Thanksgiving Prep: How Bariatric Post-Ops (Should) Do Pie

Pictured: Nik's Sweet Veggie Pie (recipe link below)

Yep. Let's talk about pie for a minute. Because Thanksgiving is coming. And there will be pie. Ohhhhh yes...there will be pie!

For some of you it might be pumpkin pie. For others, sweet potato. (Side note: I'm not sure if it's cultural or regional but my family resolutely refuses to eat pumpkin pie...hmmm...) And for some of you there will be pecan and other sorts of yummy concoctions which WILL leave you either (a) grateful for your picky pouches (or sleeves) (b) wishing for your old stomachs for just a day or (c) down right testy!

But did you know that you can do pie?

"Stop messing with me Nik...this is a touchy subject!"

I kid you not! You can do pie. And I'm going to show you how.

You can do...

Protein Pie

Like my "Amp'd Sweet Potato Pie" which is made with a sugar substitute and protein powder. Nobody could tell the difference frankly and it was GOOD! Or if you're feeling adventurous and want to go totally covert on your family you can give my Sweet Veggie Pie a shot! With or without protein you'll feel a deep sense of pride for pulling that pie off!

Protein Pudding/Frozen Pie

I usually tell people about the frozen in the summer but they work equally well at Thanksgiving, especially because you have to let it sit for a minute before slicing them! Or, like in the picture above, you can simply make a protein pudding pie. If you don't share my love of Fiber One Original cereal, choose a high fiber and/or high protein cereal that crushes well. Here's my top favorite cereals.

And here are the recipes to:

• Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Frozen Pie
• Rocky Road Protein Frozen Pie
• Cookies 'n Cream Protein Frozen Pie
• Mocha Toffee Protein Pudding Pie

Pie in a Ramekin

This is good because you can either skip the crust or make a very small one for the top. I make my crusts out of a simple dough of low-carb baking mix, a little sweetener, salt and water. It comes out very nice!

Here are the recipes to:

• Ramekin peach pies
• Ramekin banana cream pie
• Ramekin pumpkin pie

Pie Reinventions

Like my Apple Brown Nik. This recipe combines apples, fall spices, crushed cereal and nuts. It's been a hit since the first time I brought it to Thanksgiving dinner (and it got pilfered before I even got any!). If you don't want to use the cereal I used, use the cereal of your choosing OR you can just go with a crushed nut topping.

Also a noteworthy mention is my Sweet 'n Salty Potato Casserole. To be fair, it's half pie reinvention, half side dish and all wonderful. BUT...for that recipe, you'll have to look to "The Bariatric Foodie Holiday Survival Guide." It's on sale in hard copy form on Amazon and at Smashwords for Nook and iPad. Believe me, for that recipe alone the book is worth it!

I should also mention that many of the recipes listed above are included in the holiday book but there are so many more. Like a totally good, yet cookie-less, protein banana pudding recipe and several kosher recipes written by my friend Joy of Kosher Bariatric.

Leftovers Week: Vegetable & Turkey Casserole

~~posted by Jen




First and Foremost, a big Happy Birthday to Nik, our resident "Pouch Diva." She is taking a couple days off to enjoy her birthday, so y'all are stuck with me for the weekend. Nik, party it up, girl! We love you!!

Left to Right: Nessa, Nik, and Andrea. The guy in front is some random wedding guest in their hotel lobby. Pic by Melting Mama. Thanks, Beff!

Today is our last day of Leftovers Week, we hope you've enjoyed everything we've shared and that you use these recipes to make new meals from your holiday extras. At holiday meal time, everyone always has green bean casserole for the most part, at least where I come from. I made a healthier version of the traditional for the Holiday Preview and shared the recipe a couple weeks back. Well I clearly remember in packing up my things to come home from Baltimore, I still had a four pack of canned green beans leftover.

I know I packed them, I distinctly remember putting them in the re-usable shopping bag with the remaining Atkins baking mix and Splenda to bring back home. What happened to them between my hotel room in Baltimore and my home in New Jersey, only the good Lord knows. All I know is that when I went to make my green bean casserole on Thanksgiving Day, they were NOWHERE to be found! I had 5, yes, I said FIVE, cans of Fried onions. Not. one. single. can. of green beans.

Well of course there is a vegetarian in the house, I can't very well just serve turkey and stuffing and call it a day. Y'all know what I did. I made it WORK, people!!

I always have a ginormous Costco size bag of "Normandy style" (that's cauliflower, broccoli, baby carrots, and yellow squash, what makes it Normandy style is beyond me) vegetables in the freezer.

So I combined the idea of two of my usual Thanksgiving dishes, Green Bean Casserole and Broccoli Casserole, into one dish. A couple days after Thanksgiving, I needed to use up the leftovers, so I added some turkey breast meat to it and called it dinner.

This was a big hit with everyone, and in fact will most likely replace good ole Green Bean Casserole at future holiday meals. Here's how I made it:

Jen's Cheesy Mixed Vegetable Casserole with Turkey


Ingredients:
1 can (10 3/4 ouncese) reduced fat Cream of Mushroom Soup
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
Dash ground pepper
1 tbsp Garlic Powder
1 tbsp Onion Powder
3 cups "Normandy Style" mixed vegetables, thawed
1/4 cup Greek Yogurt
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can stems & pieces mushrooms
2 cups cooked turkey meat, chopped into bite-sized pieces
2/3 cup French Fried Onions


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the soup, milk, Greek Yogurt, and seasonings. Stir in the vegetable medley, mushrooms, turkey meat, and 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Continue mixing together until thoroughly combined. 


Spray a 3 quart casserole dish with cooking spray, then pour the mixture into the dish. Spread it out evenly with a spatula. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes until it is bubbling and hot. Remove from oven, stir the mixture, then top with remaining cheese and the fried onions. Return to oven for an additional 5 minutes, or until the cheese melts and the onions are crispy.


Note: You can also cook this in the microwave if you prefer, just follow the instructions here. 

Leftovers Week: Jen's Gobble It Down Pizza

~~posted by Jen

By the Sunday after Thanksgiving, your family is probably moaning and groaning about still having to eat turkey sandwiches (mine already is) so you need to use up all that food but make it look and taste different, right? That's where we come in with Leftovers Week. Starting tomorrow, Nik and I will share two recipes with you each day to "Remix" those holiday leftovers into something delicious that fits your plan AND your family will enjoy! Added bonus, they probably won't even notice it's leftovers!!

If you haven't already done so, go ahead and remove the rest of the turkey from the bone (don't throw the carcass away, we're making stock later this week!), and get your other leftovers organized in the fridge or freezer so you have easy access to them for makeovers this week. That way you're all set to use these yummy recipe ideas all week.

Since it's Sunday and my boys are watching football and/or hockey on tv, I usually make them up some snacks to enjoy during the game(s). They were complaining about turkey sandwiches, so I came up with what I think is pretty clever, it's definitely delicious, and can be cut into perfect sized party "bites" for appetizers on game day or if guests drop by. This is your first taste of "Leftovers Week!" I call it "Gobble It Down Thanksgiving Pizza."

Before I had my RNY Gastric Bypass surgery in July 2008, my favorite thing about Thanksgiving leftovers was taking some turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce and making a sandwich on smushy white bread with lots of mayonnaise. This may not sound like a great combination, but oh my Martha is it tasty together.

I probably couldn't even handle half of one these days, for which I am thankful, but it's one of those "food memories" I wanted to find a way to re-create. Y'all know what that means! Yep, to the "lab" for some experimenting. On a side note, my kitchen now has a new larger fridge and a dishwasher, this benefits y'all more than you may realize!

S'anyway, I was thinking on this idea, and originally I was going to make the same sandwich on an Arnold Thin. But then I thought, "Nahhh", because to me the white bread and mayo are part of what makes this sandwich so divine. Then, as I was testing out the new Arnold "Artisan Ovens" Flatbreads, I had a moment of inspiration. How about a Thanksgiving PIZZA???? 

By George, it is DELICIOUS!!! Even the vegetarian scarfed it down, he picked the turkey off his slices. Here's how I did it:

Jen's Gobble It Down Pizza

Ingredients: (for 2 pizzas, yields 12 small square slices)
2 Arnold Multigrain Flatbread thins
4 tbsp leftover Jen's Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce (jellied or whole berry is fine, your choice)
2 tbsp mayonnaise (light is ok, but don't use fat free or it will taste "off")
4 oz leftover roast turkey or chicken breast, cut into small pieces or shredded
2 oz leftover stuffing
1 cup shredded Italian 6-cheese blend

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the two flatbreads side by side, a couple inches apart, on a non-stick cookie sheet. 

In a small bowl, whisk together the cranberry sauce and mayonnaise. Spread half of the mixture evenly over each flatbread, this is your pizza "sauce."

Sprinkle the turkey meat evenly over the sauce. Then spoon the stuffing into small rounds, I made "pepperoni" from the stuffing. This way you get some in almost every bite without complete carb overload!

Now sprinkle cheese evenly over the top of each pizza. If you like yours less cheesy, you can certainly use less. I tend to like lots of cheese on my pizza, plus it's extra protein and the richness of the cheese complements the sweet tanginess of the cranberries very nicely.

Bake at 350 for 8 to 10 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted. The pic at the beginning of the post is the finished pizza, fresh out of the oven.

Let cool slightly, then cut each pizza into 6 squares for serving. Don't forget, the cook gets the first bite! Delicious!

 Don't want to serve them now? Assemble the pizzas but don't bake. Instead, freeze them in airtight freezer bags, then the next time guests stop by unannounced or you kids want a quick snack, you're all set! Pull the pizzas out of the freezer then bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

What Jen is Thankful for...

I don't even know where to begin counting my blessings, they are so abundant. I am thankful for reasonably good health, this has been a challenging year but I think everything is finally figured out and under control. At least it seems that way for the time being. I'm looking forward to going back to work in December and thankful that I have a job to go back to.

I'm thankful not to be 495 lbs anymore!

I'm thankful for my family, both the blood relatives, and those, like Nik and the divas, from "other Mothers." It's especially nice to know that no matter how far away I am from my real family, I am always surrounded by great friends who create a very special "family" all our own.

with my niece Karlee last summer

With my great-nephews Tyson and Trayden, or as their Momma calls them "TNT" (pun intended!)

with my Daddy last summer.

I am definitely thankful for my besties: Tina, Kathy, and the two Liz'es, plus my "Momma Peg" who adopted me as her "white chile" (as she calls me) about 20 years ago when I needed it the most. You girls keep me going when no one else can, and I know I can always count on you no matter what. Love Love Love you all!

My "Momma Peg" and my BFF Tina

I'm thankful  for my dogs, the two poodles Zeus and Mickey who actually are mine, and the two pitbulls Maya and Finn that have adopted me as their "person" too. There's no love quite like that of a dog, and these 2 boys and 2 girls always know when I need love the most.

I'm thankful for our military men and women and their families who sacrifice every day in countless ways to protect our freedom and way of life. Freedom isn't free, and that is a fact we should never take for granted.

God Bless America!

This may sound corny, but I am thankful to be financially independent and not have to rely on anyone else to support me or pay my bills. Like the song says, "I depend on me." Even though it is kind of scary (and occasionally precarious), it makes me feel good to know that I can and I am handling my own "bidness." It kinda sucks to be in the midst of divorce number two, but at least I am finding myself in all this mess and learning to put my needs ahead of the rest of the free world's. Definitely uncharted territory, but I'm glad to be here to explore it.

I'm very thankful for all of my friends in the WLS community, those I consider my friends are entirely too numerous to list here, but there are a few I wanted to single out as they have been there from day one of my journey and always given of themselves to help me on my path.

A heartfelt thank you from the bottom of my heart goes out to the following amazing WLS'ers:  Shari (Jupiter6 on OH) for her guidance, help, and occasional smacks with a clue-by-four as needed over the years. Tara (Tara K on OH) for her amazingly creative Crunchy Granola-ness and for always inspiring me to try harder.  Pam (Pam T on OH) for her tireless Googling and amazing research, not to mention her kickass graphic design work. Tony (Tony H on OH) for getting me addicted to Raving Rabbids and being his usual funny and hawt self.

Beth (Melting Mama.net) for just being the kind of take-no-prisoners, sarcastic, bed-jumping, cupcake eating, totally bad ASS, and hilariously in-your-face realistic friend that we all need at least a few of. Andrea (Andrea U on OH) for the absolute awesomeness she continues to share on vitamins and deficiency, and for being the voice of reason and knowledge in a very crazy post-op world. I would be dead somewhere right now if not for her and Shari, that is a no-shizzer. And of course, this list would not be complete without Carrie (RIWeasel on OH) for her stabbiness, and for making me laugh every damn day. I love that crazy girl to pieces.

Those are the select few who have been along for the ride this whole time, the rest of you certainly know who you are (Jaime, Ruth, Dee, Deb, Mandy, Angie, Crystal, Kris, I could go on and on and on)! Please don't be offended if you weren't mentioned by name, there is simply not enough space here to name every single person on this journey along with me for whom I am thankful. Thank you each and every one for your friendship, help, and support over the years. I'd never make it through this thing without all of you.

Last, and absolutely not at all least, I am thankful for Nik and the divas. Nik is an amazing friend and business partner, the perfect yin to my yang. She inspires me all the time, and we're like the perfectly matching opposite sides of the same coin. It's funny, but I would not want to even begin to try this with anyone else but her. She's the peanut butter to my jelly! Even though on occasion we work each other's nerves, we love each other enough to say so and get over it. That kind of friendship and business relationship is a rare gift indeed.

Partners in crime! Nik and Jen Summer 2009

The divas are a law unto themselves, they always make me laugh when I need it the most, and I love them as much as if they were my "real" nieces. Some of the things they come out with, I swear, are just damned hilarious. I would snap them up and bring them home with me in a cocaine heartbeat, but their Momma might not be too cool with that. At least not permanently! (On second thought, they are about to hit teens here soon, she may just pack them up and ship them to me!)

The Divas with my boy Zeus

Thank you all for everything, here's wishing you and your family a happy, healthy, and blessed holiday season. Happy Thanksgiving!

What Nik is thankful for...

Usually, I'm not into compilation lists of thankfulness. Mostly because I try to give thanks every day. But Thanksgiving is an opportunity to reflect on the bigger picture and I am learning to embrace that (or just get over myself). I thought I'd share with you just a few things I am thankful for this year. And this is me...so it's going to be a list of course!

#1...First and foremost, I am thankful that I am not THIS girl anymore

While this girl was nice and smart and funny...she didn't know it. And she didn't find herself worth the exploration to discover it. I remember her everyday and can only say that I recognize that she was doing the best she could with what she had to work with. But I am so thankful that I took this step to reclaim myself. Three years after surgery, the ultimate result, to me, cannot be measured simply in pounds lost. I often say I lost the weight but regained myself. That's sorta true. There wasn't much of a self in that girl. She barely knew who she was. Now, I still don't know the complete person...but I'm getting to know her and so for I like!

#2 - I am thankful for my divas

I quote them (and their antics) a lot. These two little women are my heart and soul. They challenge me (especially as le grande diva approaches adolescence). They make me think. They wipe my tears when I cry and bring me soup when I am sick. We are a single parent headed family so many times I don't have the patience that their friend's mom's (all of whom are married) have but I do love them fiercely.

#3 - I am thankful for my mother

She's struggling with some issues of her own right now but she's always been a symbol of strength for me. She has come through so much in life and is still standing. I know she'll come through her current trials. To me, she is a goddess and I love her!

#4 -  I am thankful for Goodwill

That would be me...for those of you not familiar!

And my imaginary friend Mischa...did I ever tell you about her? She is this fabulous girl who is exactly my size with impeccable taste. She is so fabulously fabulous that she changes her wardrobe every few weeks. But that's ok...because her trash is my treasure!

#5 - I am grateful to be a GUEST at Thanksgiving dinner this year

Last year I kinda delegated the collard green cleaning responsibilities...

Historically, I am the collard greens maker in the family. It's a tiring process. Yes, I know you can buy collards already picked and cut, but in years past we invited absolutely everyone to Thanksgiving and we made in excess of 30 lbs. of collards. Buying that many pre-cut is expensive. So my mom would haul crates of collards home and I would spend hours cleaning them (and cursing them). This year, my cousins are hosting and I am showing up...I'll eat my collards happily, knowing someone else did the work this year!

#6 - I am thankful for Jen...and all my friends

Jen and La Grande Diva within the hallowed walls of P.F. Chang's.

She is going to MURDER me for posting an unauthorized picture of her. Just remember me fondly peeps. I am so thankful the day I met her. Bariatric Foodie existed before we met, but Jen has taken this thing to a whole other level. Her Southern recipes (although, as she points out, technically Maryland is the south too...although it doesn't feel like it most of the time...), her no-nonsense approach to life and her absolute unwillingness to use anything but real butter! (I can't say I blame her on that one) I love her to pieces and thank God for her every day!

A few other special shout-outs: to the de-facto Pouch Party™ graphic designer, Pam, THANK YOU!!! You are my friend and sister and I love you! To my bestie, Lee, I adore you and thank GOD for the day you came to support group. A special shout-out to all my family on the OH RNY board and all of the Facebook fans! I appreciate you!

#7 - Last, but certainly not least...I am thankful for all of YOU!

This is me and Melting Mama at OH Conference in October 2009...who better represents the WLS "Everyman" than her? :) Love ya Beth!

Not just for reading this blog or coming to Pouch Parties™, but also for the encouragement you give me. I am not a guru. I am not an expert in anything. I learn from you and others, and I try to share neat things I come across. That's all. So thank you for giving me advice, giving me recipes, smacking me upside the head, lifting me up, occasionally deflating my ego and not laughing too hard when pictures of me on a mechanical bull surface on the internet.



Last Minute Thanksgiving Tips

~~posted by Jen

Individual or Side Table centerpiece: wine glass with pinecones, pumpkins, & gourds inside and a few fall flowers around the base. Pretty and EASY!!

Well guys, this is it! Tomorrow is the big day! (Or if you're on the East coast, today is the big day!) I don't know about y'all, but I have been running around like a maniac all day trying to finish up my last minute errands and get the big part of cooking prep out of the way.

Are you worried and fretting over how to handle a holiday foodfest since having weight-loss surgery? Nik and I remember that feeling very well, but we've got you covered with her BF Survival Guide to Thanksgiving. As usual, Nik has some very practical advice and tips that work well for any stage of the weight loss surgery journey.

If you're still wondering what to cook or making some last minute menu plans for the holiday, we have our WLS-friendly Thanksgiving posts all linked together here along with a Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce Recipe (both whole berry and jellied versions). I updated that post at the end to include a link to all the desserts we've posted for Dessert Week.

In case you missed it last night, I posted some easy yet elegant centerpiece ideas to make your tables look gorgeous, and I included a couple more here that are even faster and easier using some of the same components.

Nik and I are thankful for all of our friends, who also happen to be readers of our blog. We wish you a safe, happy, and healthy Thanksgiving!

Floating candles are inexpensive and beautiful on the table. This one is in a martini glass with a fall flower and gourd at the base of the glass. Group several together in an arrangement for your main table to create a beautiful centerpiece.

BF Crafty Corner: Thanksgiving Decorating Ideas Part 1

~~posted by Jen  


"Hello, my name is Jen, and I am addicted to seasonal decorating. I hit rock bottom when I had a temper tantrum at Christmas Tree Shoppe in Freehold, NJ because they only had 5 matching placemats for my tablescape and I needed 6."

Yes, I admit it. No shame here. I love for my house and yard to be decorated for every season or holiday. There is a very good reason my neighbors used to call me the Martha Stewart of Cliffwood Beach! Sadly, I don't live in Cliffwood Beach anymore.

What I am calling home these days is not "my" house, but in my inimitable fashion, I have stepped up to the challenge of making it mine. Not that the actual homeowners are always on board with that plan, but fear is a powerful motivator in small doses. Especially when it's coated in a sweetly irresistible accent. Not that I ever use that to my advantage or anything ***eyelash flutter***.

ANYWAY...since I know many of you share my love of making things look pretty, we decided to add a new feature called "Crafty Corner" to share holiday decorating ideas. We typically show some easy ideas at our regional Pouch Party™ events, like the Holiday Preview we just did in Baltimore. So it only made sense to share a few with you here on the blog as well!

My decorating budget is considerably less than what it once was, but I still like to make things look nice. It's important to me and, most of all, it makes me HAPPY! So I put together a few simple and inexpensive ideas for centerpieces for your Thanksgiving table.

If your Thanksgiving set up is anything like mine typically is, there will be several tables with food in addition to the main dining table. I like to place a small decorative item on each table, with the main centerpiece on the larger table where we'll actually be eating.

The cheaply chic crafter's best friend is a trifle bowl. It's more cost effective to get the set of several, that way you have plenty for both decorations AND delicious desserts like my Chocolate Trifle. I promise we will share many, many ways to utilize said trifle bowls in the future! Hey, maybe I should write a book....1001 things to do with a trifle bowl. No? Just a thought.

S'anyway, here's a pretty and simple idea using things you most likely already have or that are easy to find.
Layer small pine cones, baby pumpkins (real or plastic), and some autumn-colored flowers in a trifle bowl until it's full to the top.

Shown here on a cornucopia table runner ($5 from Dollar General) with plastic pumpkin topiaries on each side ($2 at Michael's). This entire set up cost $18 including the trifle bowl.

This looks very pretty on your table AND doesn't cost a fortune! Don't have a trifle bowl? No problem! Use the same items in a gold or brown basket. Bonus with the gold one, you can use it for Christmas also.

Basket was on clearance at Michael's for $3, so this whole set up cost $12 and looks quite elegant.

Now a couple of ideas for the actual buffet tables, or maybe even at individual place settings if you have a more intimate gathering for dinner. I love the challenge of finding things I already have in the house and re-purposing them for holiday decorations. These vintage green glass ice cream dishes have been in my cupboard just gathering dust, but they make a beautiful autumn votive holder with a green or gold candle burning in it. I placed a couple of the small items around it just to dress it up a bit.

The votives are great if you want to make sure your guests can see each other clearly over the centerpieces. You could also do a grouping of these together to make a larger "centerpiece."

Much like we tell you to play with your food and come up with your own twists on our recipes, mix it up and get creative with the things you already have to make something pretty and impressive. Tomorrow we'll share a few more ideas for quick and inexpensive decor.

Sugar Free Jellied Cranberry Sauce

~~posted by Jen

Yesterday I posted the Comprehensive Thanksgiving Recipe tips along with my Whole Berry version of Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce. I know some people are purists and don't like actual berries in their sauce, so this is the Sugar Free Jellied version.

My camera is still MIA, it's somewhere here in the remodelling mania. Hopefully I will find it since Dessert Week starts tomorrow and I need to take pics of my scrumptious creations! We'll still be sharing more Turkey Day tips, decorating and centerpiece ideas, along with the desserts, right up until the big day. No need to stress over your holiday cooking, we've got you covered!

Don't stress about those leftovers, either! Because all week NEXT week is Leftovers Week, we'll show you how to turn those turkey day leftovers into deliciously different meals that fit your plan AND please the fam!

Nik will kick us off tomorrow morning with something sweet and delicious that will perfectly complement your Thanksgiving meal. In the meantime, here's how to make the Jellied style Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce. Enjoy!




Pic Totally Jacked From Google


Jen's Sugar Free Jellied Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 cup 100 percent Cranberry juice (NOT Cocktail, use the Light or No Sugar Added)

1 cup Splenda

1 pound fresh Cranberries

1 (0.3 ounce)box sugar free Orange Jello gelatin(you could use strawberry or raspberry, not aware of a cranberry flavored one. The orange is a nice complement to the Cranberry)

Directions:

Wash the cranberries, remove any stems, and discard any soft or wrinkled berries.

Combine the cranberry juice and Splenda in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cranberries and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries burst and the mixture thickens.

Do not cook for more than 15 minutes as the pectin in the berries will start to break down and the sauce will not set as well. Remove from the heat, whisk in the box of Jello, and allow to cool for 5 minutes.

Note: If you are early out, or don't want any actual berries in your sauce, strain the mixture through a sieve before whisking in the Jello.

Carefully spoon the cranberry sauce into a 3 cup mold. Place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours and up to overnight.

Remove from the refrigerator, overturn the mold and slide out the sauce. Slice and serve.

Turkey Day Tips with Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce

~~posted by Jen


It's almost Turkey Day! What better time for the boys to decide we need to remodel my kitchen? I got home from Baltimore on Monday night to find the whole house in utter chaos. My camera is nowhere to be found, and I haven't been able to get in my kitchen to cook all. week. long. This does NOT make for a happy Jen, so I have been kinda crabby all week.

Appropriately, I did buy myself a "Don't bother me, I'm crabby!" t-shirt while in Maryland, so at least I have the wardrobe essentials to warn people. S'anyway, it's been a crazy week, and I know yours has probably been hectic as well with getting all the holiday details ironed out.

Nik has our back and planned out the perfect strategy for dealing with the food fest that is Thanksgiving in the BF Survival Guide posted earlier this week. Now I want to go back over some Thanksgiving menu-planning and recipes to make your holiday cooking as stress-free as possible.

First, if you've never roasted a turkey, or are concerned yours won't come out perfect, we've got you covered! Jen's Perfect Roast Chicken gives step by step instructions on how to do it, just adjust your cooking time based on the weight of your bird. It comes out perfect every time, I promise!

Since odds are that most of your guests will be non-ops, you need lots of options to fill them up without wrecking your plan. I usually serve my Roasted Butternut Squash Soup as a starter and it's always a hit.

Need some delicious, WLS-friendly side dish ideas? Green Bean Casserole is always popular, or you can roast some veggies. For Thanksgiving, I love to roast brussels sprouts and broccoli together and serve as a yummy side. Spritz it with lots of fresh lemon juice, maybe sprinkle in some sesame seeds or nuts to add extra crunch, and it tastes like delicious decadence when it's actually a green vegetable! Go figure!

Of course it's not Thanksgiving without the stuffing. Try Nik's Lower Carb Cornbread to get your stuffing started off on the right foot. I use it in my Momma's recipe and no one ever notices the difference.

Pic from Google, due to lack of camera.

Last but not least, we need some cranberry sauce! This is how my sister makes hers, I just tweaked it a bit to make it sugar free. Don't care for whole berry kind? Fear not! Tomorrow I'll post a different "Jellied" version for you purists out there! Here's how to do it:

Sugar Free Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce


Ingredients:
2 (8-ounce) packages fresh whole cranberries (or frozen if fresh aren't available)
1 small orange, zested and juiced**
1/2 cup Splenda
1 cinnamon stick


Directions:
Rinse your cranberries in a colander and pick through them, removing any stems or wilted berries. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the cranberries burst. Serve at room temperature or cool and refrigerate. (Remove cinnamon stick before serving.)  


**NOTE: If fruit juice makes you dump, omit the fresh orange juice, increase the Splenda to 3/4 of a cup, and add either 1-2 tsp of Orange Extract or Davinci SF Orange Syrup. 


***Update: Our Sugar Free Holiday Desserts are posted under Dessert Week, you can find them here.****