You can choose between sweet vegetarian stuffing....or meat stuffing...garlic mashed potatoes...or regular mashed potatoes...pork...or Turkey....cream sauce or gravy...The unique urge to prepare winter foods results in an infusion of root-pepper tastes that can start to bore the palette with their mushiness and Autumn colors.
I found myself wondering last year...what if there was a way to having something energized and flavorful, something that didn’t make me want to fall asleep at the table after the first course? Something crisp and new, with the boldness of a salsa, the freshness of a lime, and the zest of a pickle?
There was a time, believe it or not, when our ancestors did this exact same thing. The pilgrims did not burden their tables with only heavy “Autumn” dishes, but made it a point to provide pickled vegetables, zesty relishes, crisp cabbage salads and other delicious side-dishes that contrasted the standard Thanksgiving fare.
For best results in replicating their recipes, we should use fresh farm products.
Not to mention, it’s exhilarating to rush through a farmer’s market early in the morning, picking up onions to pickle, citrus fruits for zest, chestnuts, sharp cumin seeds, brussels sprouts, and fresh cabbage. Experimenting with these herbs and figuring out new pairings is the best part of this holiday!
I encourage creativity. Remember, the holidays are a time of diversity- when everyone in your family sits down in one place to share in one meal. You have to be able to please many different appetites- the crunchy vegan, the gastronome, and the traditionalist. Now the dishes I discovered are a little more healthy than what you might be used to at the Thanksgiving table, but I swear by them, and I recommend you figure out a few of your own.
Chestnut Asian-Fusion Green Beans
Ingredients
1 tbsp of vegetable oil
1/8 of a cup of fresh ginger
1 clove of garlic
half a pound of green beans
half tbsp of soy sauce
half tbsp of oyster sauce
1/4 of a cup of fresh chestnuts
Directions
1) Bake or roast chestnuts, cut slits into the side to ensure oxidation.
2) Remove chestnuts from shells.
3) Boil water and add salt. Boil beans for 5 minutes. Dry beans.
4) Heat vegetable oil on high, add ginger, garlic, beans, chestnuts, salt, soy sauce, and oyster sauce.
5) Serve!
