Holiday Pounds! How is it I can work out all summer long, eat healthy, drink tons of water, and lose 16 plus pounds only to gain eight pounds back in a weekend of holiday eating? It just doesn’t seem fair does it?
The food is just sooo yummy and warm and comforting, like a big hug from Grandma as you walk in the door. And I say, it’s not Thanksgiving if you don’t have a huge roasted turkey with all the trimmings. Thanksgiving ham….no way, no how. If you have already bought a ham, take my advice and freeze it until Easter….your family will thank you.
I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner when I was just 12 years old. My mother woke during the night in incredible pain and my dad had to take her to the hospital. My Aunt Gin, Uncle Clayton and my cousins were already on their way from the Cities so dinner had to be ready when they arrived.
It seemed a waste to let my mother’s homemade dressing and cranberry relish sit on the table alone so I stuffed the bird and put the turkey in the oven. Then I peeled potatoes to boil and mash and made canned sweet potatoes with butter and brown sugar. I checked in with my mom throughout the day to get last minute instructions and see if she would make it home in time for supper.
I was so proud of that meal. It was the first time I realized the importance of food at a family gathering. The day just wouldn’t have been the same if I had switched the menu to spaghetti. (A favorite meal of mine at the time.)
My Uncle Clayton was very impressed with my homemade Thanksgiving dinner which I took as a compliment as he was the great cook in his home. He liked to make fancy dishes like rare prime rib and lutefisk at Christmastime.
Both my mom and my Aunt Gin are wonderful bakers. I love their sweet cookies, chocolate fudge, rosettes and krumkake. There was always plenty of treats set out on glass platters during the holidays. It was easy to lose count of how many you ate…a nibble here and a nibble there…but it didn’t matter as a child—we were so active we burned off all the extra calories easily.
Now I look at a rosette and gain an ounce…when I actually eat one it’s a pound that is sure to show up on the scale the next morning. How can something that is so feather light and crisp do so much damage to our waistlines? It’s a mystery to me! Try not to over think it, enjoy your families and food this holiday season, and you and I both know that includes the “holiday pounds.” Sugar makes me believe in Satan and yoga pants make me believe in God.
Vanilla Bean Sugared Cranberries
(A New Holiday Favorite!)
Ingredients
— 2 cups fresh cranberries
— 2½ cups sugar, divided
— 1½ cups water
— 1 vanilla bean, insides scraped out
Instructions
In a small saucepan, bring 2 cups of sugar and 1.5 cups of water to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat.
Place the fresh cranberries in a medium, heatproof bowl and pour the hot liquid on top; let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Using a food processor or blender, pulse the remaining 1/2 cup sugar with the seeds scraped from the vanilla bean until superfine. Transfer to a shallow dish. Strain the cranberries with a slotted spoon, add to the sugar and roll to coat. Transfer the sugared berries to a parchment paper lined baking sheet, and let stand about an hour until set. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Low Low Low Fat Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
— ½ Tablespoon butter or margarine
— ½ cup finely chopped onion
— 4 ounces mushrooms, finely chopped
— Seasoned salt and pepper
— 2 Tablespoons flour
— 1 cup fat-free chicken broth
— 2 cans (15 ounces each) cut green beans,
drained
Topping:
— 1 teaspoon butter or margarine
— ½ cup Panko bread crumbs
(Japanese style bread crumbs)
— Dash seasoned salt
Instructions
In a small skillet, heat butter. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add mushrooms and cook until tender. Sprinkle lightly with seasoned salt.
In a shaker or jar with a cover, combine flour and chicken broth. Shake very well. Pour into skillet. Bring to a boil while stirring.
Cook until mixture thickens. Taste and adjust seasonings with more salt and pepper if desired. Add beans and stir to mix. Spoon into casserole dish.
In a small skillet, heat butter. Add Panko bread crumbs and stir over medium heat until they are lightly brown and toasted. Add a dash of seasoned salt. Sprinkle over green beans. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
When ready to serve, bake in the oven at 350° until heated through.
Easy Streusel Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
Crust:
— 1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust,
softened as directed on box
If you like homemade, you can make your own,
but I love these easy store-bought pie crusts.
You can’t tell the difference, I promise.
Filling:
— 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
— 1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
— ½ cup granulated sugar
— 2 eggs, slightly beaten
— 1½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
— ¼ teaspoon salt
Streusel:
— ¼ cup packed brown sugar
— 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
— 2 Tablespoons butter, softened
— ½ cup chopped pecans
Topping:
— 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
— 1 (8 ounce) tub frozen whipped topping
Instructions
Heat oven to 425° F. Place pie crust in 9-inch glass pie pan as directed on box for one-crust filled pie. In large bowl, mix filling ingredients until well blended.
Pour into crust-lined pan. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° F; bake 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix streusel ingredients. Sprinkle streusel over pumpkin filling. Bake 15 to 20 minutes longer or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Gently fold orange peel into whipped topping. Serve pie with topping. Store in refrigerator.
Taste of Home columnist Sandy (Anderson) Holthaus lives on a farm in South Haven, MN with her husband, Michael, and their children Zoe, Jack and Ben. Her heart remains on the North Shore where she grew up with her parents, Art and LaVonne Anderson of Schroeder. She enjoys writing about her childhood and mixes memories with delicious helpings of home-style recipes.
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