Thanksgiving in July
It was Thanksgiving at our household last night. Thanksgiving in July? You bet. There are no rules about Thanksgiving food. It also happens to be one of my all-time favorite meals.
So I did it. I got creative! Thanks to some inspiration from Pinterest, I pulled together a savory meal.
The cauliflower mashed “potatoes” inspiration was courtesy of Nom Nom Paleo. The only difference is I steamed my cauliflower in a bowl in the microwave instead of on the stove. Oh, and I didn’t use nutmeg either.
So basically here’s how I made my cauliflower mash:
- Place cauliflower florets and a little bit of the stalk into a microwave safe bowl. Fill with approximately 3/4 cup water. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 5 minutes.
- Remove from microwave, stir the cauli, cover back up, and microwave for another 5 minutes.
- Remove from microwave and add in three chopped garlic cloves. Cover again, and microwave for 3 more minutes.
- Remove from microwave and carefully place cauliflower and garlic into a food processor. Try to exclude the excess water in the bottom of the bowl. Add in 1 Tablespoon of butter (grass-fed organic preferred).
- Process until you have reached a smooth consistency like mashed potatoes!
- Season with salt and pepper. Serve with my lentil stuffing!
The stuffing was extremely easy to make. I started off with 2 cups of cooked lentils (I cooked mine in chicken stock to add more flavor). You can set those aside to begin with while you prepare the other veggies.
I first sautéed 1/2 cup each of diced carrots, onions, and celery. I then added 1/2 cup of diced zucchini and sautéed for a couple of minutes (more detailed recipe below). Lastly I added in all of my herbs and seasonings as well as the cooked lentils and let everything cook through.
When it came time to plate I plated the cauliflower mashed potatoes first, followed by the lentil stuffing. In retrospect, I wish I would have used a different colored plate! It would have made for a prettier photo. Oh well!
Here is the complete lentil stuffing recipe:
| Lentil Stuffing | | Print |
- 1 Tbsp olive oil or pumpkin oil
- ½ cup carrots, small diced
- ½ cup onion, small diced
- ½ cup celery, small diced
- ½ cup zucchini, small diced
- 2 cups lentils cooked in chicken broth
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- sprinkle of garlic powder
- salt and pepper
- In a medium saute pan, heat oil on stove over low-medium heat.
- Add carrots, onion, and celery and saute for 4-5 minutes.
- Add in the zucchini and cook for 2 more minutes.
- Add in the lentils and the rest of the seasonings and stir.
- Continue to cook and stir until heated through for 3 more minutes.
- Serve on top of cauliflower mashed "potatoes". ENJOY!
I felt like I was eating mashed potatoes with stuffing from Thanksgiving dinner. The slightly crunchy texture and savory flavor of the stuffing reminded me exactly of the “standard” Thanksgiving stuffing, and the cauliflower mashed potatoes tasted surprisingly similar to mashed potatoes!
If you are vegetarian or vegan, you could replace the chicken broth with vegetarian broth and exclude the butter if you wish, and you would be set!
This recipe may seem a little out there to some, but don’t knock it ’til you try it. You will be pleasantly surprised at the flavor and textures of this dish!
Happy Thanksgiving Wednesday!!
If you get the chance, hop on over to Katie’s blog at Running4Cupcakes. I wrote a guest post for Katie today about making Almond Butter which will be going up at some point today! Since I’ve lightened my peanut butter consumption, I have become a pro at making super creamy and slightly sweet almond butter!
So… I’m not the biggest fan of cauliflower (weird?) but I think since it is mashed into this lentil-y, vegetable-y goodness, I might be able to try this 🙂 I need to check out your almond butter post – do you think making it is more expensive then purchasing it? That is what I’m always afraid of…
Becky @ Olives n Wine recently posted…My Weekend in California – Napa, Part 2
That totally surprises me! I think you would really like this recipe. I was seriously surprised at how much the cauliflower actually tasted like potatoes. You could also use them to make a Shepard’s Pie! I thought about doing that!
So for the almond butter…I buy a 3 lb bag of raw almonds at Costco for $13 and change and that makes a couple of jars of almond butter. At the store I usually see it for around $9. Sometimes if I’m feeling super lazy and if Costco has it at the time, I will buy a jar of their stuff. I do think it is more cost effective to make it!
Your post is up! Thanks for guest posting. 🙂 I love cauliflower mashed potatoes. YUM!!
Katie @ running4cupcakes recently posted…How to make almond butter via Beautifully Nutty
Thanks again for letting me be a guest!!
Both of these look SO good!! I have been wanting to try making cauliflower mashed “potatoes” for awhile now and I really need to give them a try. I love the sound of this stuffing recipe, too! I will definitely be using it during the holidays this year :).
cleaneatingveggiegirl recently posted…WIAW: New-To-Me Foods + A Call for Posts!
This one is right up your alley!!
This looks delicious! I am always a bit scared to make lentils but your recipe is great. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Zoe @ Chocolate Covered Chia recently posted…An Oxymoron // Healhty Fat Rascals
I was intimidated by them for a while too but they are SO easy to make. Just follow the instruction right on the bag. I recommend cooking them in chicken broth or some type of flavored broth to add to the flavor. You can season them as you wish. They are very savory and very satisfying too!
Wow, this looks delicious and a heck of a lot healthier than regular mash potatoes and stuffing!
Katie @ Daily Cup of Kate recently posted…Running Motivation
I love experimenting and finding healthier options that taste great!
Thi sounds so good! I love the healthier and lighter take on thanksgiving flavors. This would be a great choice to make for my boyfriends vegetarian dad.
Nicole @ FruitnFitness recently posted…healthy snack options