Looking for some healthy inspiration for your holiday dinner this year? Look no further! We have taken some holiday classics and put a healthy spin on them to give you a healthier alternative to foods we all know and love.
Garlic cauliflower mash potatoes
INGREDIENTS
- 1 head cauliflower, broken into pieces
- ¼ onion
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
DIRECTIONS
- Steam cauliflower, onion and garlic for 10 minutes. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes.
- Place cauliflower, onion, garlic, butter and olive oil in a food processor. Add salt and pepper to taste. Process until smooth and creamy.
Serves 4
Nutritional analysis: calories 76, fat 7g, carbohydrates 4g, fiber 2g, protein 2g
Whole chicken
INGREDIENTS
- 2 carrots, peeled and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 parsnips, peeled and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 yellow onion, quartered
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 2 celery stalks
- 3 pound whole chicken
- Sea salt and freshly ground back pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Toss carrots, parsnips, onion with 1 tablespoon olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper, and spread evenly across the bottom of a large cast iron pan or large baking dish.
- Add celery into chicken cavity and season with sea salt and pepper.
- Brush 3 tablespoons olive oil over outside of chicken. Season with sea salt, pepper, and thyme. Place chicken on top of vegetables.
- Cook for 75 to 80 minutes.
- To check if chicken is done cooking, remove from the oven and insert an instant-read thermometer into the meat between the leg and the breast. The thermometer should read 165 degrees F.
- When chicken is cooked through, remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Serves 8
Nutritional analysis: calories 420, fat 20g, carbohydrates 9g, fiber 3g, protein 50g
Lightened up stuffing
INGREDIENTS
- 2 loaves of whole grain or sprouted grain bread
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 3 apples, peeled and diced
- 1 cup celery, diced
- ¾ cup walnuts
- 1 cup dry unsweetened cranberries
- ¼ cup fresh sage, finely chopped
- ¼ cup fresh thyme, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup water
- 3 organic eggs
DIRECTIONS
- Separate slices of bread and spread them out on the racks in your oven. Set at 250 degrees and allow to bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven, allow to cool and cut into 1-1 ½ “ cubes.
- Peel and dice onions and apples. Wash and dice celery.
- Combine diced apples, onions, celery with walnuts, cranberries and diced whole grain bread.
- Add in sage, thyme, salt, pepper, garlic and water. Mix thoroughly.
- Crack eggs into a separate bowl. Beat until even.
- Pour the mixture over the bread mixture and mix thoroughly. Test the mixture for moisture. The mixture should hold together when a handful is squeezed. If it appears too dry slowly add more water and continue to mix until the right consistency is achieved.
- Stuff turkey. If you have excess stuffing, it can be wrapped in aluminum foil and baked in the oven for 40 minutes.
- Remove stuffing from turkey and allow to cool for 10 minutes prior to serving.
Serves 24
Nutritional analysis: calories 192, fat6g, carbohydrates 31g, fiber 5g, protein 7g
Sweet roasted squash
INGREDIENTS
- 8 cups cubed butternut squash (peeled and seeded), about 3 lbs of peeled cubes (about 1 large squash)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 pinches cayenne
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 425 F.
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, add squash, olive oil, maple syrup, sea salt, cinnamon and cayenne. Mix together until squash cubes are evenly coated.
- Spread out the cubes on the baking sheets.
- Roast the squash for about 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.
- Broil for an additional 5 minutes.
Serves 6
Nutritional analysis: calories 110, fat 5g, carbohydrates 18g, fiber 3g, protein 1g
Healthy cranberry sauce
INGREDIENTS
- 2 bags (12 oz. each) of fresh or frozen cranberries
- ¾ cup freshly squeezed pineapple juice (no sugar added)
- ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce
- ½ cup of filted water
- Juice and zest of one orange
- 2-3 tablespoons of honey
DIRECTIONS
- Put cranberries, pineapple juice, applesauce and water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil.
- Keep on medium heat, stirring constantly until the cranberries start to explode (about 10-15 minutes).
- Reduce to a simmer and pour the orange juice and orange zest over the cranberry mixture.
- Simmer 10-15 minutes and remove from heat.
- Cool completely and store in fridge at least 4 hours but preferably overnight before serving.
- Add more honey if needed
Serves 12
Nutritional Analysis: calories 54, carbohydrates 11g, fiber 2g
Egg nog
INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups unsweetened almond milk
- 3 teaspoons vanilla bean powder
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- Nutmeg, for garnish
DIRECTIONS
- Heat 2½ cups almond milk in a medium saucepan. Add vanilla powder to milk and simmer over medium heat, until warm.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, coconut sugar and cornstarch until it turns light yellow.
- Gradually pour the hot milk mixture, about 1 cup at a time, into the egg mixture, whisking constantly (this is important, otherwise you’ll make scrambled eggs). Pour the mixture back into the pan.
- Place over medium heat and stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the eggnog begins to thicken, about 6-7 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the remaining ½ cup milk to stop the cooking.
- Allow mixture to cool and transfer to a pitcher. Chill until ready to serve.
Serves 8
Nutritional analysis: calories 100, fat 2g, carbohydrates 17g, protein 2g
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