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The Holidays: Thanksgiving Recipes & Christmas Recipes, Nutrition, Tips

 

 

Holiday Recipe Questions and a few Answers

by Barbara J. Gewirtz, M.S., R.D.

First comes the search for Thanksgiving recipes and the holiday questions begin.  They won't end until we hunt for Christmas recipes, wonder what to cook.  This is the season and these are the days of wonder...how large a turkey? Commercial brand or freshly cubed bread stuffing? Mashed, candied or pecan'd sweet potatoes? Whole or sliced cranberries? Peas and pearl onions or one of your more prized, signature side dishes?

And of course, how many different desserts are de rigeur?

These are among the holiday questions I cannot answer for you, but here, I sort fact from fiction regarding standard holiday fare.


click for thanksgiving recipes
     thawing and cooking guide to turkey
thawing and cooking chart     how to really cook a turkey    an ozarks thanksgiving      
main Christmas menu page     German Christmas     southern Christmas     swedish christmas

First up, let's talk turkey. No, let's not. During this time of year, chances are that you have already been admonished to forgo the skin and to chose white over dark meat in order to keep calories and fat in check. I believe that, all too often, nutrition messages simply become a blur of too many "do nots." Instead, on Thanksgiving, a single day out of the 365 days a year, you may opt to "have it your way." Save the turkey until Christmas. Of note, is that it is of small fat consequence whether the skin is removed prior to cooking or just prior to eating.

On to pumpkin...Many people defer to the patch seeking a freshly harvested pumpkin. While the friendly-carved faces are ideal for decoration, I recommend canned for ease of preparation and handling, as well as for a nutrient score. In terms of both dietary fiber and beta-carotene (a precursor to vitamin A), canned pumpkin's nutrition profile far surpasses that of fresh. And, if you wish to bake this year's pumpkin dessert in a manner that is as easy on the cook as on the heart, skip the crust. Or opt for pumpkin pudding over the more traditional pie.

Lastly, one of the most common calorie questions that I hear throughout the holiday season concerns how red wine stacks up versus white. The answer? They contain roughly equal number of calories, about 72 calories per 3 1/2 fluid ounces. Remember, though, that wine goblets vary and may hold upwards of 8 ounces.

Cheers, and happy, healthy holidays to all.

Editor's Note: We have a large Internet family. We love our members' faces shining on our pages, your generosity in sharing your best moments in the kitchen, both in story form and recipe form. We are grateful to have so many wonderful people in our lives. We are grateful for the contributions that come from around the world and look forward to developing increasing number of global recipes and sharing these discoveries with our members.

We wish you all a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy holiday season. Get cooking! The turkey waits...

 

Thanksgiving Special:
Cook Your "Best Roast Turkey" With Jamie Oliver
from Cook With Jamie

click for recipe  
click for "cook with jamie" book review

Thanksgiving Recipes and Christmas Recipes

Here are a few recipes that you might like to try for your Thanksgiving or Christmas meal, but first read these articles - be a pro.

thawing and roasting chart for cooking times

how to cook a turkey - a pro talks turkey (article)

 

Recipes for Holiday Breads, Biscuits & Dressings (Stuffings) click here to get baking

We love bready things at the holidays. 

Recipes for Holiday Relishes click here for relish recipes

It doesn't have to be only a cranberry relish.  The world has opened to the uses of chiles and ginger and Indian spices.  Make a chutney, a relish, a sauce, a salsa

Holiday Soup Recipes - Thanksgiving and Christmas click here for Christmas and Thanksgiving holiday soups

Whether you stay with a classic smooth pumpkin soup recipe or go for a chowder, soup starts the meal

Veggie Recipes for the Great Holiday Sides - Thanksgiving and Christmas for vegetable recipes click here

Our imaginations run wild at Thanksgiving or Christmas and we have the widest assortment of vegetable recipes for the holidays. If you have a theme there are a great variety of vegetable recipes to choose from.

The great bird - Turkey Recipes, Gravy, Leftover Turkey, Ham, and Roast Beef Recipes click here for all meats

The focus of the meal - and there are many recipes.

Thanksgiving & Christmas Dessert Recipes for dessert recipes click here

Pumpkin pie and apple pie, Christmas plum pudding, fruit pies, cream pies, fruit cakes and a few surprises - we love a groaning board at Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays, the time for indulging in holiday desserts.  Lots of dessert recipes here.

Drinks - drinks and beverage page

Please see the drinks page for toddy's, punches, hot chocolate,cider, coffle and spiritsT'is the season to be merry.

 

Barbara J. Gewirtz is a regular contributor. Click to meet her on the about us page.
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