OUR T h a n k s g i v i n g M e n u Buttercup Squash and Pear Soup Sage Butter Roasted Turkey with Apple Cider Gravy Whole Grain Lentil Stuffing Cranberry Orange Sauce Spiced Mashed Sweet Potatoes Coconut Curry Cauliflower Apple Cinnamon Glazed Donuts Pecan Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin Pie Chia Pudding Hazelnut Nutella Frozen Torte Happy Thanksgiving! Love Bonnie and Briar
Buttercup Squash and Pear Soup 1 tablespoon unsalted butter 2 yellow onions, chopped 1 carrot, chopped 1 tablespoon cinnamon 2 medium buttercup squash 5-6 pears, cored and chopped 2 teaspoons sea salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 4 cups water Preheat oven to 425 F. Cut off the bottom of the squash, remove the seeds. Bake cut side down for roughly 45 mins until soft. Remove from oven and let cool. Warm butter in large stockpot over low heat. Add the onions, carrot and pears uncovered for approximately 10 minutes until they are tender. Sprinkle in cinnamon to the sauté. Stir occasionally, scraping the bottom of the pot. Once squash is cool enough to handle, scoop out and add to the pot with onions, pear and carrot. Add water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Process the soup through a food mill or puree in blender or food processor. Enjoy.
Sage Butter-Roasted Turkey with Cider Gravy Two quintessential autumn ingredients sage and cider flavor this turkey-gravy combo. Turkey: 3 tablespoons coarse kosher salt 1 tablespoon dried rubbed sage 1 16-to 18-pound turkey, rinsed, patted dry; neck, heart, and gizzard reserved for Turkey Stock 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter 1/4 cup chopped fresh sage 3/4 cup fresh refrigerated apple cider Gravy: 2 cups (or more) Turkey Stock or low-salt chicken broth 3/4 cup fresh refrigerated apple cider 2 tablespoons spelt flour 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage Turkey: Rub salt and dried sage together in small bowl. Place turkey in roasting pan; sprinkle all over with sage salt. Cover pan with plastic wrap; chill turkey overnight. Set rack at lowest position in oven and preheat to 375 F. Pat turkey dry. Tuck wing tips under; tie legs together loosely. Stir butter and chopped sage in small saucepan over low heat until butter melts. Brush all over turkey; sprinkle with pepper. Roast turkey 1 hour; baste with any pan juices. Reduce oven temperature to 350 F. Roast turkey 45 minutes. Pour 3/4 cup apple cider over; turn pan around. Continue to roast turkey until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 165 F, basting and turning pan occasionally for even cooking, about 11/4 hours longer. Transfer turkey to platter; tent loosely with foil and let rest 30 to 45 minutes (internal temperature will rise 5 to 10 degrees). Gravy: Pour all pan juices into large measuring cup. Spoon off fat that rises to surface. Transfer 2 tablespoons fat to heavy large saucepan; discard remaining fat. Place turkey roasting pan over 2 burners. Add 2 cups stock or broth and 3/4 cup cider. Bring to boil over high heat, scraping up browned bits. Boil liquid until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 6 minutes. Add mixture from roasting pan to degreased pan juices. If necessary, add enough stock to measure 3 1/2 cups stock mixture. Place saucepan with turkey fat over medium-high heat. Add spelt flour; whisk 2 minutes. Whisk in stock mixture. Boil until gravy thickens enough to coat spoon thinly, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Happy Thanksgiving!
Whole Grain Bread and Lentil Stuffing with Turkey Sausage and Sage Servings 6-8 servings 1 tablespoon pure olive oil 8 ounces all natural turkey sausage (without any added sugar or fillers) 1 small onion diced 2 stalks celery diced 3 cloves garlic minced 2 cups whole Challenge Friendly bread crumbs 2 cups cooked brown lentils 2-3 cups low-sodium chicken stock 1 tablespoon fresh sage chopped Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Sauté the sausage, onion, and celery in the olive oil in a large deep sauté pan for 7-10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more. Turn off the heat and add the breadcrumbs, lentils and sage. Stir to mix. Pour half the stock in and mix well. Pour the other half of the stock in, mix gently and transfer to a casserole dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until top is crusty and inside is soft and moist. TIPS AND NOTES: Add apples or walnuts for some sweetness and crunch. Cut the bread into bigger or smaller pieces depending on the texture you like in your stuffing. If you like it extra thick, mash half of the lentils before adding them in to the mix. Ezekiel breads by Food for Life are great sprouted whole grain breads and a great Challenge Friendly option.
Cranberry Orange Sauce 1 pint cranberries 2 cups 100% orange juice (for sweetness) The zest of one orange 2 cinnamon sticks 1/2 teaspoon whole cloves 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 2 tablespoons apple butter Combine all of the ingredients in a sauce pan. Bring the sauce to a boil and then reduce heat to medium. Allow the sauce to simmer until thickened, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly and taste. Add more apple butter if it tastes to tart. Remember most traditional cranberries sauces have almost 2 cups of white sugar, so the Challenge Friendly version will not be that sweet but now you will actually be able to taste CRANBERRIES!! lol Happy Thanksgiving!
Spiced Mashed Sweet Potatoes 6 sweet potatoes 1/2 cup coconut milk 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger Pinch nutmeg Instructions: Peel and boil the sweet potatoes until tender (cut them into smaller pieces to make them cook more quickly), then drain and place in a bowl. Mash until desired consistency is reached. Add in cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, sea salt, and coconut milk. Mix and serve warm!
Coconut Curry Cauliflower 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil 4 cups cauliflower florets 2 cups coconut milk, canned 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes Sea salt to taste Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a small skillet, sauté garlic in oil over medium-low heat for 1 minute. Combine remaining ingredients, and add to a medium casserole dish. Bake cauliflower until tender, about 25-30 minutes Serve immediately.
Apple Cinnamon Glazed Donuts Donut: 1 cup spelt flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 1/3 cup apple butter mixed with 2 tablespoons water 1 egg beaten 1/3 cup almond milk 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted 1 tsp vanilla extract Glaze: 1 can coconut milk (refrigerated overnight) 1 teaspoon apple butter cinnamon (optional) Preheat oven to 375 ºF. Coat donut tray with small amount of cocnut oil. In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Combine the apple butter, egg, oil, almond milk, and vanilla and mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill donut tray half full, bake at 375ºF for 15 mins and transfer to wire rack. Spoon glaze over top of donuts, and place in refrigerator to set. Glaze will soften with the heat of the donuts! Glaze: Carefully open can, and scoop out thicker, white coconut cream that has risen to the top. Reserve remaining coconut water for smoothie or another recipe. Beat coconut cream and apple butter on high roughly 3-4 minutes until thick. This icing is great for any cake or cupcake!
Pecan Pumpkin Pie Crust 1/2 cup ground pecans 1/2 cup ground walnuts or hazelnuts 3/4 cup spelt flour 2 tablespoons melted butter, or coconut oil 2 tablespoons apple butter 2 tablespoons pure orange juice 3-4 tablespoons water For crust, grease a 9 inch pie plate. Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Combine butter, apple butter and orange juice and slowly add to dry ingredients with your hands or a fork. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time and mix until moist and crumbly. Press nut mixture evenly into the bottom and sides of prepared pie plate. Bake for 5 minutes and remove to cool. Filling 2 eggs 2 cups pumpkin puree (just pumpkin) 1 cup date or apple butter ½ cup coconut milk (from the can) 1 tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp ground nutmeg ½ tsp ground ginger Preheat oven to 425ºF. Beat eggs lightly in medium bowl. Add pumpkin, date butter, coconut milk, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Beat until completely smooth. Pour filling in crust and bake for 15 mins. Take out, add pecans (from below) turn temperature down to 350ºF bake another 35-40 mins or until knife comes out clean. Pecan Topping 1 cup pecans 1 tablespoon melted butter or coconut oil 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon Add everything together, combine.
Pumpkin Pie Chia Pudding (Serves 6) 1 can coconut milk, 398ml 2 cups cooked or canned pureed pumpkin 8 Medjool dates (12 regular pitted dates) ½ cup unsweetened almond, cashew or rice milk 2 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp ginger 1 tsp nutmeg 1/2 tsp allspice Pinch of sea salt 1/2 cup chia seeds Blend together all ingredients except chia seeds until very smooth. Pulse in chia seeds so they're well distributed, then pour into jars or bowls, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight. Top with coconut whipped cream! Enjoy. Coconut Whipped Cream 1 Can Coconut Milk 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract Flavour Options Lemon Extract Mint Extract Powdered Stevia Cocoa Powder Place can of coconut milk in the refrigerator overnight to separate the coconut cream from the oil. Open can and scrape only the thick coconut cream from the top half of the can. Use a hand held mixer to whip until it is the consistency of whip cream. Stop occasionally to scrape down the sides. Add vanilla or other flavour options if you want to change it up. Enjoy!
Hazelnut Nutella Frozen Torte serves 8 10 Crust 1/2 cup almonds 1/2 cup cacao powder 8 dates, soaked until soft Place all ingredients in food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Press into 7-inch spring form pan. Set aside. Filling 2 avocados 1/2 cup hazelnut butter (or almond butter) 1 cup almond milk 1/2 cup cacao powder 1/2 cup date butter (or ½ hot water blended with 12-15 dates until smooth) 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/4 teaspoon sea salt Place all ingredients in food processor or high-speed blender. Blend until smooth. Pour over crust and freeze until set. Ganache 6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted 4 tablespoons date butter 4 tablespoons cocoa powder pinch of fine grain sea salt, to taste Topping ½ cup chopped hazelnuts Place all ganache ingredients in blender and blend on low until smooth, scraping down the sides. Pour over partially frozen cake and top with chopped hazelnuts. Freeze until set. Then place in the fridge for a few hours to soften before serving. Store left overs in the fridge.