It's no secret..Thanksgiving is my least favorite holiday. I really don't know why I dislike it so much, I just do. I guess it's just been one of those holidays that's never been super traditional to me or meant a whole lot. Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for MANY things and I sort of reflect on that each year, I just don't love all things Thanksgiving. (I do love the HUGE paper full of ads that comes to my door that morning and all the shopping that now starts at midnight though...which many people despise!) Its mainly the food...I don't love turkey, I really don't like mashed potatoes, I can do without stuffing and rolls and corn and I hate gravy! Pumpkin pie is ok if you don't have crust and any other pie I can let sit...I'm just not a pie gal. I like veggies, but up until I came along there were no veggies at my husband's family's Thanksgiving...weird! Oh wait..corn! I remember having to explain that corn is not a real vegetable...ugh! Anyway, I digress. There are a couple things I like and like I said those are veggies (pretty much anything except green bean casserole...that's making healthy veggies unhealthy!) and fruit!
I also like the sales that come along in the grocery stores this time of year on that produce. So, I take advantage of those sales and this year decided to create MY THANKSGIVING! What I would actually prefer to eat on Thanksgiving. Much healthier (and yes, I know...Thanksgiving is not the day to be healthy...blah blah!) Everyday is a day to be healthy darn it! Yes, I eat sweets and treats and not so good food sometimes, so can you, but it's not necessary to make an entire day out of it! My hubby does, I just can't. I'll pay for it for days...just not worth it. Anyway, so I had some cranberries, sweet potatoes and a boatload of squash in my fridge just waiting to be used. Tonight, I used them. I made my pre-thanksgiving, thanksgiving meal :)
I wish I would've taken a pic, it was pretty!
Turkey Tenderloin: rubbed with dijon mustard and sprinkled with thyme, rosemary and oregano...baked at 375 for 50+ min.
Cranberry Pear Sauce: package of cranberries, 2 pears, 1/2 cup (or less) or agave and a cup of water...to deliciousness! Very good and SO much healthier than those with 3 cups of sugar! Recipe can be found here!
Autumn Harvest Salad: that salad I wrote about here and found the recipe here....I think I'm taking this to Thanksgiving this year. I will eat it all and be full and happy! That stuff just screams fall and it's still fall next week no matter what the thermometer says!
Anyway, I loved the meal. Actually everyone liked the meal. I think it was the first meal in months (besides pizza night) that my kids didn't complain about anything! They both asked for seconds of the cranberries and finished their plates, in a timely manner! Perhaps it'll have to be my thanksgiving everyday!
Are you like most people and love Thanksgiving or are you like me and love shopping?
There are a lot of things I like about Thanksgiving--the 4 day weekend, the chance to "give" my in-laws a holiday in exchange for securing we spend Christmas with my family (sue me),the crazy-good Black Friday sales, the reminder to be thankful for all that we have, and the start of the Christmas season.
ReplyDeleteThe big meal part of it? Eh. My theory is that for people like me and you that regularly cook delicious family meals from scratch, Thankgiving dinner is nothing special. I personally think most hosts focus too much on quantity and try to get everyone's "must-have's," and end up sacrificing quality. I'd much rather incorporate traditional favorites into our family meals throughout the season, which is actually what my husband and I do. I don't see the point in having them all at once and stuffing yourself and feeling awful and not being able to enjoy them to their fullest. I occasionally like sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and rolls... but I can't handle all those things at one meal!
You know all I can say to this is...cray cray! :-)
ReplyDeleteI kid, I kid!!!! :-)