Thanksgiving, a holiday dedicated to expressing gratitude and celebrating abundance, has been taken over by food anxieties and diet talk. Diet culture sends the message to restrict ourselves during a time where food is supposed to be plentiful. Thanksgiving can be a stressful time for eating, but it’s important to embrace Thanksgiving as-is. Ditch the “Eat This, Not That” advice and all other articles that focus on depriving ourselves for that matter. Instead, shift your mindset to enjoying the flavors of the season while eating intuitively and mindfully. Here are some holiday favorites to enjoy this Thanksgiving: 

Side Dish #1: Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

Roasted Garlic

• 1 garlic bulb
• Extra-virgin olive oil 
• Sea salt

Mashed Potatoes

• 2 pounds Yukon gold or butterball potatoes, peeled
• 2 teaspoons sea salt, divided
• ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil 
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Butter, optional for serving
• Chopped chives and/or rosemary, optional for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Make the roasted garlic: Trim the top ¼ inch off the top of the garlic bulb. Place cut-side up on a piece of foil, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Wrap the garlic in the foil and roast for 40-60 minutes, or until the cloves are deeply golden brown and tender. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly. Use the back of a chef’s knife or a small masher to mash the garlic into a paste before incorporating into the mashed potatoes. 
3. Make the mashed potatoes: Place the potatoes and 1 tsp. of salt in a large pot and fill with enough water to cover the potatoes by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and cook for about 20 minutes until fork tender. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
4. Use a ricer or a potato masher to mash the potatoes into a large bowl. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the roasted garlic, olive oil, ½ cup of the reserved cooking liquid, 1 tsp. salt, and several pinches of pepper. Continue folding until creamy, adding up to ½ cup more cooking liquid if desired for creamier potatoes. Serve hot with butter, rosemary, and chives, if desired.

Side Dish #2: Casserole 

Green Bean Casserole

Ingredients:

Crispy onions

• 2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 4 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp. panko breadcrumbs, plus more for sprinkling
• ½ tsp. salt

Filling

• 1½ pounds green beans, trimmed and halved
• 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 16 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tbsp. tamari
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 3 cups unsweetened almond milk
• 1½ tsp. Dijon mustard
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for sprinkling
• ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Make the crispy onions: Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
2. In a large bowl, toss the onions with the oil, flour, panko, and salt. Spread evenly onto the baking sheets and bake for 25-35 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes (rotating the pans in the oven as necessary), until lightly browned and crispy. Remove from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 400°F.
3. Prepare the filling: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and set a large bowl of ice water nearby. Drop the green beans into the boiling water and blanch for 4 minutes. Drain, and immediately immerse in the ice water to stop the cooking process. Drain, and transfer to a towel to dry.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, add the mushrooms, and cook until soft, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the tamari, garlic, and thyme. Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms and stir again. Add the almond milk and mustard and stir to combine. Simmer until thickened, whisking often, for 20 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and pepper.
5. Spread ⅓ of the sauce into the baking dish. Layer with green beans and top with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle the onions on top and bake, covered, for 10 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10 more minutes. If the onions start to brown too much, cover the dish for the remainder of the baking time. Garnish with sprinkles of panko and Parmesan, if desired. Serve hot.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Ingredients:

• 5 large sweet potatoes
• 1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1¼ cups unsweetened almond milk, plus more if necessary
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• ¾ tsp. sea salt
• ¼ tsp. black pepper
• ¼ cup fresh sage leaves, for garnish

Crumble Topping

• ⅔ cup whole rolled oats
• ½ cup pecans, plus more for garnish
• ½ cup walnuts, plus more for garnish
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tbsp. plus 1 teaspoon maple syrup
• 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ tsp. dried thyme leaves
• ½ tsp. minced fresh rosemary
• 1½ tsp. sea salt
• ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and brush a 9×13-inch baking dish with olive oil.
2. Use a fork to poke a few holes into the sweet potatoes. Place on the baking sheet and roast for about 60 minutes, until very tender.
3. Make the crumble topping: In a food processor, place the oats, pecans, walnuts, garlic, maple syrup, olive oil, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper and pulse until just combined. Remove and set aside.
4. Scoop the cooked sweet potato flesh out of the skins and place in a food processor. Add the olive oil, almond milk, ginger, salt, and pepper and process to combine. Spread the mixture into the baking dish.
5. Sprinkle with the crumble topping, additional nuts, and sage leaves. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 20 minutes, or until the topping is browned and crisp.

Side Dish #3: Stuffing 

Ingredients:

• 1 small loaf (1 pound) day-old crusty sourdough bread
• ½ cup salted butter or vegan butter
• 2 leeks, halved, thinly sliced, and rinsed well (2 cups)
• 4 celery stalks, diced (1¾ cups)
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• ¾ tsp. sea salt
• ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ cup chopped sage
• Heaping ¼ cup chopped parsley
• 1 tsp. chopped rosemary
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
• 1½ to 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease an 8×11 or 9×13-inch baking dish.
2. Tear the bread into 1-inch pieces and place in a very large bowl.
3. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks, celery, garlic, salt, and pepper, and sauté for 5 minutes, turning the heat to low halfway through. Pour the leek mixture over the bread and sprinkle with the sage, parsley, rosemary, and thyme. Use your hands to toss until coated. Pour 1½ cups of the broth evenly over the stuffing and toss to coat. Add the eggs and toss again. The bread should feel pretty wet. If it’s still a bit dry, mix in the remaining ½ cup of broth. The amount you use will depend on how dense and dry your bread was.
4. Transfer the mixture to the baking dish. If making ahead, stop here, cover the dish with foil, and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake.
5. When ready to bake, drizzle the olive oil on top and bake, covered, for 30 minutes. If the stuffing is still pretty wet, uncover the dish and bake for 5-10 more minutes to crisp the top a bit.

Side Dish #4: Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

Spiced apple filling

• 4 apples, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp. water
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. cardamom
• ¼ tsp. ginger
• Pinch of sea salt

Crumble topping

• ½ cup whole rolled oats
• ½ cup almond flour
• ¼ cup crushed walnuts
• ⅓ cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
• ½ tsp. cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. sea salt
• ¼ cup firm coconut oil

For serving

• Pomegranates
• Vanilla ice cream

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and grease 4 (8-ounce) ramekins or an 8×8 baking dish with coconut oil.
2. Make the filling: Combine the apples, apple cider vinegar, and water in a saucepan and simmer over very low heat, covered, stirring occasionally (making sure the apples don’t burn on the bottom of the pan) for 15 minutes. Uncover, stir, and add the cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and salt and stir again. The apple should be tender and the juices should be thick.
3. Make the topping: In a small bowl, combine the oats, almond flour, walnuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Use your hands to work in the coconut oil until the mixture crumbles. If the mixture is too dry, add a few drizzles of water until the mixture starts to stick together when pinched.
4. Scoop the apple filling into the ramekins, top with the crumble (you may have a little bit extra) and bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly crisp on top.
5. Remove from the oven. Top with pomegranates and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Side Dish #5: Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
• 2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped
• 3 large eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. molasses 
• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. 
2. Mix the filling: In a medium bowl vigorously mix together the eggs, brown sugar, corn syrup, molasses, melted butter, vanilla, and salt, until smooth.
3. Fill the pie shell: Spread the chopped pecans over the bottom of a frozen pie shell. Pour the filling over the pecans. 
4. Bake the filled pie: Bake for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, tent the pie loosely with aluminum foil to prevent the crust and pecans from getting too browned. Bake for another 35-45 minutes until the filling has set.
5. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.