olive oil 2 tbsp
3 Bacon, cooked, drained, and crumbled 3 slices
4 Sunflower seeds 2 tbsp
5 Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Cook Brussels sprouts in boiling, salt water in medium sauce pan 6 to 8 minutes or until tender crisp; drain.
  2. Cut Brussels sprouts in half, if desired.
  3. Sauté Brussels sprouts in hot oil in large skillet with cooked bacon and sunflower seeds 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through.
  4. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Cajun Deviled Eggs

Looking for a tasty appetizer that's carb free? These spicy deviled eggs fill the bill. The simple recipe uses mayonnaise, Dijon mustard and cayenne to make a creamy filling with a bit of a bite. These Cajun Deviled Eggs make a deliciously spicy appetizer that's free of carbs. The simple recipe uses mayonnaise, Dijon mustard and cayenne to make a creamy filling with a bit of a bite.

Makes: 12 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

# Ingredients Measures
1 Eggs 6
2 Mayonnaise 2 tbsp
3 Dijon mustard 1 tsp
4 Salt 1/2 tsp
5 Ground black pepper 1/4 tsp
6 Ground cayenne (red pepper) 1/4 tsp

Directions

  1. Place eggs in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat.
  2. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool and peel.
  3. Slice eggs in half lengthwise. Remove yolks and place in a medium bowl.
  4. Set aside egg whites. Mashing with a fork, mix mayonnaise, Dijon-style mustard, salt, and black pepper with the egg yolks.
  5. Fill hollowed egg white halves with the yolk mixture. Sprinkle with cayenne pepper, adjusting the amount to taste.
  6. Cover and chill in the refrigerator until serving.

Additional Information

Serve on a bed of fresh lettuce, if desired. TIP: Use a pastry bag for a cleaner, more polished presentation.

Sautéed Green Beans

Green beans are full of vitamin C, a natural antioxidant -- and almonds are rich in heart-healthy monounsaturated fats and disease-fighting vitamin E. Even better: This dish is delicious.

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

# Ingredients Measures
1 Green beans, trimmed 1-½ lbs
2 Olive oil 4 tsp
3 Shallots, minced 1 tbsp
4 Freshly ground black pepper 1⁄4 tsp

Directions

  1. Simmer green beans in a large saucepan for three minutes until crisp-tender.
  2. Remove from heat and drain, and then plunge into cold water to blanche them. This stops the cooking process and retains the color.
  3. Heat skillet with oil, add shallots and sauté for one minute.
  4. Add blanched green beans, sauté for three minutes, and serve.

Perfect Pumpkin Pie

Mmmm - this pie not only tastes good but is good for you. Loaded with vitamin A, pumpkin is also a good source of potassium, beta-carotene and immunity-boosting zinc. Whole wheat flour, oat bran and silken tofu up the nutrition in this recipe even more.

Makes: 8 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

# Ingredients Measures
1 Whole wheat pastry flour 1 3/4 cups
2 Oat bran 1/4 cup
3 Sea salt 1/4 tsp
4 Brown rice syrup 2 tbsp
5 Mild olive oil 1 tbsp
6 Ice water 1/4 cup
7 Lite Silken Extra Firm Tofu, divided 25 oz
8 Sucanat 3/4 cup
9 Pumpkin puree 2 cups
10 Pure vanilla 1 tbsp
11 Ground cloves 1/8 tsp
12 Ground cinnamon 1 1/2 tsp
13 Ground ginger 3/4 tsp
14 Ground nutmeg 1/4 tsp

Directions

  1. Spray pie pan with olive oil cooking spray.
  2. Place whole wheat pastry flour, oat bran and salt in food processor and pulse to mix.
  3. Add tofu and process for a few seconds.
  4. With motor running, pour rice syrup through feed tube. Next add oil and ice water, processing until dough begins to form a ball.
  5. Place the pie dough between two sheets of wax paper, dusted lightly with whole-wheat flour.
  6. Roll into a circle between 1/8" to 1/4" thick. Peel off top sheet of wax paper and lay dough over 9 inch deep pie plate.
  7. Peel off second sheet of wax paper and gently press into pie plate. Trim and shape around the edges.
  8. Set aside in refrigerator while preparing filling.
  9. Blend remaining tofu in a food processor until smooth.
  10. Add remaining filling ingredients and blend thoroughly.
  11. Pour into unbaked piecrust.
  12. Bake on center rack of preheated oven for about 1 hour. Filling will be soft, but will firm up as it cools.
  13. Chill and serve with a dollop of dairy-free whipped topping.

Apple Pie With Oatmeal Cookie Crust

Pairing juicy fall apples with the cinnamon-y flavor of oatmeal cookies makes perfect sense. Plus, oatmeal gives this pie crust a healthy fiber boost.

Makes: 10 servings

Ingredients and Preparation

Oatmeal Cookie Crust:

# Ingredients Measures
1 Oat or white flour 2 2/3 cups
2 Maple or natural cane sugar 1 cup
3 Rolled oats 1 cup
4 Cinnamon 1 tsp
5 Baking soda 1 tsp
6 Unsweetened applesauce 3/4 to 1 cup
7 Egg whites 1
8 Vanilla extract 1 1/2 tsp
9 Canola oil cooking spray

Apple Filling:

# Ingredients Measures
1 Large, tart apples 6-8 (about 11 cups sliced)
2 Maple or natural cane sugar 3/4 cup
3 Apple juice 3/4 cup
4 Cinnamon 2 tsp
5 Vanilla extract 2 tsp
6 Cornstarch 1 tbsp

Directions

For Crust:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Combine flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon and baking soda.
  3. In another bowl, combine applesauce, egg white and vanilla.
  4. Combine wet ingredients with dry ingredients; stir until blended. If mixture seems dry, add up to 1/4 cup applesauce.
  5. Spray a 9" pie pan with cooking spray.
  6. Roll out half the oat mixture on a lightly floured surface to make a 12" circle. Press dough into pan to get it in position. Reserve remaining mixture for the top of the pie.
  7. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and fill.

For Filling:

  1. Peel and core apples and cut into 1/8" slices.
  2. Cook apples, sugar, 1/2 cup apple juice, cinnamon and vanilla in saucepan over medium heat until tender, about 5-10 minutes.
  3. Dissolve cornstarch in remaining apple juice. Add to hot apple mixture, stir constantly until mixture thickens, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
  4. Place apple mixture in baked crust.
  5. Roll out remaining crust dough onto lightly floured surface. Roll into an 11" circle. Pierce with a fork.
  6. Cover filling with top crust. Fold top edge under and crimp. Set pie pan on a larger pan to catch drips.
  7. Bake until top crust is firm, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve warm or chilled.

References:

  • Yummy Mashed Potatoes Recipe: Marjorie Nolan Cohn on behalf of Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Nutrition & Dietetics
  • Stuffed Acorn Squash with Apples and Cranberries: Dole Nutrition Institute
  • Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Sunflower Seeds: Dole Nutrition Institute
  • Cajun Deviled Eggs: dLife - It's YOUR Diabetes Life!
  • Perfect Pumpkin Pie: Dole Nutrition Institute
  • Apple pie with oatmeal cookie crust: Dole Nutrition Institute