Side x Side Thankfulness

It's time for the big, all-you-can-eat, comfort food bash. Whatcha bringing to the table?  Some of y'all have your standbys that you grew up with.  Others will make dishes based on diets and allergies.  Whether this is your first time putting on the big dinner and you feel confident trying all new recipes or you're making the traditional dishes again this year, the Thanksgiving meal has become more than simply a turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce.

This year for our dinner we will have the best of both worlds - "combined comfort" is what I'm calling it. We will start with the usual deep-fried turkey that my guy cooks up and I'll make his favorite roasted garlic chorizo dressing. But the rest will be a challenge, as I plan to create sides and desserts that have all the flavor and pizazz that the family has come to expect, yet also be low glycemic/low fat to fit into my dietary regiment. I am not about to give up on the feeling of comfort that my all-time favorite holiday meal brings me, but at the same time, I don't plan on adding any extra pounds to the scale either!  I've worked too hard to get this far... I'm jus' sayin'!

Here's a few of the recipes I'll be making...

Roasted Green Beans and Mushrooms
(In place of the Green Bean/Cream of Mushroom Soup Casserole)

Preheat oven to 350
In a large zip-lock bag, place 4 cups of snipped green beans and 2 cups of mushrooms (cleaned and quartered). Pour 4 tbs. of good balsamic vinegar and 2 tbs. of olive oil into the bag. Shake to cover all. Spread out on a parchment-lined baking sheet and sprinkle a pinch of Kosher salt and 1 tsp. of Herbs de Provence over the top. Bake for 15 minutes or until roasted to your liking.



Coconut Pumpkin Panna Cotta
(Gives you a Pumpkin Pie fix without the guilt)

3 cups canned coconut milk
1 cup canned pumpkin puree (organic suggested)
1/2 cup coconut sugar (may use more if not sweet enough to your taste)
2 tsp. of vanilla extract, or 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
2 packets powdered gelatin (about 4 1/2 tsp.)
6 tbsp. (90ml) cold water
*Chopped dates and coconut to garnish

In a small bowl bloom the gelatin in the 6 tbsp. of water. Set aside.

In a large heavy pot, combine the milk, pumpkin, sugar and spices. Whisk with a wire whisk to combine them all. Taste to see if it is sweet enough - add more sugar or agave syrup as necessary. Bring to a simmer. When slight bubbles start to form on the outside of liquid, take off of heat. Stir in vanilla. Gently incorporate the "bloomed" gelatin and whisk until melted, making sure you have no lumps. Pour liquid into desired molds. Depending on your mold size you may have anywhere from 6-8 servings. Chill at least 4 hours before inverting on a plate and garnishing with chopped dates and coconut.

This next dish came to me this week from my friend Jette. She knows I am following a stricter diet and healthier lifestyle these days and thought I would be interested in this particular chef. His name is Chef Alain Braux. He is an amazing holistic nutritionist that really knows his stuff. He is a trained French chef that specializes in making gluten-free desserts from scratch. He is the Author of How to Lower Your Cholesterol with French Gourmet Food, Living Gluten and Dairy-Free with French Gourmet Food and Healthy French Cuisine for Less Than $10/Day.

I decided to try out his French pasta dish. I chose a quinoa pasta that was pretty bland. However, the sauce is so packed with flavor that the pasta was merely a vessel to hold the rich and flavorful sauce. Because the dish was so easy to make, I could see this as a delicious and easy alternative side to have on Thanksgiving Day. I also thought it would be a super quick dish to whip-up to have with some of that leftover turkey. Either way, I highly recommend you check out his site and try this tasty dish.

Provencal-Style Macaroni
By Chef Alain Braux
(This is a nice change from macaroni and cheese, and a lot healthier)

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cooking Time: 15 min.
This recipe is gluten-free. Can be made CF

INGREDIENTS
12 oz gluten-free macaroni
3 qt water
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 lb ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded or 1 can (28 oz) organic crushed tomatoes with basil
1 tbsp. Herbes de Provence blend
Sea salt and Pepper to taste
Parmesan or alternative cheese to sprinkle

PROCEDURE
1. In a large pot, cook your pasta al dente. Drain and rinse.
2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a pot. Sauté the onions and garlic with the salt until light brown. Add the crushed tomatoes with basil and the Herbes de Provence. Cook for 15 minutes until the flavors are well blended.
3. Add to pasta. Toss gently. Serve. Sprinkle with parmesan or alternative cheese.



Spicy Cranberry Walnut Compote

3 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup of dried cranberries
1 large orange (juice and zest)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. minced fresh ginger
1/4 tsp. chipotle powder
1/2 cup of coconut sugar
1/3 cup of water
1 tsp. vanilla (I used Mexican vanilla)

Combine all of the above (except for the vanilla) into a pan. Bring to a boil. As soon as the berries start to pop, lower heat to simmer. Simmer for 6 minutes until a thick consistency (to your liking) is made. Take off heat and add the vanilla. Store in mason jars or a beautiful serving bowl in your fridge until you are ready for your Thanksgiving meal. I plan on serving some of mine on a whole grain cracker with a smear of Laughing Cow cheese as an appetizer.

I know that salad is probably the last side you want on Thanksgiving when you have so many other sides to choose from. Try taking persimmons, those beautiful orange globes now in the super market's produce section, and add them to your spinach salad. My plan is to eat a larger portion of salad so that I only have room for a small piece of pie later. Learning all these tactics from Transitions has made these life changes for better living so much easier. Here's wishing y'all a very blessed Thanksgiving.

Restricted Recipe Project - Update 2

The Restricted Recipe Project is something that was started to help a couple deal with the realities of an extremely restrictive diet due to a medical situation. Not being able to use the everyday staples that we all take for granted can have an impact not only on the person that's on the diet, but also those that do the cooking. To read more about it, please click here. Here are more recipes from local food bloggers - Thanks is not enough for your generous helping hands in this challenge.






Submitted by EarlGreyTruffle

"This is such a lovely gesture of you. As I read over the lists I found myself asking questions about these seemingly healthy ingredients he can't have and the things that aren't even on the list, I feel so sorry for them! My recipe is simple and so easy I hope its not too plain. I cook this at least once a week for me and my boyfriend. The recipe can go two ways: roasted and savory, or fresh and light."

Roasted Garlic and Lemon Green Beans

Place a whole head or a few cloves, depending how much you like garlic, in a little wrap of tin foil. Roast in oven at 375 degrees until garlic is fragrant and mushes with slight pressure. Cut a lemon in half and place in glass dish and roast alongside garlic until golden(-er).

Take several servings of fresh green beans and blanche for just a few minutes. You can cook them to the level of crunch desired... we like them almost raw.

Once cooked, rinse with cold water and set aside.

Remove skins from garlic and piece apart the cloves until you have little chunks of garlicky goodness. Zest the roasted lemon halves. Mix garlic, zest and beans in a bowl. Squeeze one-half of lemon juice over the dish. ***Toss in a handful of chopped curly leaf parsley till it slightly wilts.

Alternatively, if you cannot roast the garlic or the lemon, try cooking the green beans the same way but lightly cook the garlic in the bottom of a skillet and toss the beans with fresh lemon zest and juice. This is a lighter, springier version of the above recipe and tastes awesome cold and is best eaten with fingers.

***NOTE: Parsley is high in potassium, and as that is one of the restrictions, use sparingly. If you still desire the herbal additive, cilantro, a close cousin of parsley, is significantly lower in potassium yet still delivers a similar texture.

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Submitted by Epicuriosities.com

On the list of allowable foods is quinoa which I just love. Originating in South America, the Incas considered quinoa to be a sacred crop. It contains essential amino acids that make it an unusually complete protein from the plant world. It is similar to rice or couscous but it is not a grain since it does not come from the grass family. It has a nutty flavor, is gluten free, and when cooked, the germ separates from the seed in a lovely curl.

A common cooking method is to treat quinoa much like rice, bringing two cups of water to a boil with one cup of grain, covering at a low simmer and cooking for 14–18 minutes or until the germ separates from the seed. The cooked germ looks like a tiny curl and should have a slight bite to it (like al dente pasta). As an alternative, one can use a rice cooker to prepare quinoa, treating it just like white rice (for both cooking cycle and water amounts).

Here is a tasty salad recipe using quinoa.

* 1/4 cup quinoa
* 1/4 chopped red pepper
* 1/4 cup bite sized pieces of snap peas
* 1/8 diced onion (or green onion)
* 1/8 cup fresh cherries or grapes

White Wine Vinaigrette Dressing

* 2 tbsp olive oil
* 2 tbsp white wine vinegar (or rice wine)
* 1 tsp Dijon mustard
* 1 tsp honey or agave
* Salt and pepper to taste


Preparation
Cook quinoa, cool and toss with red pepper, snap peas, onion, and cherries.

For white wine vinaigrette dressing, whisk together olive oil, white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and honey. Add salt and pepper. Mix 2 tbsp dressing (or more to taste) into salad.

I did not see peppers on the banned or allowed list so I am hoping the next recipe is something she can use as well. Capsaicin, which gives peppers their heat, is also believed to have a myriad of health benefits including fighting cancer and preventing heart disease. It is also a good way to spice up an otherwise bland diet.


Dried Chili Pickle Relish

* A good handful of dried chili peppers; anchos are great, but passilla or mulata will also work, as would any larger dried and not too spicy pepper (Great for homemade dried garden jalapenos!) Make sure to clean them off well.
* 1 large white onion, sliced into wedges
* 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
* 1/3 of a cup of white vinegar
* 1/3 of a cup of vegetable oil
* Salt as needed

1. Slice the chilis into narrow strips with a very sharp knife – or alternatively use kitchen scissors to cut them.
2. Mix all the ingredients together in a non-reactive bowl, season as needed with salt and let sit in the fridge overnight.
3. Serve as a table garnish. This goes very well with pretty much any Mexican meal you can think of – but is particularly well matched to grilled meats.

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Submitted by hilahcooking.com

"Hi, Kristina! This is an admirable project you are undertaking. My dad has diabetes and kidney failure as well (it's very hard to accept and I feel for your friends), and some of the things we figured out for him to do, generally, are to use vinegar instead of salt on things like green salad, cooked grain salads, and as a marinade for meat; and he also makes a lot of curries, which are great for someone who enjoys spicy foods. But, jeez, Carl has an even more restricted diet than my dad! No wonder your friend is asking for help."

Specifically, I made a really good chicken marinade last week that was: 1 c peach juice (prob could just use mashed or blended up peaches), 2 T veg oil, 1 T balsamic vinegar, and a T of worcestershire sauce and marinated chunked chicken breasts for several hours before grilling on skewers. Served with a cold chutney-like thing of fresh peaches, cilantro and lemon juice.

I also like to make main dish salads with cooked grains. Barley works really well, but so do quinoa and brown rice. Try this recipe:

Barley Salad
1 c barley, cooked in 2 c water 45 min
1 c diced apple
1 c diced roasted squash (prob would be good raw, too)
1 t pepper
1/2 c sliced green onion
Other things to add: spinach, cooked meat, lettuce

Dressing
1/4 c cider vinegar
2 T olive oil
1/2 t curry powder
1/2 t harissa paste
1/2 t toasted cumin seeds
1 T honey (or sugar sub or try without)

I also like to stir fry green beans in a super hot skillet in some oil and then add a bunch of garlic and red pepper flakes in the last 30 sec of cooking. Then add sesame oil (but maybe that is off limits to him as it's made from seeds? Though, seeds are not nuts and I didn't see anything about seeds so maybe sesame oil is something she can add to the pantry.)

Also if she finds that he CAN have sesame seeds, flax seeds and the like, I have made low-fat, cheese-less pesto with basil, sesame, garlic, oil and water and it's perfectly fine!

Oh! And a really good soup: 4 zucchini, 1/2 onion, 1 T butter, 1t dried thyme (or another herb), 1 t pepper. Cover with water, bring to boil, cook until vegetables are soft. Blend with immersion blender and season with lemon juice.


Cilantro Pesto
1 large bunch cilantro, large base stems removed
2 tomatillos
1 sprig basil (5-6 big leaves)
2 cloves garlic
1" cube ginger
1 jalapeno
1 T oil, olive or sesame
Put it all in the blender with enough water to make it smooth ( just a couple T probably)


Green Beans Giachni (not sure how to pronounce that. recipe came from the mother of an old student of my husband's)
1 med grated onion
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 lb green beans, stems removed and left whole
2 large zucchini, cut into big chunks (cut each into 4-5 pieces)
Olive oil (doesn't specify but I prob use 2-3 T)

Saute onion and parsley in oil about 5 minutes. Add everything else and pour about 1/2 cup water over. I think I usually cover it at this point and cook for about 30 minutes on medium heat. The recipe says 1-1.5 hours but that is too long in my opinion. I probably also add some fresh garlic with the onion, even though it's not called for. And sometimes lemon juice and crushed red pepper at the end. I've served this as a side dish and as a soup with some fresh bread.

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Submitted by NotThatMartha

"What a great idea to reach out to the foodies in this way. My thoughts are with this family, as that is a pretty dang challenging set of limits to work within. Here is a recipe I had on file for Baba Ganoush. I removed the tahini from the list and it is still great. He could have it on whole wheat pita... this was already on file, but I'll try to come up with a couple more."

Baba, my way

3 medium sized eggplant
olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic
2 T lemon juice
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375
Cut the eggplant in half, rub cut side with oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Put in oven and roast for 25-30 minutes, or until eggplant is super tender. Let them come to room temp before handling, no burns please. Using a regular kitchen spoon, scoop everything but the skin into the body of a food processor. (this sentence nearly read: scoop the flesh into the body of the ..., people could really get the wrong idea about this blog.) Drain off excess water. Add raw garlic and lemon juice. Pulse a couple of times to blend. Taste. Season with salt and pepper. Fresh oregano would be great with this. I like to serve this in a bowl topped with good olive oil and fresh pita bread.

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Submitted by rebeccammendations.com

"I hope this helps! I have several food allergies so I know what it's like to have dietary restrictions, but this list is so limiting! The fact that he can eat whole wheat really helps! I have a couple ideas. Both include whole wheat pasta."

Shrimp Scampi (chicken could be a substitute)- Recipe modified from this Food Network recipe

Ingredients

* 1 package of 100% whole wheat spaghetti
* 1 1/2 pound jumbo shrimp, shelled and deveined
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
* 2 teaspoons minced garlic
* 1/4 cup dry white wine
* 2 teaspoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
* 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes

Directions

1. Boil water according to the pasta package and the number of servings you will be making


2. Once the water has come to a boil, add pasta in and stir occasionally.


3. While the pasta is cooking, put the shrimp on a large pie pan or plate and pat them completely dry with a paper towel. Arrange the shrimp so they lay flat and are evenly spaced.


4. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. Add the unsalted butter or olive oil to the skillet.


5. When the foaming subsides, raise the heat to high, and invert the plate of shrimp over the pan so the shrimp fall into the pan all at once. Cook the shrimp, without moving them, for 1 minute. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute. Turn the shrimp over and cook for 2 minutes more. Transfer the shrimp to a bowl.


6. Return the skillet to the heat and pour in the white wine. Boil the liquid until slightly thickened, about 30 seconds. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Stir the parsley into the sauce.


7. Drain the pasta when cooked (soft) and divide onto plates. Add shrimp on top of each pasta serving. Pour the sauce over the shrimp, season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste and toss to combine.


8. Enjoy!

Sesame Pasta

1. Cook 100% whole wheat linguini and drain.
2. Toss pasta with sesame oil, soy sauce, scallions, crushed red pepper, and toasted sesame seeds.
3. Voila! Serve hot or cold.