Can you actually continue to eat healthy over the holidays, skip putting on those extra "holiday pounds" and still enjoy delicious and organic recipes that you are used to eating? Absolutely! With just a bit of planning and a willingness to spend time making a homemade meal, you can definitely eat your beloved Christmas Recipes – organic, healthy and without compromise.
First a little background as to why I wrote a blog article about delicious and organic Christmas recipes.
If you have followed my articles or the www.OAWHealth.com website, you are aware that in 2000 I was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. After surgery for tumor removal and one month of horrendous chemotherapy, in the beginning of 2001 I began seeing an alternative doctor for non-toxic cancer treatment. Part of the many lifestyle changes I incorporated was a complete change of diet to organic, healthy and non-toxic food. It wasn't easy, but I was determined to give my body what it needed to encourage good health and healing. The good news is that by August of 2001 I was cancer-free and have remained cancer-free. YAY!
Well, along came the 2001 holiday season (which I absolutely love) and my dilemma was must I give up all our delicious family holiday foods or could I actually eat some of those same foods by altering the recipes to make them organic, healthy and non-toxic? My solution was to try the latter – to make our traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas recipes but to change unhealthy ingredients to delicious and organic ingredients. Actually, it wasn't all that difficult and guess what – the recipes turned out just as delicious! Most of my family couldn't even tell the difference except that everything tasted "better". Yes, they actually used the words "better tasting"!
I want to share below some of our main holiday recipes that I changed or tweaked. Remember that I'm a Texas girl and our holiday meals may not look exactly like what your family is used to eating. I also understand that not everyone loves cornbread dressing (although I cannot imagine why), but it's the tradition in this Texas family so I was determined to make the dressing as clean and organic as possible while staying true to the recipe. Since turkey is always on our menu, we also purchase an organic or free-range turkey. Yes, a bit costly…almost to the point that I would like to raise our own…but sooo delicious. I am not a huge meat-eater, but when we talk Thanksgiving and Christmas, I'm all in. Below are the recipes – use as is, tweak them to what your family likes or try adding other healthy ingredients. Enjoy!
This method requires no basting because the turkey roasts covered, sealing in juices for extremely tender meat. Savory herbs & veggies add a wonderful aroma and delicate flavor. For an especially juicy turkey, brine your bird before roasting. There are many brine recipes given on the Internet. Just be sure to use ingredients that are non-toxic. I highly suggest using organic apple cider vinegar as one of the brine ingredients. It's also important not to brine a self-basting, pre-seasoned, or kosher turkey. Otherwise the turkey will be too salty. Here is a good brine recipe.
Remove neck and giblets. Rub the butter on the outside and in the cavity of the turkey. Sprinkle the salt and pepper on the inside and the outside of the turkey. Put the celery, onion and carrot in the cavity. Place the turkey, breast-side up, in a large roasting pan.
If desired, use trussing string to tie turkey legs together and close cavity. Cover bottom of roasting pan with 1/4″ of broth. Add 1 bay leaf, 1/2 cup white wine, and a pinch of aromatic herbs such as thyme, rosemary and savory. Place the bird breast-side up on a rack in a covered roasting pan. A covered roasting pan allows the turkey to self-baste, as does a cooking "tent" made from aluminum foil.
Note: If you want to stuff your turkey, do so about 30-40 minutes before turkey is done, using previously baked dressing. Return turkey to oven. For a beautiful golden-brown turkey, remove lid and turn the heat to broil or high for the final 30 minutes.
This recipe was handed down by my grandmother to my mother and now to me. It will eventually go to my daughter and my granddaughter. I have made this recipe so many times, that now I basically just "eye" the ingredients. So the ingredient amounts below are approximate and by no means set-in-stone.
Organic Cornbread – Double the recipe on the back of the organic cornmeal box and then bake in a regular 13 x 9 glass or ceramic pan. Use only organic ingredients to make your cornbread. Note: When make this recipe, use only 2 Tablespoons of organic sugar and 2 teaspoons of organic baking powder. You may substitute almond milk for the recommended milk and organic olive oil or refined coconut oil (melt first) for the oil. Use organic flour and organic sugar. Once baked, allow to cool thoroughly and then crumble (use hands) the cornbread in the same container. Try to get as fine of a crumble as possible. Be sure to wash hands thoroughly before crumbling.
Gluten-Free: I have also used a gluten-free, pre-made cornbread from a local gluten-free bakery and the dressing turned out very well. It was sweeter than normal since the bakery cornbread recipe did not have a reduced sugar content.
Ingredients to add to the crumbled cornbread.
(I always cook the dressing in the same pan in which I bake the cornbread).
Make cornbread, allow to cool and then crumble in the same baking pan.
Add green onions, hard-boiled eggs and raw eggs. Mix thoroughly.
Start off by adding 1 box of chicken broth. The mixture should be a bit watery. I usually end up using about 1.5 boxes of chicken broth for this amount of dressing. If you are doubling the entire recipe, then more boxes of broth will be needed. Remember that a bit of a watery consistency is needed in order to get a moist dressing.
Add Poultry Seasoning. Start off with 1 teaspoon, mix in thoroughly and then taste. If you cannot taste the poultry seasoning, then add a bit more and re-taste. I do not use any added salt or pepper for this dressing.
Place in pre-heated 450 degree oven and bake covered for 45-50 minutes.
Take out and uncover and bake for 10-15 minute more. Be sure to check often so that the cornbread does not burn. The last 10-15 minutes is mostly for browning the top.
Test for doneness by inserting a knife in the middle of the cornbread. If I comes out clean, the cornbread is ready. Remove from oven.
*natural marshmallows are available in some of the Whole Foods Stores.
Using a food processor pulse the oats until coarsely chopped. In a medium bowl, stir together the chopped pecans, chopped oats, almond meal/flour, cinnamon, and salt. Add melted coconut oil, melted butter and maple syrup. Stir until thoroughly combined.
Sprinkle the nut crumble topping all over the sweet potatoes, evenly. Bake, uncovered, at 375F for 15 to 25 minutes, until the dish is hot throughout. Serve!
This is another one of my recipes in which I usually just "eye" the ingredients. Make according to your family likes.
2 Teaspoons Extra-virgin, cold-pressed olive oil or 3 Tablespoons of organic butter.
If using fresh green beans, trim and snap into halves. Thoroughly wash.
Place beans, onion and garlic in a large Dutch oven pan. Cover beans with broth. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until beans become tender. Drain ½ of liquid. Add butter or olive oil to green beans; cook and stir until butter is melted, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with lemon pepper and Himalayan salt. Serve.
The veggie amounts are based on a 96 ounce salad bowl. Scale up or down according to the size of your bowl.
Add all ingredients to a blender and puree until smooth. Taste, and add more salt as needed. Set aside (refrigerate if making ahead).
General note: if your bowl is wide, ring your ingredients against the glass and fill the center with romaine lettuce as you build the layers. This creates a nice balance of greens to veggies when you spoon down into the bowl.
In a medium glass salad bowl (about 90 ounces), spread a thin layer of romaine lettuce. Spoon black beans over the lettuce. Add red onions over the black beans, followed by a layer of olives, cucumbers, then corn, avocados, bell peppers, and top with cherry tomatoes.
Sprinkle herbs over the cherry tomatoes.
If you're not using the lettuce to fill the center of the bowl, serve lettuce in a separate bowl tossed lightly with extra virgin olive oil.
Serve the creamy salsa vinaigrette dressing on the side.
Note: If you don't want to layer the salad, all ingredients can be combined into a large salad bowl – without the layering. This makes a beautiful presentation especially if placed in a clear glass serving bowl.