Menu Plan Monday: November 16, 2015
Get ready for Thanksgiving with recipes and healthy eating tips! Plus, this week’s Link Love and Menu Plan Monday!
I really can’t believe we’re less than two weeks away from Thanksgiving! This month is flying by, and before we know it 2016 is going to be here. I for one am not ready. Thankfully I’m not hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year, so the pressure’s off to design my menu and figure out my cooking timeline. But I am a little bummed not to make my Thanksgiving staples like my Roasted Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Soup, Spiced Pumpkin Bread, and Orange-Ginger Cranberry Sauce.
Some of my other favorite recipes for this holiday are my Kabocha Flatbread with Rosemary Roasted Grapes and Shallots, roasted root vegetables like my recent recipe for Miso-Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Root Veggies, my simple, two-ingredient recipe for Mashed Sweet Potatoes (does salt actually count as an ingredient?!), and these delicious Iced Orange-Cranberry Biscotti.
If you’re hosting the main event and looking for a little token gift to send home with your guests, make a batch of my Orange-Scented Spiced Nuts and wrap them in mini mason jars.
Worried about weight gain from too much turkey and stuffing? Find out how to start the holiday season off with a very Nutritioulicious Thanksgiving, follow my Thanksgiving Survival Guide, and get the Thanksgiving nutrition info for your favorite dishes!
For more ideas, check out my Thanksgiving Pinterest board, where you’ll find everything from the Ultimate Guide to Planning a Healthy Thanksgiving and Fun & Healthy Thanksgiving Turkeys to gluten-free stuffing and cranberry infused cocktails.
Before you get immersed in all these great Thanksgiving resources, check out some of my fave links from last week (with more turkey day inspiration, especially in the sweets department) and this week’s Nutritioulicious menu!
Articles:
There is Beauty in the Cracks @ Mom’s Kitchen Handbook
Good News About Fish & Mercury by Sally Kuzemchak @ Parents.com
Hiking with Kids: 9 Tips to Make it Fun for the Whole Family @ Love Life Surf (we love hiking and have been trying to do it more with the kids. These are great tips if you like to hike too)
Holiday Gift Guide 2015 @ Food Confidence (that Spire gadget looks awesome!)
When Blogging Gets Hard @ The Lean Green Bean (if you’re a blogger, you have to read this)
Recipes:
Green Bean Casserole with Cauliflower Sauce @ The Almond Eater
Beef Tenderloin & Fig Crostini @ The Nutrition Adventure
Blueberry Pie Cheese Ball @ Your Choice Nutrition
Pumpkin Ricotta Chocolate Chip Bread @ Ari’s Menu
Maple Ginger Pear Crumble @ Marisa Moore Nutrition
Cinnamon-Oat Hasselback Pears @ Holley Grainger
Spiced Apple Skyr Quinoa Cookies with Vanilla Maple Drizzle @ The Foodie Physician
Caramel Apple Blondies @ 24 Carrot Life
Pomegranate Apple Cider Spritzer @ Healthy Nibbles & Bits
Week of November 16, 2015
Monday: Savory Baked Oatmeal with Trader Joe’s Broccoli and Kale Slaw
Tuesday: Chicken Burgers with Roasted Heirloom Carrots and Broccoli
Wednesday: Hearty Lentil Vegetable Chili (defrosted leftovers from my November recipe for Today’s Dietitian Magazine Culinary Corner column)
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: One-Pot Orange Honey Garlic Roasted Chicken with Miso-Roasted Root Vegetables and String Beans with Caramelized Onions and Toasted Almonds
What are your plans for Thanksgiving?
Any favorite Thanksgiving recipes to share?
Tweet me @JLevinsonRD with #DinnerTonight
PInning! I’ll be back for the Orange Honey Roast chicken. My daughter who’s 10 roasted her first chicken this week! It was good…but I’ll bet the honey makes that recipe great!
Thanks so much for sharing Serena! That is so awesome your daughter made her first roast chicken! I can’t wait to try Lindsay’s orange honey roast!
So many wonderful links!! 🙂
Thanks so much Tara!
That orange ginger cranberry sauce sounds super interesting! Is it thick enough to spread like jam? I like the sound of that! I love your link love, those quinoa cookies- yummy!
Liz, you have to try the cranberry sauce – it’s so flavorful and delicious! If you refrigerate it after cooking and don’t reheat it, it’s definitely thick enough for jam. I usually reheat it a little to have it over turkey, but i also use it room temp on burgers too. So glad you love the link love!
I will definitely be pulling a few recipes from here for our Thanksgiving dinner! That spiced pumpkin bread sounds amazing!
Thanks Emily! Would love to know what you end up making!
You have so many amazing Thanksgiving resources Jessica! I think in this post you have everything for a healthy thanksgiving e-book! I’m not hosting this year either… but if I was I’d definitely make your squash and sweet potato soup 🙂
Thanks Katie! That’s a great idea – why didn’t I think of that?! Now I need to figure out how to go about doing that for next year! I hope you’ll try the soup later on this season!
I can’t believe Thanksgiving is less than 2 weeks away either! I feel like Halloween was just this past weekend…time flies! This is my first Thanksgiving away from family, so I’ll have to check out your staples to help make my menu! 🙂
I know – time is going by way too fast. Hope your first Thanksgiving away from family goes well. You’ll have to let me know what you end up making!
I had to come check out your Orange-Ginger Cranberry Sauce- it looks so good! Such a wonderful group of recipes. Thanks for including mine 🙂
Haha..thanks Sonali! And you’re most welcome 🙂
Thanks for including my Blueberry Pie Cheeseball!
That Savory Baked Oatmeal with Trader Joe’s Broccoli and Kale Slaw sounds interesting. I want to try it!
You’re welcome Brittany! the Savory Baked Oatmeal will be shared in the February issue of Today’s Dietitian Magazine – stay tuned for that recipe 🙂
I love seeing your weekly meal plans, such great inspiration! Can’t wait to try that chili recipe- totally my kind of meal! Have a great Thanksgiving!
Thanks so much Alex! Hope you like the chili!