Does "Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes" sound like an oxymoron? When you think of all that turkey stuffing, the cream-based sauces, the buttered mashed potatoes, and the pumpkin and pecan pies, "healthy" isn't one of the adjectives used to describe the Thanksgiving Day meal. As good as all the above sound, it's so easy to create a traditional healthy Thanksgiving Day meal for your family. Tradition is something you start. It doesn't have to match every one else. It's yours alone.
Our German Thanksgiving Day celebrated in Canada starts as a day of thanksgiving for all the blessings we've received. This is pretty much the same for everyone - based on the original story of the first Thanksgiving celebrated by the English settlers in America after the harsh winter in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Celebrated in the States on the fourth Thursday in November, it is celebrated in Canada on the second Sunday of October. In Germany, it is often celebrated on the first Sunday in October and is called "Erntedankfest" (meaning harvest festival of thanks).
While turkey and all the trimmings are considered by many to be a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, some people use ham because they like it better. Using that same thinking, we adopted our own customs. We chose to celebrate with rouladen, red cabbage, and potato dumplings. Dessert was usually whichever torte was the family favorite at the time. Yes, it really was rouladen - not the easy and cheaper version of Beef Flatladen. It was extra work, but this was for a very special day.
For our family, it was an extra special day. Our middle son's birthday was October 12, and we often celebrated both at the same time. Our tradition was that the "birthday child" could choose his dinner. And what did Michael always choose? You guessed it, "rouladen, red cabbage, and potato dumplings." And that's how traditions start!
As a grandmother, my interests lie in passing on the wisdom I've gleaned over the years. I've been teaching children of all ages in a private school, homeschooling, Sunday School, and Beavers. Having immigrated from Germany as a little girl, I'm interested in recipes that taste like the traditional German foods I grew up with, BUT with the convenience of speed, incorporating healthy ingredients, and being economical as well!
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