Nothing says Thanksgiving like the Thanksgiving dishes served at the table with your friends and family. But what about if you’re trying to be healthy or have certain dietary needs? It can be a little more difficult to find foods to enjoy on this holiday. So we’ve collected some great healthy recipes in those circumstances. From green beans to sweet potato pie, these Thanksgiving dishes will be great if you have certain dietary needs or are just trying to stay healthy this Thanksgiving.
Buttered Green Beans With Shallots and Lemon
Option: Gluten-Free
Ingredients:
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- 2 cups shallots, thinly sliced lengthwise
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 pounds green beans, trimmed
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 lemon, halved
Directions
- Heat 1/2 inch oil in a small skill over medium heat. When oil shimmers, carefully add 1/3 cup shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally with a fork, until just golden and bubbles stop forming rapidly around shallots, two to three minutes. (They will darken and crisp as they cool; do not let darken in oil, or they will taste bitter.) Transfer to paper towels, season with salt, and let stand until cool and crisp. Continue frying remaining shallots in batches.
- Combine beans, butter, and 1/2 cup water in a large straight-sided skillet; season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high, then cook, tossing frequently, until water evaporates, butter begins to brown, and beans are vibrant green and crisp-tender, eight to ten minutes. (If water evaporates too quickly, add more, a few tablespoons at a time.)
- Transfer beans to a serving platter and squeeze lemon over top. Serve, with shallots alongside, or top with shallots just before serving.
Purple Sweet Potato Pie
Option: Gluten-free
Ingredients for the pie crust:
- 1 cup tiger nut or almond flour
- 2/3 cup coconut flour
- 1/3 cup arrowroot starch, tapioca flour, or potato starch
- 1/2 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
- 1/4 cup softened butter, ghee, or melted coconut oil
- 8 tablespoons ice water
- 1 egg, lightly beaten (don’t overmix)
Ingredients for the sweet potato pie filling:
- 3 cups pureed purple sweet potato (about 1 1/2 sweet potatoes)
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk, or canned coconut milk
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon cardamom powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice (apple cider vinegar works too)
- 1/2 teaspoon pink salt
Instructions for making the crust:
- Add your nut flour of choice, coconut flour, arrowroot flour or starch of choice, and salt to a food processor or stand mixer.
- Mix flour until combined and any chunks are smoothed out – you’ll have to scrape down the sides periodically.
- Begin adding oil and water one tablespoon at a time, continuing to mix between tablespoons. First, pea-sized beads will form and as you add, the dough should begin coming together.
- Once you have added all the oil and water, add the lightly beaten egg and it should all come together in one big chunk.
- Take the dough in your hands and smoosh it into a ball, them form a disk.
- Wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze for one hour, then move it to the refrigerator.
Instructions for making the pie:
- Poke holes in the sweet potatoes using a fork and roast at 450°F for 35 to 40 minutes in the oven until soft and sugars start bubbling out of the holes.
- Allow the sweet potatoes to cool enough to handle. The skin should easily peel away from the flesh. You can eat it or toss it.
- Heat the oven to 400°F.
- Place the potato flesh in a blender along with the rest of the filling ingredients.
- Remove the pie crust from the refrigerator and cut it in half (save the other half for another pie – you can freeze it for up to a month). It’s a little crumbly, so smoosh it with your fingers into a pie dish until you get a thin (but not too thin) and even crust, and crimp the edges with the side of a fork.
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into the pie crust and smooth it with a spatula so it has a pretty, swirly finish.
- Bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 400°F, then lower the temperature to 325°F and bake an additional 30 minutes, until it doesn’t jiggle when shaken.
- Allow the pie to cool for at least one hour before serving. It’s best served chilled from the fridge, so I advise making it in the morning or even the night before.
- Top with berries, passion fruit, or coconut whip cream.
Vegan Creamed Spinach
Option: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 14-oz package silken tofu, drained
- 1/4 cup grapeseed, vegetable, or other neutral oil
- 8 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 3″ piece ginger, peeled, finely grated
- 1 chile (such as serrano or Fresno), thinly sliced
- 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 4 bunches mature spinach (about 2lb), trimmed, torn into large pieces
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Purée tofu in a blender until smooth and the consistency of heavy cream. Transfer to a small bowl.
- Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook scallions, stirring occasionally, until softened, about three minutes. Add ginger, chile, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is softened and mixture is fragrant, about two minutes. Working in batches, add handfuls of spinach, letting it wilt slightly before adding more and stirring occasionally, until all the spinach is in the pan. Cover and cook until spinach is wilted and bright green, about three minutes. Uncover and reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in tofu mixture and cook until warmed through, about two minutes. Taste and season with salt.
Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Garlic Pesto
Option: Dairy-free
Ingredients for the Potatoes:
- 1 1/2 pounds baby gold/yellow potatoes
- 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch each sea salt and black pepper
Ingredients for the Pesto:
- 2 cups loosely packed fresh basil, large stems removed
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 3 Tbsp raw pine nuts or walnuts
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 1/2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2-3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper
Instructions:
- Add rinsed potatoes to a large pot and cover with water until just submerged. Bring to a boil over high heat. Then reduce to medium-high heat to achieve a low boil. Cook uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until tender and a knife easily slides in and out.
- Meanwhile, prepare pesto by adding basil, garlic, nuts, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast to a food processor and blending to combine. Add in 2-3 Tbsp olive oil a little at at time until a thick paste is formed. If trying to reduce fat, thin the sauce with water instead of additional oil.
- Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more lemon juice for acidity, nutritional yeast for cheesy flavor, salt and pepper for overall flavor, or garlic for zing/bite. Transfer to a small serving dish and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 450°F (232 C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. When the potatoes are soft and tender, place on the baking sheet and smash down with the bottom of a saucepan. For any larger potatoes, cut in half and then smash so they are still “bite size.”
- Drizzle the potatoes with 1 1/2 Tbsp oil and season with a large pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes or until crispy and golden brown.
- To serve, spoon the pesto over the potatoes (you will have leftovers). Garnish with chopped basil or parsley and additional pine nuts (optional).
Vegan Stuffing
Option: Vegan
Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for greasing the baking dish
- 2 bags green tea
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 16 cups stale, 1-inch cubed white bread (about 1 pound)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with oil.
- Brew the tea bags in 2 cups of hot water for 5 minutes. Discard the tea bags (don’t squeeze them out).
- Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and celery and cook, stirring frequently, until just soft, about 6 minutes. Add the mushrooms, sage, thyme, 1 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are soft, about 4 minutes. Add the brewed green tea, then bring to a simmer and remove from heat.
- Put the bread in a large bowl and pour in the green tea-vegetable mixture. Add the parsley and toss until the bread is completely coated. Let rest for 10 minutes so the bread can soak up the liquid. Gently toss again and transfer to the prepared baking dish. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil.
- Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes more. Serve hot.
Pumpkin Muffins
Option: Gluten-Free
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons whole-milk yogurt
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Lay out 9 muffin liners in a muffin tin.
- Whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, ginger, nutmeg and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
- In another large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree and brown sugar. (For best results, use a stand mixer.) Whisk in both of the eggs, one at a time, until all trace of the egg is gone. Slowly, drizzle in the oil on the side of the bowl while whisking.
- Add the dry ingredients, 1/4 cup at a time, then stir the batter thoroughly, until the flour mixture is half gone. Add the yogurt and stir. Add the remaining flour until all visible signs of flour are gone.
- Fill a muffin liner about 3/4 full with the batter. Repeat with the remaining 8 liners.
- Bake the muffins 10 minutes, then turn down the heat to 375°F and bake until the muffins are browned and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 10 to 15 more minutes.
- Allow the muffins to cool for 10 minutes, then remove them to a cooling rack to cool entirely.
Happy Thanksgiving to all, and to all a good bite!
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