Batter Up...Almost Time for Thanksgiving!

I must say the eve before Thanksgiving eve...I'm getting pretty excited!  I love getting together with friends and family.  I love the smells in the kitchen, I love cooking new recipes for my loved ones to try....I just love all of it!  Some of our dear friends, Greg and Wendy Fry, are coming home with us for Thanksgiving.

The Frys and the Smiths- at our watering hole, Pub 71

Mrs. Wendy Fry is our resident vegan and a foodie just like me!  I've deemed this year's Thanksgiving, "Vegan meets Southern Cooking."  I am bringing two dishes to my mother-in-laws Thanksgiving lunch- both vegan friendly! Recipe 1:  Home made cranberry sauce with walnuts and green apples.  Recipe 2: Roasted brussel sprouts with pomegranates.  Yum.

Recipe Courtesy of Food Network

The original Bobby Flay (loooooove him) recipe calls for Vanilla Pecan Butter to be added at the very end.  While I think the words 'vanilla' and 'butter' sound FABULOUS together, I am going to omit those two and make this a vegan-friendy Wendy-friendly dish

Recipe:

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed
• 3 tablespoons EVOO
• 3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
• Seeds from 1 pomegranate
• 1 lime, finely zested
• 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Place the Brussels sprouts in a medium roasting pan and toss with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until lightly golden brown, 20 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven, add the pomegranate molasses and stir to combine. Return to the oven and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes longer.  Transfer the sprouts to a large bowl, add the pomegranate seeds and lime and orange zests. Transfer to a platter and ENJOY! =)

I cannot WAIT to try this. I LOVE the color combination of the red pomegranates and the green Brussels! Very festive..

Recipe courtesy of Food Network

The second recipe I'm planning to make is an old favorite with a new twist!  I used to think that 'cranberry sauce' always came out of a can.  Sometimes my mom would forget to set out the cranberry until right as we were sitting down to eat.  She'd yell, "CRAP- THE CRANBERRY!  Somebody grab a can opener and get it out here!" :)  Last year I made this Barefoot Contessa recipe, and it turned out fabulous! This year I think I'll make 1 or 2 healthy swaps!

Recipe: 

• 1 (12-ounce) bag of fresh cranberries, cleaned
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
• 1 orange, zest grated and juiced
• 1 lemon, zest grated and juiced
• 3/4 cup raisins
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

*I think I will substitute Agave Nectar  for the sugar (sheesh....1.75 cups of sugar??)  Also, I think I will omit the raisins simply to reduce sugar even more.  I prefer my cranberry sauce a little more on the tart side.  As Claire Robinson of 5 Ingredient Fix says, "BYOC."  That means, Be Your Own Chef...make changes, substitute...you are the boss afterall! 

Anyways- here's what you do:  Cook the cranberries, sugar, and 1 cup of water in a saucepan over low heat for about 5 minutes, or until the skins pop open. Add the apple, zests, and juices and cook for 15 more minutes. Remove from the heat and add the raisins and nuts. Let cool, and serve chilled.

This year's recipes along with Wendy's vegan pumpkin pie (stay tuned on a blog post about that later- yum!) and the mother-in-laws fabulous southern cooking....this will definitely be a Thanksgiving to Remember! :)

p.s. Take a look at my friend's blog about taking back control of Thanksgiving!  Great ideas on how to handle the mass amounts of calories: BLOG: Pieces of Me

Gobble gobble....