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Healthy Recipes of the Month

Holiday Eating Tips for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate the changing seasons, to reflect on the bounty of nature, and to sit down with family and/or friends to a table filled copious amounts of food.

Follow each menu as it's written, or mix and match to create your perfect holiday feast — each dish serves at least eight people (with leftovers, of course!).

Simply Roasted Turkey- This recipe serves 8 plus leftovers.

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  2. Remove the giblets from the turkey and save them for another use or discard. Rinse the turkey, inside and out, with cold water and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper inside and out.
  3. If you are using fresh herbs, chop them. Combine the herbs, bay leaves, onions, carrots, celery and shallots together and stuff the mixture into the cavity of the bird.
  4. Place the turkey in a roasting pan. Rub the olive oil under the skin of the turkey. Tuck the wings back, under the bird, and truss it. See Ask the Chef for details on trussing.
  5. Place the turkey in the oven and roast until the skin is golden brown and crisp, the juices run clear when the thigh is pierced with a sharp knife, and a meat thermometer reads 170°F, about 3 hours. While it cooks, occasionally baste the turkey with the juices that collect in the roasting pan.
    6. Note: Allow the turkey to rest for 20 minutes and check that the temperature has come up to 180°F. (The bird will continue to cook after removing it from the oven). For more information visit our Cook It Safe Calculator .
  6. Transfer the turkey to a serving platter. Remove the vegetables from the cavity and discard. Let the turkey rest for about 20 minutes before carving, and then serve.

Yield: 8 per serving, serving size is about 6 ounces

Nutrition Facts:

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

No Thanksgiving table would be complete without sweet potatoes. Enjoy these low fat mashed sweet potatoes with orange juice and a hint of brown sugar, mildly spiced with cinnamon and ginger for a perfect low fat Thanksgiving side dish.

Sweet potatoes are a rich source of beta-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E, potassium and fiber. Leave out the butter and excess sugar. Use orange juice and a sprinkling of brown sugar for flavor instead. Limit your portion size to no more than half a cup.

Ingredients:

Cooking Instructions:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add sweet potatoes and cook for 20-25 minutes until tender. Drain sweet potatoes; add orange juice, orange zest, brown sugar, cinnamon and ginger. Mash until smooth.

Yield: 8 per serving

Nutrition Facts:

Sautéed Green Beans

Green beans are a must for any holiday table, but instead of making a green bean casserole which can be loaded with fat and sodium, simply sauté your beans with a little heart-healthy olive oil and some shallots.

Vegetables should be steamed or roasted rather than slathered in butter or cheesy sauces. Skip the fried onion rings on top of the green beans (you could use toasted almonds or walnuts instead), and use vinaigrette dressings or herbs for flavor.

Ingredients:

Cooking Instructions:

Simmer green beans in a large saucepan for 3 minutes until crisp-tender. Remove from heat, drain, then plunge beans into ice-cold water to stop the cooking process and retain color. Heat skillet with oil. Add garlic and gently sauté for one minute. Add blanched green beans and sauté for three minutes. Stir in lemon zest and serve.

Yield: 8 per serving

Nutrition Facts:

Tangerine-Glazed Pumpkin Cookies

As a sweet ending to a heart-healthy holiday menu that won’t leave you feeling like a scrooge, enjoy this dessert recipe.

Ingredients:

Cookies

Glaze

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°, and spray 2 large baking sheets with cooking spray.
  2. For cookies: Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, five-spice powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
  3. Beat sugar, butter, and zest with an electric mixer on medium speed in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in pumpkin, egg, and vanilla until blended. Reduce speed to low, and beat in the flour mixture just until blended.
  4. Drop cookie dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto baking sheets. Bake for 12 minutes, or until cookies are lightly browned. Cool 10 minutes on cooling racks.
  5. For glaze: Whisk together all ingredients in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved. Drizzle glaze evenly over cookies. Let cool until glaze is set.

Yield: 25 cookies (serving size: 1 cookie)

Nutrition Facts:

Recipe Source:

Resources:

Personal Health Manager and Work–Life Balance:
With a wide range of online tools and information, you can better manage every aspect of health and wellness for you and your family with programs for UT employees, retirees and their dependents. Start by taking the health risk assessment to better understand your current health condition, identify potential issue and reinforce what you’re doing right! Check out some of our resources and services:

  1. Online Personal Health Manager provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas - Your source for health and wellness information, such as

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