YOU FOUND IT. RIGHT HERE!
The challenge I gave myself was to create a delicious, satisfying, exciting, new yet familiar, holiday meal.
7 Dietary Restrictions
ANIMAL-FREE. GLUTEN-FREE. BREAD-FREE. PLANT MEAT AND DAIRY FREE. SOY-FREE. LOW FAT.
Well, I did it. And you can do it too! Here it is!
APPLE CRANBERRY BLACK BEAN SALSA
It’s Thanksgiving or any other holiday, so why not ratchet up your old favorites with a twist of new? Cranberry and apple in salsa? Why not? Take this dip with you to any gathering. Volunteer for the dip detail. You will change people’s taste buds forever. From now on they will expect the cranberries and apple in their salsa. They will, in fact, demand it. Where’re the cranberries? They don’t have them in the summer. Yes, they do. All year round in every grocery. Where’s the apple? Didn’t know you wanted apple. What??!! Everybody wants apple in their salsa. Where have you BEEN? Serve with any tortilla chips that strike you as appropriate; we’ll take care of everything else!
The only fat is in the chips.
Makes 5-1/2 cups
BAKED APPLES WITH QUINOA APPLE PINE NUT STUFFING low fat
If you don’t want to do the apples, that’s just as fine. Serve stuffing from stove-top as is. Perfect either way! However, the apples do add a festive touch to a festive holiday! And they’re easier than pie to make!
Serves 6
Tired of the same old mashed yams? Or the cubed and roasted style? Me too. Steve doesn’t like the texture. So what do I do with yams on sale? Try something new. Yam steaks! Pour the SMOKY CRANBERRY ORANGE GRAVY over, top with some pine nuts and a wonderful main dish event emerges to take over the table! I’m in. And Steve? Well, he ate the whole portion. Except for the pine nuts this dish is fat-free
Serves 6-8
SMOKY CRANBERRY ORANGE GRAVY fat free
If you’re looking for something different and familiar this is it! Plus you combine the cranberry and gravy into one dish, saving time and money. Did I mention how off-the-planet exciting cranberries can be when you recognize their potential? They’re just waiting to be explored!
Makes 3 cups
SMOKED ALMOND GARLIC GREEN BEANS
Not your typical green beans almondine. Better. Easy to make. I could make a main dish out of these beans and feel like I had a complete meal. Yet they go well with other main dishes, especially holiday ones. If you’re serving a crowd, this is a perfect side dish vegetable, requiring little effort!
Serves 6-8
FANTA ORANGE SODA SALAD DRESSING fat free
with sun-dried tomato, garlic and fresh orange – fat-free. A refreshing change in the way you dress your salads!
Makes 6 cups
You don’t have to go through the entire canning process to make pickled beets. Prep, cook, place in a jar and refrigerate to use as wanted. Here we add sweet onion strips and sweet red pepper. Then as we use the beets, we add other ingredients to the pickling jar, such as matchstick carrots and/or kidney beans (washed and drained). It makes a tasty salad by itself or as a side dish!
Makes 6 cups
SAFFRON APRICOT WALNUT POCKETS
These little pockets look like they took a while to make, but they didn’t. Complexity is the impression; simplicity is the reality! Wonderfully rich bites. The perfect dessert to savor with tea, coffee or wine!
Makes as many as you want
