Healthy Thanksgiving Cooking

Thanksgiving is two weeks away from tomorrow! Hope that doesn't freak anyone out too much! As stated in my earlier post, I will be hosting for a small group this year. I am very excited to host, but mostly excited to finally use all of the serving dishes that I got from my wedding!

I love Thanksgiving, but I'm always cautious to not eat too much because many traditional dishes are loaded with calories and fat. According to ACE Fitness, the average Thanksgiving meal has around 3,000 calories! Ah, just writing that number makes me feel like I just gained weight. Don't worry, I'm not going to tell you to not eat on Thanksgiving. That would just be cruel. Instead, over the next two weeks, I will provide you with some healthier Thanksgiving options that you can serve.

Last night, I tried out my first homemade stuffing. After doing a lot of research, I found a recipe for Cornbread and Turkey Sausage Stuffing. It was delicious! A lot of stuffing recipes are loaded with butter and pork sausage, but this one has no butter and uses Italian turkey sausage. Therefore, the fat content is drastically lower!

I also love this stuffing because it is filled with flavor, low in sodium, and extremely moist. Oh, and did I forget to mention that it's really easy to make? Give this recipe a try for your Thanksgiving dinner or for dinner tonight. Let me know what you think in the comments below, and remember that you can avoid Holiday weight gain with Fueling Strong!

Also, today I am so honored to have my blog featured on Fit Blogger. For those of you who have not checked it out yet, click here to see the feature. Fit Blogger is an awesome community of health and wellness bloggers, who share my similar passion of helping others achieve their fitness goals.

                                               Cornbread and Turkey Sausage Stuffing
                                                           Recipe from Eating Well
                                                          Serves 12 (1 C Servings)

Ingredients

1 Pound Sweet Italian Turkey Sausages (about 4 links), casings removed
1 Yellow Onion, Finely Chopped
4 Celery Stalks, Finely Chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 tsp salt
Ground Pepper, to taste
12 Cups Prepared Cornbread, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1/4 C Parsley, Chopped
1 T Fresh Sage, Chopped
1.5 - 2 C Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth

Start Cookin'

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Coat a 9x13 pan with cooking spray.
2. In a large skillet, brown the turkey sausage. Once the  meat is browned, drain the fat in a colander and rinse the meat to get rid of any extra grease.
3. Place the meat back in the saute pan and add the onion and celery. Cook this for about 10 minutes until the veggies are tender.
4. Transfer the meat mixture into a large bowl and add season with salt and pepper.
5. Add the cornbread, sage, and parsley and mix gently. Be careful not to break up the corn bread too much.
6. In a small pan, bring the broth to a simmer. Ladle 1 C of broth over the bread mixture and gently stir. Continue to add broth by 1/2 C increments until the bread is moist but not wet.
7. Transfer the stuffing into the prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes.

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Month of Gratitude:
I am grateful to have parents who have never held me back from achieving my dreams. They constantly told me to chase my dreams no matter how far from home my endeavors took me. I am grateful that to this day they still support my decisions, and encourage me to fly. Love you mom and dad!

Introducing Turkey...

I have learned so much in the mere 5 days that Glenn and Amelia have been here. In case you missed my last post, Kyle and I have friends from Australia living in our living room for 13 days. We have enjoyed showing them around Indiana and Chicago, but what we love most is hearing about where they live and the differences between Australia and the US. For example, high fructose corn syrup is ILLEGAL there! Every health freak's dream! That means all products with it are banned (ie. Pop Tarts). I personally have enjoyed watching their faces as they browse the candy aisle at the grocery store. Amelia is amazed by all of the different kinds we have. I'm sure by next Wednesday she will try a lot of them, or take them back with her.

We introduced Amelia to fro-yo. Her life has changed.

I also introduced Glenn and Amelia to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I couldn't believe that they don't eat them in Australia! Don't worry, they instantly fell in love with the combo, and made me feel like I was a gourmet chef for introducing them to America's go-to sandwich. I'm sure in the next week we will open their eyes to even more different American foods.

In Australia they don't eat a lot of ground turkey, so I decided to make Burrito Bowls (my favorite ground turkey dish). A lot of burrito bowls that you see on menus rack in a ton of calories because they are made with beef, a lot of cheese, sour cream, and heaps of rice. You don't have to worry about that with this meal, though. In my burrito bowls I use quinoa to boost the protein content and lean ground turkey to reduce the total fat. If you aren't a big fan of meat like me, you can also make this with tofu! It is equally delicious. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

                                                                         Burrito Bowls
                                                                             Serves 4

Ingredients

1 lb Ground Turkey
1/4 C Salsa (Medium or Mild depending on your desired heat)
1 T Chili Powder
1 T Cumin Powder
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1 Yellow Onion, Chopped
1 Green Pepper, Chopped
1 C Quinoa
3 C Water
1 Can Black Beans (Drained and Rinsed)
1 T Chopped Cilantro

Additional toppings: Cheddar Cheese, Low Fat Sour Cream, Hot Sauce, Salsa, Baked Tortilla Chips

Start Cooking

1. In a medium skillet, brown the turkey. Once it has been cooked all the way through, add the salsa, chili powder, cumin, and garlic powder.Add salt and pepper to taste.Set aside.
2. In a medium pot, cook the quinoa with 3 C of water over medium high heat until the grain has spouted and all of the water is absorbed. Set aside.
3. Saute the peppers and onions over medium high heat until they are caramelized. This will take 8-10 minutes. Set aside.
4. Now it's time to make the bowls. Grab 4 bowls and divide the quinoa equally between the bowls. Layer on top of the quinoa with the turkey, onions/peppers, and black beans. Top each bowl with a little cilantro, and add additional toppings if you desire.
5. Mix the bowl up and enjoy!