Vegan Holiday Meal Ideas With Recipes

*Recipes* Sweet Dumpling Squash Stuffed with Lemon-Herb Rice blog.myspace.com Roasted Wheatmeat with Oyster Mushroom and "Sausage" Stuffing Brown Gravy Cranberry Relish Roasted Sweet Potato Sticks blog.myspace.com Black Bean Chili with Roasted Sweet Potatoes blog.myspace.com Vegan Eggnog / Pumpkin Pie Smoothie blog.myspace.com Roast Tofurky baked with Caramelized Onion and Cherry Relish / Vegetarian Stuffing blog.myspace.com Vegan Green Bean Casserole blog.myspace.com Pumpkin Cookies With Icing (optional) blog.myspace.com Straight-Up-Thanksgiving Burgers blog.myspace.com Vegan Apple Pie blog.myspace.com Raspberry Cheesecake blog.myspace.com Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls / Very Simple Blueberry Muffins blog.myspace.com "Turkey" Pot Pie blog.myspace.com "Chicken" Vegetable Casserole blog.myspace.com Ginger-Pecan Baked Peaches with Lettuce, Tempeh Bacon, and a Potato Pancake blog.myspace.com Creamy Chickpea Salad with Fresh Herbs blog.myspace.com Pumpkin and Black Bean Casserole Basic Crusty Bread blog.myspace.com Have a great Vegan Holiday and if you have any questions regarding the vegan recipes or anything about veganism I can help you. I know I should have posted this earliers so maybe some turkeys may have been spared but you can also use the same recipes of Christmas Much love and enjoy

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Thanksgiving Dinner - Planning Ahead For Stress-Free Holiday Hosting

Believe it or not, if you're the host, it's time to plan your Thanksgiving Dinner! I'm a natural procrastinator, so I've learned the hard way that planning ahead really is the best way to keep the holidays stress-free. You'll even be able to spend time with your guests without worrying about the meal. And your guests will appreciate a host who is relaxed and enjoying the day with them.

Go ahead now and confirm who will be coming for dinner and if they are bringing a date. Knowing about how many people you are cooking for, you can still plan a little extra just in case and have plenty of food if you extend a last minute invitation. You might also ask your guests if they have any dietary restrictions so you can be prepared if somebody has an allergy or health condition.

A few years ago, my husband suggested we order the turkey from a restaurant and then focus on the sides and dessert at home. The only thing I had to do to the turkey was warm it up and it didn't take up my oven all day! It worked so well, it is now part of my regular Thanksgiving Day plan. If you are making the turkey yourself, consider asking a guest to bring some sides or order dessert from your favorite bakery. Anything to feel like it's not all on your shoulders!

Two weeks before Thanksgiving, you should finalize your menu. Choose one or two recipes that you love and can make totally from scratch. These are the ones you can brag about to your guests. The rest can have a couple of ingredients that can come from a box or can. Nobody will know and now is not the time to be Superwoman. Double check your pantry for basics like sugar, flour and chicken stock, you'll need more than you think. Chances are there are some spices like Nutmeg and Allspice that you don't use often, so make sure you have enough. If you are a traditionalist, you might be planning a menu that includes turkey, stuffing, candied yams, some variety of green bean casserole, homemade rolls, pumpkin pie, etc. Want more variety? Go ahead and mix it up!

If you bake your own dinner rolls, make them now right up to the point where you place them on the baking sheet, then cover the whole pan with plastic wrap and put them in the freezer. You can pull them out Thanksgiving morning and they will thaw and rise by dinnertime. Short on space? After they are frozen, remove them from the pan, put them in a zip-lock bag and then back in the freezer.

Don't wait for the weekend before Thanksgiving to do your grocery shopping! Do it as soon as your menu is planned so you're not tempted to change your mind. Plus, you can skip the crowds and make sure the store has all of your ingredients in stock. There's nothing more frustrating than going from store to store looking for one major ingredient the day before you're hosting dinner.

Don't forget dessert. If you do your own baking, choose something that you can make at least two days before serving. If baking isn't your thing, now is the time to place your order at your favorite bakery. You will have a hard time ordering desserts from a popular bakery the same week as Thanksgiving, it's one of the busiest weeks of the year!

The Saturday before Thanksgiving, do any house cleaning that needs to be done, including washing the china, silverware and stemware you plan to use for dinner. Go ahead and set the table, put out the candles, vases and any other decorative items you want to use. Review your menu, noting the cooking times and temperatures for all of your dishes and plan your oven space accordingly.

Two days before Thanksgiving, make your desserts. This is often the most time-consuming part of preparing for a big dinner, especially if you are making more than one or two desserts for your guests. By making them ahead, you give yourself a little breathing room.

The day before, prep everything else so there are no surprises on Thanksgiving Day if you forgot an ingredient and the store is closed. If you plan this step properly, you can complete this in less than two hours. First, gather all of your ingredients on the counter, start the cornbread for the stuffing, boil the eggs and wash the vegetables. Next, peel and slice the potatoes. For mashed potatoes, put them in the pan, cover with water and put them in the refrigerator. For candied yams, spray your baking dish with non-stick spray, arrange the slices, add the other ingredients, cover and put in the fridge. Do the same thing for your other side dishes, getting everything completely prepped. The cornbread should now be ready to mix with the other ingredients for the stuffing, cover and put in the refrigerator. Use foil to cover your dishes and write in sharpie on top with the cooking time and temperature.

It's Thanksgiving Day! Your kitchen is clean and the table is set. You're a relaxed, stress-free host! All you have to do now is put your dishes in the oven and then enjoy spending the day with your guests! Happy Thanksgiving!

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8 Rules Of Christmas: Healthy Holiday Eating Tips

First of all, before anything else is said, let's agree on a couple of things.

Sharing good times with friends and family is part of what the holiday season is all about. When these groups get together, it is often in the presence of delicious, scrumptious food. This food tends to be available for snacking all day. Personally, I would immediately call the Vatican and nominate anyone for sainthood who could truly enjoy all the festivities and be awash in the total ambiance of all the season inspires while ignoring the lavish plates of goodies while walking around munching on a stick of celery.

Oh yeah! You're going to sample Aunt Millie's mincemeat pie, Uncle Bob's specially prepared fried turkey, and probably a glass of Alka-Seltzer or something similar.

Unfortunately, I am here to remind you of a few things; you are on a diet, you want to lose weight, all that stuff that is so tempting is fattening, and this is the hardest time of the year to be good. So, let's just pick up on a few rules to help you get through the season.

8 Rules For Healthy Holiday Eating:

Before we get started, I want you to get comfortable, so put some turkey on your plate, get some of that great dressing (don't forget the cranberry sauce), fight Cousin Ed for some of that green bean casserole my niece, Sharon, makes so well, and tell Grandma to save a piece of pie for you. Have a seat, relax, enjoy your meal (while balancing a soggy paper plate on your knee) and I will give you the rules to help you survive the season.

1. Forgive yourself in advance and give yourself permission to have a good time:

Look, this stuff isn't poison! You didn't take 10 years off your life just because you ate more than you should have...and then went back for seconds. You are only human, and you are here to have a good time! One of the reasons you want to lose weight, or keep it down, is so that you can enjoy life, and this is one of the most enjoyable times of the year. So, as they say, live a little. Whatever happens over the next few days will not kill you, and whatever damage you do manage to do can be rectified.

2. It's just a couple of days:

Okay, for some families, it may be a couple of weeks...twice...Thanksgiving and Christmas, or Hanukkah, or Kwanza. Whatever it is for you, it is finite, it WILL end, and it is mainly limited to a certain time of the year. Who you are in terms of health, fitness, and weight loss is determined by the overall accomplishments of the year, not by a few weeks in the fall.

3. Stay with your program:

You will definitely minimize the effects of all the dinners, cookies, and snacks if you can still get in your walks, aerobics, weight training, or whatever else you have been doing. During the holiday season, it can be difficult to get everything done the same as in the rest of the year, but two days of exercise Thanksgiving week, while not as good as three or five, is still better than none. Simply knowing you have not abandoned your plan will help you get over any depression you might have because of your holiday eating, and will help reduce any negative effects from all the delicious, gooey calories you have "accidentally" consumed. If you cannot stay on a formal program, squeeze in a walk, even if it is a high-speed shopping trip through the mall. By the way, this is the reason I love yoga. When everything's done, I can retire to my bedroom and not only get the physical benefits of the yoga session, but I relieve some of the stress I may have built up during the day. That helps with the eating too.

4. Remain in touch with reality:

You will hear people speak of "mindful eating". Be aware of what you are doing. Have you ever heard someone say, "That is so good, I just have to have some more."? Of course, YOU and I never say things like that! Well, the truth is that you DON'T have to have some more, and, if you do, it doesn't need to be right now. Just because the food is there right now doesn't mean it has to be eaten right now. You know what's good for you and what isn't. One piece of pie today is not going to kill you or destroy your weight loss resolution, but do you have to have that pie? Isn't there a healthier treat you could have, or could you just wait until the meal has settled, or after you take a walk to rev up your metabolism and burn off some of what you already ate? Why not take a piece home with you and have it as a treat for later...when you aren't as full as a tick?

5. Food is not love:

Many people tend to equate food and eating with love. You cannot change the others, but you can change your own attitude. Refusing seconds of Grandma's turkey does not mean you don't love her. If she is hurt because you normally stuff yourself and this year you're not doing her food "justice", just say that you are full right now but will have more later. Take control of YOUR life. Others will have to take control of their own.

6. If you are the cook:

Choose healthy dishes prepared in a healthy manner. If you have found a new diet-friendly food that you enjoy, share that with others. This will give you one more healthy dish on the groaning board to select your own meal from.

7. Alcohol:

If you enjoy wine, beer, egg nog like my Uncle Wilbur liked, or other drinks containing alcohol, just slow down and cut back. Try slipping in a glass of water between drinks. Drinks containing alcohol are sneaky calories. They do nothing for you nutritionally, but they do have a lot of calories. A few drinks with friends can give you more calories than a Big Mac...and you probably have these drinks while snacking or eating a meal! Oh well! At least if you are a beer drinker, you can try some light beers. It will give you an excuse to sample.

8. Be happy to be where you are, doing what you are doing, with the people you love:

If you fall head over heels off the diet wagon, have fun. What you do throughout the year will have more effect on your weight and health than what happens between Thanksgiving and New Year's.

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Holiday Broccoli Casserole

I took a classic recipe from our Thanksgiving table and updated it! Our family never ate the green bean casserole, we ate broccoli casserole. My updated version eliminates the canned soup in favor of a homemade roux made with Philadelphia Cream Cheese. Another change I made to take the casserole out of this world is switching the french fried onions for caramelized red onions instead! Don't wait until the Holidays to try this wonderful casserole!

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