Healthy Thanksgiving

My Thanksgiving was quiet and peaceful.

On the menu:
Turkey
Cranberry Sauce
Sauteed Green Beans
Au Gratin Potatoes
Sweet Potato Casserole
Rolls with homemade honey butter
Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

I won't share every recipe, but I will share a few. I already posted the recipe for Double Layer Pumpkin Pie.  I used a Weight Watchers recipe for Au Gratin Potatoes except that I added dry mustard and cayenne pepper.

Cranberry Sauce
1 cup water
1/2 cup Splenda
1 bag cranberries
1 orange (chopped)
1 apple (chopped)

It's pretty easy. Dissolve the Splenda over medium heat. Add the cranberries, orange and apple.  It's done when the cranberries have popped and sauce has thickened. My mom used wine instead of water. And if you want to be really creative, use 1/2 cup water, 1/2 juice (orange or your fav...just be careful so the flavors don't clash). If you do use juice, cut the sugar in half.

Turkey
For my turkey, I made a herb butter. I eyeballed it for my turkey. It was just me and my boyfriend so I didn't need a big turkey.

Mix low fat margarine. I like Country Crock Lite. Finely chop garlic, fresh rosemary, and poultry herb mix. I added Vegeta, but you can use salt. I rubbed it underneath the skin and then all over the top of the turkey so it browns. It was pretty yummy. I normally chop up an apple, celery, and onion and stick it in the cavity of the turkey. I didn't this year, but you can. Turkey was incredibly juicy and tender.

That's all for now :). It might be a while before my next post. I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving meal.

Romanian Meatballs

Parjoale

Parjoale (Romanian Meatballs) are a favorite of mine. There are many ways to make them. I even alter the recipe sometime. I've made it my own.  I made this batch last week.

½ lb ground turkey

½ lb beef

2 eggs

1 Cup bread crumbs (or corn meal, I’ve use both)

2 shredded carrots

1 medium onion, finely chopped

5 cloves of garlic finely minced

2 tbs tomato paste

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can tomato soup

2 tbs caraway seeds

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

Mix the meat, eggs, bread crumbs, onion, and seasonings. Heat skillet with 2 tbs of EVOO. Roll meat into small balls. Pan fry until meat is cooked. In the same skillet, add the tomato soup and diced tomatoes. Simmer for 10-15 min on med- low heat.

Variations: I use about one or two teaspoons of Vegeta. By the way, I use Vegeta in almost everything. I normally use bread crumbs. Some people use flour or cornmeal. In the past, I've also used grated radish. You don't have to make the red sauce. You can parjoale plain and dip in mustard. 

Pofta buna (good appetite)!