November 23-29

To all my Yankee friends, I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  We joined our friends, Betsy & Jeff, at their house for the big event.  Betsy’s parents were in town from Portland, Oregon, which made it extra special.  Betsy, her Mom and I cooked for most of the day on Thursday.  The boys were busy fulfilling the other traditional thanksgiving duties of watching football and tasting seasonal craft beers while we prepared the feast.  I will be honest- they were essential in getting the bird in the oven and carving and “staging’ the meat (as Jeff put it).  I guess the long hours spent during their surgery rotations were worth it…

I am so thankful for my family, my relationship, my health and friends that now span across two countries.  As I was laughing with Betsy and her Mom in the kitchen, I thought of how lucky I am to be in New Orleans and have met such fantastic people.  For any of you that are pondering a major life decision, I challenge you to move out of your comfort zone and just “experience.” As most of you know, it wasn’t an easy feat for me to move here.  Now that I am here, and settled, I am so grateful for this experience.

Below are some snippets of my day of gratitude.  Because Thanksgiving falls on a Thursday, I only made 4 days worth of meals this week.  You will notice that one of the main dishes is vegetarian and the other fish- I did this specifically in anticipation of the amount of poultry I was going to eat for the remainder of the week!  All 3 of these dishes are regulars on my meal roster.  I hope you give each a try!

xo Lauren

 

Sunday

Thai Fish Curry (Chatelaine)– This is quick to prepare on a weeknight, and is an easy way to include at least one serving of fish in your weekly roster.  I can also usually get by with having all of the ingredients in my fridge/freezer/pantry already.

Monday

Repeat Thai Fish Curry (Chatelaine)

 

Tuesday

Roasted Beet, Goat Cheese & Candied Pecan Salad (LG Original)

Pasta alla Formiana (adapted from Giada de Laurentiis)

Similar to the curry, Pasta all Formiana is easy to prepare the night you are going to eat it.  It is delicious hot or cold, and as leftovers the next day.  It sounds odd, but I find this dish to almost taste like a hearty slice of pizza without having any cheese in the dish (I think it’s the hefty amount of oregano and garlic that does this).  The salad is one of my well-known recipes amongst friends and family.  It goes with pretty much any meal.

Wednesday

Repeat Pasta alla Formiana

Repeat Beet, Goat Cheese & Candied Pecan Salad (LG Original)

 

 

 

Thursday (Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends!)

Betsy did a great job of planning a wonderful spread of dishes- below is a roster of them.  I hope you save some of these for Christmas or your next Thanksgiving.  These recipes are definitely not easy on the waistline, but it was Thanksgiving after all. Check out my friend Meme (who also happens to be an RD)’s blog, Living Well Kitchen, for great tips on tackling Thanksgiving dinner the right way.  I love Meme’s ideas.

1. Porcini Mushroom Turkey with Mushroom Gravy (Bon Appetit) – This dish, although somewhat involved, has re-appeared at many of my Christmas and Thanksgiving tables.  The gravy does takes some time, but is so worth it.  Everyone agreed.

2. Leeann (Betsy’s Mom)’s  Mashed Potatoes- These were so good.  I think Leeann “whips” this together from experience, rather than following a recipe.  Perhaps I will include her own recipe in a future post.

3. Garlic Parmesan Roasted Brussel Sprouts (Joy in the Jumble)– OMG.  These were so tasty.  One of the nurses I work with, Brittany, prepared this for our Thanksgiving feast at work and I had to get the recipe.  Betsy and I put them together last minute and added bacon.  YUM.

4. Green Bean Casserole- Your classic, French’s onions side of the package recipe.

5. Sweet Potato Casserole

6. Kristyn’s Roasted Squash and Pecan Salad- There’s a funny story to go with this one.  I will share this salad recipe in a later post.

7. Stuffing.

8. Apple Crisp- Betsy’s Grandmother’s recipe.  It’s a secret.

9. Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cupcakes (Your Cup of Cake)– Betsy requested I make these, as she had tried them at her Thanksgiving celebration last year.  At first glance, the recipe seemed to be an odd concoction, but wow, were they to die for… They were so moist and a great combination of flavors.  I would definitely make them again.

The Grocery List for the Complete Week’s Dishes (Minus the Thanksgiving Dishes)

Produce

• 1 bunch green onions
• garlic
• 1 lb butternut squash (to expedite the process, you can often buy this pre-cut into cubes)
• 2 limes
• 4-5 large tomatoes
• 1 x 8 oz package of button or cremini mushrooms
• 1 yellow onion
• mixed salad greens
• 2 golden beets (can be substituted for an additional 2 red beets)
• 2 red beets

Non-Perishables

• olive oil
• green curry paste
• 1 can light coconut milk
• fish sauce
• jasmine rice (I prefer brown, but white is fine too)
• 1 x 28 oz can of tomatoes
• 1/2 lb. whole wheat penne, rigatoni or rotini pasta- check out why I choose wheat over white here
• dried oregano (3 Tbsp.)
• 1 1/2 cups pecan halves
• light corn syrup
• cayenne pepper
• white sugar
• balsamic vinegar
• dijon mustard

Dairy

• 1 x 4 oz log of goat cheese

Meat, Poultry & Fish

• 500 g (approx 1 lb) of firm white fish such as tilapia or cod- I use frozen tilapia

Other

• mixed olives (approximately 1/3 cup)