Thanksgiving Recipes...

So I thought I would post a few recipes I am planning on making for Thanksgiving this year.  As you know, I have been cleaning up my diet, removing flours, sugars, and processed unnatural foods.  However, I usually have a cheat meal twice a week, where I get to enjoy myself a bit.  So, for Thanksgiving, I am going to have a cheat DAY.  I don't remember the last time I had a Cinnamon roll (besides my mom's Christmas sticky buns once a year), so I am making pumpkin Cinnamon rolls for breakfast to start...



               Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing

                                 makes approximately 15-16 rolls

Ingredients:

Roll Dough:

1/4 cup warm water (not hot, about 110 degrees)

1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast

1/3 cup warm milk

1 large egg, beaten

3/4 cup pumpkin puree, either fresh or canned

1 tablespoon melted butter

2 cups (approximately) All-Purpose Flour

1 1 /4 cup Whole Wheat Flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Filling:

1 stick butter

2/3 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon each of allspice and ginger

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon cloves

Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 ounces cream cheese

1 stick (4 ounces) butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon lemon juice

2-3 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

In a large bowl, stir yeast into water to soften. Let rest for 5 minutes before stirring. Add milk, eggs, pumpkin, butter, 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom to yeast mixture. Beat vigorously for 2 minutes.

Gradually add remaining flour (all purpose), a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Start with about 1 1/2 cups and increase if necessary. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, elastic dough.

Put dough into an oiled bowl. Turn once to coat entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Combine the white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg and cloves in a small bowl, set aside. Transfer the risen dough to a lightly greased work surface, and pat or roll it into a 16" x 12" rectangle. Spread softened butter over dough and then sprinkle with the sugar mixture.

Roll the dough into a log the long way; it'll stretch to about 20" long as you roll. Using a very sharp knife, slice the log into 15 slices. In order to cut down on drag, it helps to rinse the blade in hot water, and wipe it off, between slices. Place slices in a greased 9x13 inch baking pan (or in two 8 or 9 inch round cake or pie pans). Cover with a towel and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 375°F oven. Bake the rolls till they're brown around the edges and beginning to turn golden brown across the center, about 20-30 minutes.

While rolls bake, prepare the cream cheese frosting. Add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and lemon juice to a small food processor. Blend until smooth and combined. Add the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, blending in between, until well mixed and desired consistency is reached. (I used 2 cups powdered sugar)

Frost warm rolls with the cream cheese frosting and serve immediately.

For night before prep: Prepare the rolls up to the point where you roll and place in the pan. Then, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, remove the pan from the fridge and proceed with the instructions where you left off. Rising time may be slightly longer than noted in the recipe due to the dough being cold vs room temp.

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Toasted Pine Nuts

Ingredients

3 C Brussel sprouts

2 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp, plus 1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 C pine nuts

Preparation
Wash and remove outer leaves.  Cut sprouts in half.


Instructions
Prepare sprouts as directed and place in medium bowl. Toss the sprouts with vinegar, 2 Tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper. Place on baking sheet and put in preheated 375 degree oven. After 10-15 minutes turn over the sprouts and bake the remaining 10-15 minutes. In small pan toast the pine nuts. Sprinkle nuts on top of the sprouts and serve.

The last thing I make is something I make every year.  Cranberry relish...

Fresh Cranberry relish

Ingredients

1 bag of fresh cranberries

1 whole orange (seeded)

3/4 c. sugar

Directions

In a blender or food processor, blend cranberries and orange.  Add to a bowl and stir in sugar.

We are going to my parents to enjoy the holiday so there is going to be a ton of food there.  We usually make it like a potluck... everyone brings a dish or two.  There is going to be about 20 people and I cannot wait.  C is really excited that I'm making the cinnamon rolls for just us two.  Since we have both been eating healthier, I rarely make things like that because I have too many leftovers.  Its a lot for just the two of us. 

We are also really excited because we "adopted" a family for Thanksgiving as well.  Our city has a program call "Project Self-sufficiency."  It is such an awesome program that helps single mothers get on their feet.  The family we have this year is a mom  of four kids, 16, 15, 13, 8.  We ordered a complete Thanksgiving meal from Marie Calendars for them to enjoy.  We are also bringing a game they can play together as a family.  I asked what game they wanted and they wanted Monopoly.  I was a little surprised because I just figured that would be one everyone had.  It is a humbling reminder of how many people struggle and don't have the "simple things" that we assume most people would have, especially those with kids.  She was very grateful that we offered to do that for them as well.  We are going to drop it off tomorrow night, which I'm looking forward too.

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and to remind you to remember those who are less fortunate than us.  Sometimes I think it is easy to become self-focused when dealing with IF.  Because we are struggling we forget that others are struggling to a greater degree.  It is so important to still help those less fortunate. 

ENJOY YOU TIME WITH YOUR FAMILIES AND TRY TO PUT IF ON THE BACK BURNER FOR A DAY (given your cycles permit)!