Your New Healthy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is only ONE WEEK AWAY .. crazy to think how fast this year has been flying by! I've been oogling over all the beautiful recipes out there in the world while working on this year's menu collab with Barre3, the Portland based studio and wellness magazine.

The flavors and traditions of this holiday are limitless, heart warming, nostalgic and .. usually, along with your gratitude, you leave you feeling utterly stuffed. Keeping in line with the Barre3 rules of balancing FAT, FIBER and PROTEIN I've created a menu that can help you avoid that feeling, while keep it healthy AND delicious.

If you recall, last year I created the Barre3 DIY Thanksgiving Pies and the Autumn Greens Panzanella Salad and due to them being such a hit on the table last year, we decided to keep them on the spread as a classic along with a few new staples. Mix a few of these new healthy recipes in with your family recipes passed down from generation to generation for a beautiful, timeless and healthy holiday.

Here is how we set our table this year .. perhaps it will ignite and inspire a bit of your holiday menu planning! 

Autumn Greens Panzanella Salad – The first thing you’ll notice about this nutrient-rich salad is that it’s absolutely stunning, thanks to the colorful pop of pomegranate seeds and sweet potatoes against the dark leafy greens. The next thing you’ll notice? That it’s absolutely delicious.

Savory Roasted Root Mash – One taste of this savory, creamy blend of parsnips and celery root, and you may never make mashed potatoes again.

Sausage, Kale + Pecan Stuffing – The sausage, kale, leeks, and onions make this stuffing gloriously hearty, while the pecans and dried cherries round it out with just the right amount of sweetness.  

B3 Skillet Cornbread – Made with stone ground cornmeal, almond flour and coconut milk, this cornbread is both gluten and dairy free. The slight sweetness of the cornmeal is the perfect complement to Thanksgiving’s savory flavors.

Honey-Orange Cranberry Sauce – Cranberries, one orange, and honey. That’s all that goes into this simple cranberry sauce, and yet the perfectly tangy flavor makes it one of the highlights of the meal. It needs to chill for at least six hours, so it’s the ideal make-ahead recipe.

DIY Pumpkin Pie – In the barre3 spirit of Make It Your Own, this recipe is designed so you can choose your own filling. It’s delicious as a traditional pumpkin pie, but the almond-oat crust works just as well with apples, chocolate—you name it! 

A Sunday for Pancakes

I love Sundays for their silence.  For the morning light that creeps in through the blinds, the ability to nestle in the sheets a bit longer and regenerate and the extra time to sit with a cup(s) of coffee and make something simple, yet delicious.

I extend the last few sips of my coffee for as long as I can, which means I'm still working on the cup from breakfast this morning as I sit down to type, not to mention in a new favorite mug that has a skateboarding cat riding a path into the mountains, next to a lake surrounded by trees and under the big sunny sky. New staple mug. 

After devouring our pancakes, we kept repeating that this really was "the best pancake recipe ever" and I realized I should probably not keep those things to myself, but share them with you and let you experience their deliciousness as well. I hope you find as much joy in them as we do on a lazy and glorious simple Sunday morning. 

Best Pancake Ever

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c heavy cream, milk or nut milk

• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

• 1 c all-purpose flour or gluten free all-purpose flour

• 2 tbsp coconut sugar or organic cane sugar

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 large farm egg

• 2 tbsp melted unsalted butter

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• dash of cinnamon

• extra butter for cooking

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine heavy cream or milk and apple cider vinegar and let sit to sour.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

3. Add egg to heavy cream, melted butter, vanilla and cinnamon and whisk to combine.

4. Slowly combine cream into flour and gently whisk until smooth consistency.

5. Add a dab of butter to hot cast iron skillet. Once melted, using an ice cream scoop, measure one full scoop of batter and pour into center of pan and let sit. Once bubbles form, quickly flip. After 30 seconds, use the back of the spatula to gently press and cook until lightly browned on both sides.

6. Add another small dab of butter and continue with remaining batter.

7. Finish with your personal choice of powdered sugar, maple syrup, honey and yogurt, fruit compote, etc. Possibilities are endless, but I like to keep it simple and sweet.