Thanksgiving Menu 2010: Grateful for the bounty

Thanksgiving 2010 Menu

Fall Butternut Squash Soup

Nana's Whole Wheat Crescent Rolls

Nama's Armenian Pilaf

Green Bean Casserole

Southwestern Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

Mary's Free-Range Herb Roasted Turkey

Wild Rice & Goat Cheese Stuffing

Pomegranate-Pear Cranberry Sauce

Pumpkin Tiramisu

Nana's Blueberry Pie

Vanilla Ice Cream

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because it's a chance to celebrate two things I love: family and food. At the Gilmore Home, preparing the Thanksgiving feast is just as much fun as eating it because we all get together to prep and cook together. This year our table will be filled with our family, my parents, Ericlee's parents, my brother and sister-in-law and niece, a cousin and her baby and any of my hubby's students who are brave enough to join the party.

Our healthy journey over the last several years has meant seeking out and creating new healthy versions of Thankgiving faves. We've tackled our menu little by little, one dish at a time. Last year we ditched the traditional sweet potatoes with marshmallow sugar overload and added a Sweet Potatoes dish with Pomegranate & Mint. This year I'm serving up a new spin on sweet potatoes that I learned from my friend Sam Jessup at our church's "Taste of Friendship" event a few weeks ago. His Southwestern Roasted Sweet Potato Salad has a memorable Chipotle pepper kick. It's also a great addition because it can be made a few days ahead and still maintains that pop of flavor and healthy ingredients.

The biggest change or step we took this year was ordering a turkey through Whole Foods. Ericlee did a little research and found out that these cage-free birds are from a local Sanger family. Mary's Free Range Turkeys eat a vegetarian diet. They never have antibiotics or hormones. No preservatives are added to them. The little brochure explains, "Mary's Free Range Turkeys are raised the old fashioned way: with plenty of space. In the sunny San Joaquin Valley of California, the turkeys are humanely raised by allowing them to roam in a stress-free environment. With cleaner living quarters, a healthier and happier turkey is grown resulting in a wonderful taste." Sounded impressive to us. The cost was only $1.99/pound - We thought it would be much more.

Maybe you're like me and you're already skipping ahead to all the creative ideas you can employ with turkey after Thanksgiving. Here are some of my fave Thankgiving Leftovers options. This year I'm going to try out Turkey Mole - a recipe from my chef friend Willie Bezemer. I can hardly wait for the meal after Thanksgiving!

Leave us a comment. What's new or traditional on your menu this year? How are you using local ingredients to celebrate?

Thanksgiving Makeover: Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Pomegranate & Mint

Our family loves all the Thanksgiving traditions. We love food, football and family. We love a chance to contemplate our country's beginnings and an opportunity to share our abundance with others. However, we have discovered through the years that we don't really like the comatose state that follows the Big Turkey Meal. The last couple of years we have been on a journey to find more locally-focused, healthy-inspired versions of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes. One stipulation is we were not willing to compromise on taste. We believe that feasting once in a while is not only good it's Biblical. Celebration with family and community is important to us. We just want our food choices to reflect our lifestyle.

Tomorrow morning we will be running the Annual Turkey Trot in Fresno. This is a family tradition we've continued for many years to start out our big Turkey Day with exercise and celebrating community. This year I will be running the 5k with my dad and Ericlee and the girls will be cheering us on with Nana Maria. After our meal we also take a family walk through the neighborhood and say hello to friends. We indulge in the color show presented by the fall leaves.

When it comes to holiday foods, it's all about baby steps. The first year we tried this we added a homemade Green Bean Casserole to our Thanksgiving and tried out our Banana Pumpkin Muffin recipe, which can be used for a bread or a dessert at the meal. Last year we wrote all about that experience.

This year we are sharing the cooking duties with my mom and mother-in-law. For dinner, our family is contributing our traditional Butternut Squash Soup, Green Bean Casserole and a shazam appetizer we made in our Cooking Club a few years back - Baked Brie with Dried Cranberries and Pecans with Whole Grain Crackers. We even convinced Ericlee's mom to make the stuffing with whole wheat bread - major milestone!

Our poll at the right suggests some of you are interested in a "makeover" version of sweet potatoes. We're actually ditching sweet potatoes this year as we minimized the number of dishes are serving for 6 adults and 2 kids. However, this is a dish I make throughout the winter months when sweet potatoes are ripe in the garden or at the market. You won't find marshmallows and brown sugar in this one but you will find some other secret ingredients to wow your guests. Buon Appetito!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Pomegranate & Mint

Ingredients:
1/3 cup maple syrup
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 pounds red-skinned sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
1/2 cup fresh pomegranate seeds (arils)
Chopped fresh mint, for garnish

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, combine maple syrup, olive oil and salt.
3. Put cut potatoes into a 3-quart baking dish or 9x13 dish. Pour maple syrup mixture over the potatoes. Toss to coat.
4. Cover with tin foil and bake for about 40 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
5. Uncover potatoes and stir. Bake an additional 30 minutes.
6. Sprinkle pomegranate seeds on top with chopped mint. Serve.

Turkey Leftovers: So Many Options, So Many Choices

The big Turkey Day is coming and it's time to rev up those menus. I've been perusing food magazines and recipe files for weeks for new healthy spins on the traditional Thanksgiving dishes. But to be honest my fave part of this holiday is not the Thanksgiving meal at all; it's what I get to create with all the lovely leftovers. Since some of you will probably be shopping and making your menus in the next few days, consider a few extra ingredients for these "Luscious Leftover" dishes.

Last year, we turned our leftover turkey and veggies into Turkey-Lime Tortilla Soup. Don't throw that turkey carcass away. I know, I know, some of you are flinching because I just said the word carcass. Making turkey stock isn't as hard as you think. It's basically throwing all the bones from the turkey carving into a pot and adding a few spices. This is a great money-saving tip as well. If the turkey-lime flavors are not your style, you can use the turkey stock for any of your favorite soups.

This year I want to try out a Turkey Pot Pie and a White Bean Turkey Chili. Both of these are great opportunities to use leftover turkey and fresh vegetables with a healthy twist. I've been working up this pot pie recipe for a few weeks now. I love homemade crust. This whole wheat crust is great during winter when oranges are in season. If you want to save time, pick up some ready-made pie crusts from the freezer section at Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. The key to this pie is using the vegetables and ingredients that are in season. For winter, broccoli, potatoes and carrots are a great choice. In summer, try corn or zuchinni. In spring, break out the fresh peas or asparagus.

Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey Pot Pie

Ingredients:

Crust: (Best if made ahead; should be enough for two pie crusts or the top & bottom of an 8x8 Pyrex dish for pot pie)
-2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1 cup + 1/2 tablespoon organic butter
-2 teaspoons grated orange peel
-1/4 cup cold orange juice
-1 tablespoon cold water

Filling:
-1/3 cup organic butter
-1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
-1 teaspoon salt
-1/4 teaspoon black pepper
-1/2 teaspoon paprika
-1/4 teaspoon chipotle powder (or chili powder or red pepper flakes, depending on how much spice you desire)
-1 teaspoon parsley
-1 3/4 cups organic cage-free chicken broth
-2/3 cup raw milk
-1/2 cup onions, chopped
-2 garlic cloves, minced
-2 cups turkey or chicken, shredded and cooked
-1 cup carrots (or diced potatoes or corn), chopped
-1 cup broccoli, chopped (or peas)
-1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Prepare pie crusts. If making the homemade crust, measure out flour and salt. Cut butter into dry mixture and use pastry blender or large fork to blend until forms pea-sized balls.
2. Add orange peel, water and orange juice and mix together until dough can be formed into two large discs. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
3. Chop and prepare all vegetables.
4. Heat oven to 425 degrees.
5. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Stir in paprika, chipotle pepper and parsley. Cook until mixture bubbles (approximately 2-3 minutes).
6. Stir in broth and milk. Heat to boiling and stir continuously for one minute.
7. Stir in turkey, cheese and vegetables. Remove from heat.
8. Roll out pie crusts into shape of your pot pie dish. (I like to use an 8x8 pyrex but you can use a round, deep pie dish or double the recipe and use a 9x13 for a larger family or leftovers.)
9. Ease pastry into dish and line edges. Pour in filling.
10. Top with second pie crust and turn edges of pastry under or flute. (Hint: Even if your pie crust is crumbly or doesn't lay perfectly on top you can still use it. Just dump all the crust & crumbs on top of your pie.)
11. Bake about 35 minutes or until golden brown on top.