Thanksgiving Menu Ideas

I can’t believe it is already time to post this. I’m a little nervous about the holidays this year. This will be the first year for a gluten-free Thanksgiving. Last year I was on a pretty strict diet, but I cheated a little and suffered the consequences. This year – none of that! I’m not nervous about the food. I’m nervous about the interactions during meal time. I definitely don’t want to hurt feelings or step on toes about not eating what the family cooks. However – I simply can’t afford to have a bad day due to poor diet choices. So here goes nothing (wish me luck!) As I’m sure many of you are doing, we are traveling some. We aren’t traveling far but we do have several dinners to go to or make. One thing I will miss this year – my mom’s pumpkin pie and my mother-in-law’s ham. Oh gosh… my mom always makes an extra pumpkin pie, just for me! I take it home; eat it again that night, for breakfast the next day, etc. We will have to work on an alternative but for now, no “Mom’s Famous” pumpkin pie for this girl. I’ve learned that you shouldn’t have to suffer or feel guilty about not eating holiday meals. There are many options out there; you just have to find what’s best for you. What we have decided to do is to just make our own “traveling” Thanksgiving dinner. I will make our own meal and take it to the dinners we are going to. For those coming to our house to eat, they can eat what we cook. If they don’t want to, they can bring their own. It’s not the best solution I’m sure, but it’s the best one we’ve come up with. I can’t touch, eat, or be around gluten. If anyone has other suggestions – I’m all for hearing about them! Anyway – I wanted to present some options to any of you having this same problem. Or if any of you are just wanting to try something new this holiday season, try one of the recipes below! Either way, it’s Thanksgiving and it’s a great time of year to be thankful for what we have. Whether you are doing a typical family tradition, or like us – trying something new, just remember how fortunate we all are. I sometimes find myself wondering why this happened to me, but at the end of the day I have to be thankful. I’m thankful God put me in this position to help me learn and challenge me. I have learned so much about taking care of my body and my health. My situation has also made me realize how fortunate it is to enjoy a meal with family. Something as simple as dinner can be taken away so quickly. Some may not be able to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner due to food allergies or illnesses. Others may simply not be able to afford it. Regardless, I am so very thankful for the opportunity to create a tasty, healthy meal on this wonderful day and I hope you all are too. Of course, I’m thankful for millions of other things but this is a food blog after all! Check out the full day’s menu options below and try some of the recipes – they should all be linked to the original posts complete with pictures. Have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!

    

Breakfast:

Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls (Maple or Original)
Banana Oatmeal Pancakes – my most popular! (for extra energy if you have having a late lunch)
Cinnamon Scones
Appetizers
Shrimp Dip
Veggie Pizza
Watermelon Mint Jam – served with crackers/chips
Smoked Chicken Antipasto
Lunch/Dinner:
Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breasts - for an alternative to turkey
Made Over Mashed Potatoes
Balsamic Green Beans
Roasted Fall Veggies
Deceptive Mac & Cheese
Stuffed Acorn Squash (or stuffing)
Mushrooms, Onions & Swiss Chard
Butternut Pumpkin Biscuits
Red Wine Cranberry Sauce
Desserts
Upside Down Apple Cake
Cranberry Pear Crisp with Lavender – my favorite!
Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies – for the kids!
Pumpkin Pie with Almond Crust – if you want to get real fancy
Beverages
Apple Cider
Pumpkin Spiced Chai Latte
Strawberry Lemonade  - for the kids

Pumpkin Chai Caramel Cookies

Here’s another OMG moment. Remember my last one?? Here’s a refresher – my Pumpkin Chai Thumbprints. I actually used the same base for this cookie, but instead of putting a Hershey’s Kiss on top, I stuffed them with caramels. In our opinion, these were even better! I don’t think there’s anything else to say about them – just let the cookie do the talking J

¼ cup non-dairy butter

½ cup pumpkin
¼ cup coconut sugar
¼ cup Stevia
¼ cup strong chai tea (I steeped one bag in about ½ cup water for a few minutes)
1 Tbsp milled flaxseed
3 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
¼ cup coconut flour
1 cup rice flour
½ cup white sorghum flour
½ cup tapioca starch
1 tsp xanthan gum
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp dry chai tea blend (I used one half of a tea bag – just cut it open and use!)
10 Kraft Caramels, cut in half to make 20 pieces.

• In a large mixing bowl, mix together butter, pumpkin, sugar and stevia.
• Add in liquid Chai tea, flaxseed, water and vanilla. Blend until well combined.
• Gradually add in remaining dry ingredients. Mix until dough is well blended.
• Using a cookie scoop, make cookie dough balls and add one piece of caramel to the middle. Shape dough around caramel so that it is completely covered. 
• Flatten with your palm and bake at 350°F for about 10-13 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Let cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Store in a sealed container.
• NOTE: I chose to make these egg-free so that’s where the flaxseed came in. If you’d rather use an egg, just substitute one egg for the flaxseed and water.
• Also – the Kraft Caramel is a RARE and special treat that we don’t usually have. I made a few of these without them also for myself as they are not on my diet. They still give a nice fall cookie treat for someone to enjoy!

Pumpkin Chai Thumbprints

So I don’t say this too much but OMG – these cookies are FANTASTIC! Chai tea is one of my go-to comfort drinks and as you’ve noticed – I love pumpkin. These are a perfect blend. They are great by themselves, but throw that Hershey’s Kiss on top and you’ve got something magical. I originally got the idea for this recipe off of Pinterest. Therefore I can’t take credit for the whole idea – I think the original post I found was from www.passthesushi.com for a Chai spice cookie. There are many pins for a similar type of cookie out there but I didn’t find any gluten free. Anyway – I made my own little version here and I hope you love it as much as we do!

¼ cup non-dairy butter

½ cup pumpkin
¼ cup coconut sugar
¼ cup Stevia
¼ cup strong chai tea (I steeped one bag in about ½ cup water for a few minutes)
1 Tbsp milled flaxseed
3 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
¼ cup coconut flour
1 cup rice flour
½ cup white sorghum flour
½ cup tapioca starch
1 tsp xanthan gum
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp dry chai tea blend (I used one half of a tea bag – just cut it open and use!)
20 Hershey’s Pumpkin Spice Kisses

• In a large mixing bowl, mix together butter, pumpkin, sugar and stevia. Add in liquid Chai tea, flaxseed, water and vanilla. Blend until well combined.
• Gradually add in remaining dry ingredients. Mix until dough is well blended.
• Using a cookie scoop, make cookie dough balls and place onto greased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.
• Flatten with your palm and bake at 350°F for about 10-13 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove cookies from oven and immediately place one Hershey’s Kiss in the middle of each cookie.
• Let cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Store in a sealed container.
• NOTE: I chose to make these egg-free so that’s where the flaxseed came in. If you’d rather use an egg, just substitute one egg for the flaxseed and water.
• Also – the Hershey’s Kiss is a RARE and special treat that we don’t usually have. I made a few of these without the Kiss for myself as they are not on my diet. Once again – they are still great without them!

Apple Cider Chai Latte

How about another warm fall drink to start your Sunday?? Last week I made a Pumpkin Spice Chai Latte and it was great – apparently you all thought so as well! I need a warm drink this morning and had some freshly juiced apples so I thought we’d give it a try! Grab a mug, pour some of this delicious latte and have a quiet moment to yourself (or do like I did and try to tune out your kids for a couple seconds!).

½ cup almond milk

½ cup strong brewed chai tea
¼ cup fresh apple juice (not from concentrate!)
1 tsp honey
½ tsp cinnamon
Whipped topping, if desired
Apple pie spice, if desired

• In a saucepan, combine milk, tea, juice, honey and cinnamon and bring to boiling.
• Cook for a couple minutes and let cool.
• Once tea has cooled slightly, pour into a mug.
• Top with whipped topping and a sprinkle of apple pie spice if desired. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Chai Latte

How about a recipe for a great fall morning drink? I woke up this morning to a cool 50°F and rain. We also have soccer games today that were not cancelled. I’m sure glad I decided to whip this drink up this morning as I needed a warm start to the day! I don’t drink a lot of coffee but I get tired of plain tea all of the time. This turned out perfect! Enjoy! This makes about two small servings or one  big one!

1 cup almond milk (I used unsweetened vanilla)

½ cup chai tea concentrate (Store bought or homemade-see below)
1 tsp pumpkin puree
½ tsp honey
¼ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp pumpkin pie spice
whipped topping, if desired

• In a small blender (I used my Magic Bullet), blend together milk, tea, pumpkin, honey and cinnamon. Blend for about 45 seconds or until drink is smooth.
• Warm the drink mixture either on the stove or in the microwave to desired temperature.
• Pour into a coffee mug, add whipped topping and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice if desired.

 

CHAI TEA CONCENTRATE

½ cup water

1 Chai tea bag

• Heat water in a small saucepan, add tea bag and steep for about 10 minutes or until tea is very strong.