I'm Full of It

For having plenty of food on the table.

For friends who care.

For family that loves me.

For knowing a loving God, who has truly blessed me.

For hair-ties & ponytails.

For everyone who reads this blog.

For being able to walk.

For having a warm house.

For the lettuce & kale that are still growing in my garden.

For plenty of sweaters & blankets in my closets.

For having a job & the ability to work.

For freshly popped popcorn.

For a wonderful husband who treats me like gold.

For thick, fuzzy, snuggly socks.

For forests & hiking.

For lotion to soothe my perpetually dry skin.

For the time & the ability to read a book.

For chocolate.

For peanut butter.

For the person who decided to combine chocolate & peanut butter.

For clean water to drink.

For happiness.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

 

Cranberry, Beet & Pear Salad

I'm in a festive mood! I'm so ready for the upcoming holidays & everything they include. I love all of the family & friend time, yummy foods, decorating, gift wrapping/giving, & general excitement!

As we go into the holidays, I'm trying to keep our dinners healthy, light, & full of nutrients. With the weather getting cooler, it's so tempting to cozy up by the fireplace in the evenings & become a lot less active. The chilly weather also makes people much more susceptible to diseases, so I want to make sure we're fueling our bodies with lots of healthy foods.

Our oven has been on almost every night. Something about this dreary weather makes me crave warm foods. I may or may not also want to use the oven because it warms up the kitchen. I always leave the door open after I turn it off to let all the heat into the room. :-)

You're looking at our entire beet crop. I planted 2 rows! :-( They just didn't get big. It took me forever to clean these because they were all about the size of a vitamin. There were only about 4 or 5 that made it to ping pong ball size. Still, they tasted the same! I'm thankful to have gotten any at all.

I love the way beets color everything around them. Cranberries do the same thing, so this made a really pretty medley. The onion wedges turned a pinkish purple after they were done baking. 

Maybe this looks more like Christmas than Thanksgiving...

The cranberries add a lightly tart flavor to the salad. Combined with the crunch of the hazelnuts & the sweetness of the beets & pears, this salad was warming & fresh at the same time.

Cranberry, Beet & Pear Salad

Yield: 2 main dish salads or 4 side salads

4 large beets

1 medium white onion

1/2 c fresh cranberries

1 T balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp. black pepper

4-5 c lettuce mixture (romaine, red leaf, spinach, radicchio, etc.)

2 pears

1/3 c roasted hazelnuts

1/3 c Cranberry Dressing (see below)

Preheat oven to 400*F. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray. Cut beets and onion into uniform wedges. In a medium bowl, combine beet wedges, balsamic vinegar, and pepper. Arrange on baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring once. Add onion wedges and cranberries, mixing with beets. Bake another 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep from sticking.

In the meantime, divide lettuce between two (or four) bowls. Thinly slice pears and arrange on top. Once beet mixture is done roasting, divide between salads as desired. There may be some extra - this will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days and can be reheated. Top salads with hazelnuts and Cranberry Dressing.

Note: If you don't feel like making the Cranberry Dressing, you can still make this salad! There are cranberry dressings available in some stores, or you could substitute either Raspberry Vinaigrette or Balsamic Vinaigrette.

Cranberry Dressing

Inspired by How Sweet Eats & Oh She Glows

Yield: 1 1/2 cups

1 c fresh cranberries

1/2 of a pear, roughly chopped

1/2 of an apple, roughly chopped

1/4 red onion, roughly chopped

1/2 jalapeno, chopped & seeded

1/4 c apple cider vinegar

2 T lime juice

3 T orange juice

2 T honey

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 T dried cilantro (or 1/4 c fresh cilantro)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Combine everything in a food processor or high speed blender and blend until smooth. Taste & add more honey or salt if desired. Store remaining dressing in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Yummy Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas

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It's almost Thanksgiving!!! Is everyone done putting together their menus & shopping for food? I'm not hosting dinner, but I am bringing a few dishes to our dinners. We're having lunch with the Bup's family & dinner with mine. Talk about a lot of food & family! We did this 2 years ago, though, & it really wasn't that bad.

Since the main focus of both of our families' meals is the turkey, I'm bringing an alternate dish for us to eat & share. I'm also bringing a pumpkin roll to lunch. Everyone always gets excited for it!
Thanksgiving meals have never been my favorite. I think it's partly because the dessert table never has much chocolate on it! That said, I still get really excited about all the fall harvest flavors.

If someone offered to cook me the Thanksgiving meal of my dreams, here's what I'd pick. Lots of bloggers have been showcasing foods for the holidays, & here are my favorites! Just in case you're in the mood to cook for me. :-)

Main Dish:  Pumpkin Maple Baked Bean Cornbread Casserole from Oh She Glows
(This is what I'm planning to make & share!)


Vegetable:  Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Apples & Almonds from Happy Healthy Mama
(I'm a sucker for roasted brussels sprouts. Her additions look very festive.)

Stuffing:  Carmelized Autumn Fruit Stuffing Cups from How Sweet Eats
(pictured above - we had this for dinner last week & it was SO good!)

Salad:  Bliss Salad or End of Summer Salad from Peas and Thank You
(We had the Bliss Salad a few weeks ago & it was good enough to have again)
                             or
            Holiday Salad with Cranberry Apple Orange Vinaigrette from Oh She Glows
(This looks super festive. I love the color of the vinaigrette!)


Bread:  Flaky Crescent Rolls from Eat Live Run
(I always loved the ones from the can. These look way better!)
                              or
           Banana Cranberry Bread from Joy the Baker
(Can I just have both breads? Thanks!)


Potatoes:  High Protein Garlic Mashed Potatoes from Oh She Glows
(Anytime someone puts garlic into mashed potatoes, I'm in love. The beans are a great addition, too!)
                                 or
                Baked Curry Sweet Potato Fries from Joy the Baker
(The sweet potato fries remind me of the grilled ones I made over the summer. Thanksgiving isn't really the time for grilling, though!)


Cranberry Sauce:  Cranberry Pear Salsa from How Sweet Eats
(We tried this over the weekend. Yum!!)

Dessert: Upsidedown Cranberry Cake from Smitten Kitchen
(This is seriously delicious. I made it last year & can't wait to have it again. I think I'd double the cranberries.)
                               or
No-Bake Chocolate Pumpkin Pie from Chocolate Covered Katie
(Finally, some chocolate!)


Is anyone interested in enjoying a Thanksgiving feast with me? We can do a potluck! :-)

I'm making my list of what I'm thankful for to share with you. What are you thankful for this year?