November 2009
Thanksgiving Meals Just for Two
by Mary Gerlach, R.D.
Registered Dietician
We can all remember pleasant holiday dinners surrounded by family and friends—the fabulous smells of cinnamon baking in the pies and the roasted turkey wafting from the kitchen, children running around throughout the house, the sound of laughter coming from the kitchen! But perhaps this year, it’s just the two of you spending a quiet Thanksgiving at home.
The peace and quiet may be welcome, but how can you make the holiday special without a lot of work and tons of leftovers? Planning ahead will help. Instead of a large turkey, roast a whole chicken. If you want an even smaller amount, roast a couple of capons, Cornish game hens or only roast half a chicken.
Ask your local butcher to split a whole hen in half lengthwise for you, and remove the backbone, too, if you wish. Or use a long heavy knife or kitchen shears to split the hen lengthwise yourself. Cut through the breast bone, just off-center, and cut through the backbone, which can be discarded before roasting. Place the half hen on a rack in a shallow roasting pan with the skin side up, and roast as you would a whole chicken. Bake the stuffing separately rather than inside the hen. Look for a different stuffing recipe than you usually make for a crowd that starts with convenient herb-seasoned stuffing mix and adds other ingredients to enhance the flavor.
Make just enough mashed potatoes for the two of you, or bake a couple small potatoes instead and top with a dollop of fresh plain yogurt and sliced green onions.
Steam two servings of fresh broccoli and top with a small amount of grated cheese just before serving.
Instead of baking a whole pumpkin pie the two of you cannot eat before the crust gets soggy, make pumpkin custard in small ramekins.
Plan ahead and enjoy a delicious, elegant meal for just the two of you this Thanksgiving.
Cherry-Glazed Holiday Cornish Game Hens
2 (1 to 1½ pound) Cornish game hens
3 cloves elephant garlic, peeled and halved
2 Tb. butter, melted
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 Tb. butter
2 Tb. sliced shallots
½ cup cherry preserves
2 Tb. red wine vinegar
¼ tsp. allspice
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
Preheat oven to 425° F. Rub the skin of both hens with cut sides of garlic cloves; reserve garlic. Tie the ends of the drumsticks together. Brush hens with melted butter; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place hens on a rack in a shallow roasting pan; twist wing tips under back to avoid over browning. Place halved garlic cloves around the hens. Roast for 40 to 60 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh of each chicken without touching the bone reaches 180° F.
Meanwhile, in small saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon butter over high heat. Add shallots and sauté about 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add preserves, vinegar and spices. Simmer gently uncovered about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until desired glazing consistency. Remove one garlic piece from roasting pan; cool slightly, finely chop and add to sauce.
The last 5 minutes of roasting, spoon glazing sauce over hens; reserve remaining glaze. Remove hens from oven when roasted and immediately spoon remaining glaze over hens. Transfer hens and roasted garlic to serving plate. Makes 2-3 servings.
Nutritional information per whole hen: Calories 956; Carbohydrates 60 gm; Protein 62 gm; Fat 52 gm; Cholesterol 240 mg; Sodium 624 mg.
Carrot Mushroom Stuffing
This easy to make stuffing starts with convenient herb-seasoned stuffing mix and adds a fresh Asian spin.
1 Tb. butter
1½ cups sliced fresh shitake or
button mushrooms
¼ cup sliced green onions
2 inches of a celery stalk, cut in half lengthwise, then thinly sliced on the diagonal
2 tsp. soy sauce
½ tsp. snipped fresh rosemary or 1/8
tsp. dried rosemary
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1½ cups herb-seasoned stuffing croutons
¾ cup coarsely shredded carrots
About ¾ cup vegetable broth
Preheat oven to 325° F. In medium skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté about 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender. Add green onion for last 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in soy sauce, hot sauce (if desired), rosemary and black pepper.
Heat large Dutch oven over high heat. Add pancetta; sauté 5 minutes or until crisp. (You can substitute regular smoked bacon for pancetta, but use only one ounce to reduce the smoky flavor in the dish). Remove pancetta from pan and reserve drippings in pan. Add 2 teaspoons oil and onion to drippings in pan; sauté 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook 25 minutes or until onion is very tender and browned, stirring frequently. Stir in vinegar.
Preheat oven to 375° F. Add garlic pulp, pancetta, squash, green chile, seasonings, beans, and bay leaf to onion mixture; stirring to mix. Cover and bake at 375° for 50 minutes or until squash is tender.
In mixing bowl, combine mushroom mixture, herb-seasoned croutons and carrots. Drizzle with enough broth to moisten well, tossing to combine. Place in ungreased casserole dish. Bake, covered, for about 50 minutes or until heated through and carrots are crisp-tender. Makes 3-4 servings.
Nutritional information per ½-cup serving: Calories 151; Carbohydrates 17 gm; Protein 4 gm; Fat 8 gm; Cholesterol 12 mg; Sodium 387 mg.
Cranberry Pear Relish
Freeze any leftover fresh cranberries for later use.
1½ cups fresh cranberries
1/3 cup apple juice or cider
¼ cup sugar
2 scant teaspoons lemon juice
¼ tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
1 medium fresh pear, cored and chopped (about 1 cup)
In medium saucepan, combine all ingredients but pears. Cook uncovered over medium heat about 6-8 minutes or until cranberries pop.
Stir in pears and cook, uncovered, about 2-3 minutes or just until pears are tender. Serve warm or chilled. Makes about 1½ cups.
Nutritional information per ¼-cup serving: Calories 69; Carbohydrates 18 gm; Protein 0 gm; Fat 0 gm; Cholesterol 0 mg; Sodium 1 mg.
Low Fat Sweet Potato Pudding
Since the rest of your holiday meal is not low in fat, try this delicious pudding for dessert. 1 cup cooked fresh or canned sweet potatoes, drained, mashed (or substitute with cooked pumpkin)
½ cup nonfat milk
¼ cup fat-free sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
2 Tb. brown sugar or maple syrup
1 tsp. molasses
¾ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. each ground allspice, nutmeg and cloves
1 tsp. lemon zest
¼ tsp. salt
Preheat oven to 400° F. Bring 1 quart water to a boil. Lightly coat 2-4 ramekins (depending on size) with cooking spray.
In mixing bowl, combine all ingredients; mix well. Pour into prepared ramekins and place in a baking dish. Fill the pan halfway with very hot water, making sure no water spills into the pudding. Bake at 400° F. for 10 minutes. Lower the heat to 350° F. and bake another 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Makes 2-4 servings.
Nutritional information per ¾-cup serving: Calories 256; Carbohydrates 58 gm; Protein 5 gm; Fat 0 gm; Cholesterol 0 mg; Sodium 71 mg.