The holidays are one of the hardest times for people to stay on track. We all have our favorite recipes that bring back memories of childhood and other past holiday gatherings.
That would be ok if it was just one day out of the year.
But, we have SO many gatherings and so many celebrations, which is great, but it can derail us.
So, we need to make some choices. Do we just throw it all to the wind and get back on the horse in January? Is it worth it? And, by the way, how has that worked for you so far? January seems VERY BLEAK if we think of it as a deprivation month.
Rather than doing that, how about making new traditions and keeping our holidays healthy! And we can turn our family and friends on to some healthy, delicious ideas at the same time!
Ok, here we go with items that you all have submitted.
SAVORY
Turkey! (You can use this seitan loaf for the Viva La Chix Tortilla Casserole too) I have made this Seitan before, and I love it. Does it taste like chicken or turkey… probably not, but I think it tastes better!!!
When I make the Seitan Loaf – these are the changes I’ve made – (and I usually make 2 loaves and freeze one.)
I omit the salt.
Instead of onion and garlic powder I use 1 small onion and 2 cloves of garlic processed in food processor. That is just a personal preference, however, if I was pushed for time I WOULD use the powders.
I used 1 tablespoon extra miso paste and 1 tablespoon of water instead of using bouillon powder.
Mashed Potatoes – This is not hard – Prepare your potatoes as you usually would (leave the skin on – that is where MOST of the nutrients are) and then substitute an alternate milk (Califia, Malk, Oat or Almond) and vegan butter (Miyoko) – Make sure the butter is the “European Style” and not the “Oat” butter. Big difference in ingredients. (I know that I usually don’t like to use “vegan” substitutes like the butter, but sometimes you just need that butter taste!) Remember, this is making our holidays healthier, it’s not our everyday cooking.
Green Beans – Well, I’m not sure what kind of green beans we were talking about here. But you can make a delicious green bean dish with very little effort. Here’s a recipe for Garlic Green Beans.
If you’re looking for a more traditional Green Bean Casserole, here is a good recipe. It is a bit more work, but hey, again, it’s the holidays. This recipe sounds so good, I may make it for Thanksgiving! If you’re making all the dishes yourself – opt for the easier dish, but if you’re bringing a side dish, this one gets my vote. – NOTE – I make Ezekiel breadcrumbs and keep them on hand, and you could use them in this recipe. Also, I would use whole wheat flour, because we are trying to keep our recipes healthy!
Cornbread Stuffing – I thought that maybe we could buy a cornbread stuffing mix that might be healthy enough, but I can’t find one, so here is a recipe where you have to make the cornbread yourself, but you can do that days or weeks ahead and freeze it until you’re ready. (I looked at Whole Foods and Sprouts to see if they had an already made cornbread with “clean” ingredients, but they didn’t!)
Cornbread and French Bread Stuffing On this one I would use whole grain French bread to combine with the cornbread and when you’re making the cornbread, use date sugar instead of white sugar and whole-wheat flour instead of white. I wouldn’t put the vegan sausage at all. It doesn’t even sound good!
Candied Yams – The recipe here was to mix brown sugar with water, boiling it and pouring it over the cooked yams before putting it in the oven to heat up. Then sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg on top.
You could do exactly the same recipe and just sub date sugar for the brown sugar and complete all the same steps. I love the idea of adding walnuts or pecans too!
Here is another recipe that sounds good, although I see that it doesn’t have any reviews, so beware! By the way, I’m not familiar with the date syrup she’s promoting, but I do like one that I bought on Amazon (I am NOT promoting it, just sharing a find.)
Ok, this is not savory, but it does go with the rest of the items! You can use the recipe on the back of the cranberries (make sure they’re organic – Trader Joe’s has them) and just sub date sugar for white sugar… Cup for Cup. Or use dates, like in this recipe!
SWEET
Ok, sweets can be our downfall. BUT we can enjoy healthy sweet treats when we sub out some ingredients and transform our super un-healthy dessert to something that we can eat without (too much) guilt!!!
Pumpkin Pie (this pie is great and if you’re having a crowd, go ahead and make it in a pie dish, but if it’s a small group and there are other desserts, I recommend making it in small, individual portions so you can keep the leftovers frozen and not have to defrost the whole pie each time.)
Hot Chocolate This recipe is for making a hot chocolate mix, so you don’t have to do it from scratch each time you want a cup of hot cocoa. I would use the unsweetened chocolate chips and add more coconut sugar. Remember, coconut sugar does count as “added sugar” so you don’t want to overdo on the hot cocoa. I don’t think date sugar would work for this recipe since it doesn’t melt. Also, ditch the marshmallows.
OTHER
I don’t like the “Just Eggs” that they’re using here. I use flax eggs in my baking (1 tablespoon flax meal mixed with 3 tablespoons water = 1 egg) but I have also heard that aquafaba (the liquid from a can of garbanzo beans) works even better. (I have not tried it yet.)
Also, I don’t like the milk alternative they’re calling for. You could use oat milk (less 2 tablespoons) and add in 2 tablespoons of coconut milk.
I would use whole wheat flour and I would use avocado oil.
I truly am not sure that this recipe would work. If this is a recipe that you have once a year at Christmas morning, I say just go for it and forget about trying to make it vegan.
Some things just don’t translate.
Tempeh Enchilada Pie This Enchilada Pie is a lot of steps, kind of like a lasagna, but you can prep the veggies ahead of time and that will save you a bit of effort. Totally optional – If you’re making your own enchilada sauce, or if you’re making a vegan cheese, make sure you do that ahead of time also.
Viva La Chix Tortilla Casserole
This is tricky because there are a number of things you need to prepare before you can start the recipe. Definitely a meal prep kind of dish.
To Life - To Health 