Thanksgiving Dinner
While it may be associated with opulent feasts, roast turkey is actually a healthy food when it’s prepared well. Here are some ways that turkey is a healthy superfood, and how to prepare it to get the most health benefits out of it.
1 – Choose skinless turkey. Turkey skin has a lot of fat. Whole turkeys are not sold with the skin off, but you can remove the skin before or after roasting. Skinless breasts and cutlets are best.
2 – Protein is important to a healthy diet, especially lean protein. Turkey is an excellent source of protein without the saturated fat of red meats or other protein sources, such as cheese.
3 – Vitamins abound in turkey. B vitamins, zinc and potassium are the most prevalent vitamins. These are essential for cardiovascular health, nerve function, disease prevention, and immune system function.
4 – Choose organic, free-range turkey whenever possible. This ensures that the nutrients are high, and organic turkeys will not contain antibiotics or hormones. Continue reading
There are many misconceptions about stuffing. Everybody’s favorite Thanksgiving side, but how often do we eat it on regular non-turkey days?
First, let’s get clear. There’s no reason to limit your Thanksgiving stuffing recipe to that signature box with a bag of croutons and spice seasoning inside. You can absolutely make stuffing from scratch using your own bread from the kitchen and lots of other delicious ingredients in a variety of combinations.
The other thing is, lots of people moan and complain that there’s never any stuffing left over. It’s pretty easy to make more! All you have to do is get in the habit of thinking about stuffing and making sure to have some on hand anytime you cook roasted meat and want some delicious, stick to your ribs comfort sides to go along with it.
Let’s start by detailing foods you might find in your refrigerator that will go great in your stuffing: Continue reading
Lots of people love mashed potatoes. You might be stuck on your mom’s traditional recipe. But make no mistake, there are many different potato mashes to be had. First, just forget the idea of taking potato sponge out of a box, adding water and bringing this weird reconstituted potato powder to life in a pot on your stove.
Potatoes aren’t expensive, and fresh ones from the store or your local Farm market will make a nice mashed potato side for your next fall or winter meal. Best potatoes to make mashed potatoes are Yukon Gold but any old standard potatoes will do.
Russet potatoes work. Plain old Eastern potatoes do the job also. One type of potato that doesn’t really hold up as well as the red skinned potato. You can try it, but the consistency is a bit wrong. You might have better success baking this potato instead of boiling it. Continue reading
Lots of people do Thanksgiving and fall recipes by the books. That includes the ubiquitous green bean casserole with the creamy mushroom soup. The standard recipe for this is probably written on the back of a packet of green beans or perhaps printed on a can of cream of mushroom soup. However, that shouldn’t stop you from being creative and just winging your own green bean casserole.
Essential ingredients to include:
- Green beans
- Mushrooms
- Creamy soup like cream of mushroom or cream of chicken
- Milk
- Soy sauce
- Fried onions
Let’s talk about ingredients some more, it’s okay to put your own spin on this and get creative! Continue reading
