Pecan pie is truly a beloved dessert, and it’s a tradition we will definitely be serving with love this Thanksgiving. We hope you’ll try our recipe from the Watkins cookbook this year! 

Tip: get a head start and assemble the pastry this weekend. For the crust, we recommend making 2-3 days in advance and storing airtight in the refrigerator. Enjoy!

Pastry


• 1 cup/250 mL all-purpose flour

• 1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp/100 mL shortening

• 1/8 tsp/0.6 mL salt
1/3 cup/80 mL cold water

• 1/2 tsp/2.5 mL Watkins Original Double Strength Vanilla Extract




Mix flour, salt and shortening. Stir extract into water; add to flour mixture. Mix until dough forms a ball. Roll dough on floured surface. Put pastry into a 9-inch/23-cm pie pan. Flute edges.



Filling


• 3/4 cup/180 mL Homemade Maple Syrup (see recipe below)

• 1/4 cup/60 mL light corn syrup
• 
2/3 cup/160 mL sugar
• 
1/3 cup/80 mL melted butter

• 3 eggs
1/2 tsp/2.5 mL salt
1 cup/250 mL chopped pecans



Heat oven to 350°/180° C. Beat the syrup, sugar, butter, egg and salt in bowl with mixer until smooth. Stir in pecans. Pour into pastry-lined pie pan.

Cover edge of crust with foil to prevent excessive browning. Remove during last 15 minutes of baking. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until set. Cool 15 minutes. Drizzle Chocolate Icing (below) over the top.

Homemade Maple Syrup

• 
1 cup/250 mL packed brown sugar

• 1 cup/250 mL granulated sugar

• 1 cup/250 mL water

• 1/8 tsp/0.6 mL salt
• 
1/2 tsp/2.5 mL Watkins Maple Extract


Combine sugars, water and salt in saucepan. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add the maple extract. Cool.



Chocolate Drizzle


• 1 tbsp/15 mL Watkins Baking Cocoa
• 1 tbsp/15 mL powdered sugar

• 1 tbsp/15 mL shortening

Melt shortening in microwave. Stir in cocoa and sugar until smooth. Cool until it thickens. Drizzle over top of pie.

            Photo Credit: Better Homes & Gardens http://bit.ly/RrJnX7 

Thanksgiving is one of our favorite traditions, and folks, it’s only two weeks away. Get your pen ready, planning starts today! Many mavens of this beloved holiday recommend starting 2 weeks ahead, and we agree. Doing this will make the process much, much easier (and more fun) in the long run! 

What you should be doing now: 

• Write out your guest list. Determine how many guests you’ll be serving and account for any food allergies or preferences. Any vegetarians? Do you need gluten-free ingredients? 

• Plan the menu. Write out your shopping list and think about what can be prepared in advance. Go ahead and purchase your non-perishables this weekend to make sure you’re stocked up! 

• Decide on your turkey. What type of turkey do you plan to serve: fresh, frozen, organic, local? If you’re going for a fresh or local turkey, you’ll need to place the order from a butcher. Do this today. 

• Get inspired! There are oodles of planning resources from around the web to inspire your inner hostess-with-the-mostess. Here are a few of our favorites to get you started: 

          Martha Stewart’s guide to Everything Thanksgiving

          Creative Fall Centerpieces from Better Homes and Gardens 

          Bon Appétit. Have you seen the Thanksgiving Issue!? Enough said!

Have you started planning yet? Share your tips with us! 

“In Their Expert Opinion” features three bloggers who bring special expertise on living a natural lifestyle to The Clear Conscience Blog. Each month, we’ll share tips and advice on how to live a little greener from a few of our favorite experts.

By Micaela Preston, Mindful Momma

                                        Photo: Squash Gratin

If there is one holiday deeply rooted in tradition, it is Thanksgiving. Each year, as families cook up their own version of the Pilgrim’s harvest feast, they create their own family traditions that get passed on year after year.

That said, my initial idea for this blog post was to share a special Thanksgiving recipe that has been passed along in my family for years. We have a few of those floating around – like Grandma’s cranberry salad with the special sweet mayonnaise topping. But I realized that my favorite part of Thanksgiving isn’t making the same recipes every year – it’s the fun of finding new recipes to try. For me, the tradition is the search itself. I sit down with a pile of cookbooks and magazines, dig through my enormous recipe file or search online and until I find the perfect recipes to make for my family! 

Desserts are my favorite and I have made some real winners like this Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce – where thoughts of health and calorie counts go straight out the window!  But along with a decadent dessert, I always make a vegetable side dish – usually something with dark leafy greens or Brussels sprouts, packed with vitamins and antioxidants. Maybe I’m fooling myself, but I feel better about eating a gigantic meal when there are some healthy vegetables involved!

This Squash & Greens Gratin is super easy to make and will look beautiful sitting on your Thanksgiving table! 

Squash & Greens Gratin

• 4-5 cups winter squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch chunks (I prefer butternut)

• 4 cups greens, chopped (mustard, collard or turnip greens, kale, Swiss chard)

• 1 leek, halved and cut into chunks

• 2 large onions, cut into large chunks

• 5-6 small to medium cloves garlic, left whole

• 9 T olive oil

• 2 T chopped rosemary

• salt and pepper to taste

• 1/4 cup white wine or chicken stock 

• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

• 1 cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375.  Butter or spray a large roasting pan or casserole dish.

Place squash, greens, leek, onions and garlic into roasting pan.  Toss with 6 T olive oil, rosemary and salt & pepper.  Pour in the wine or chicken stock. Roast 30-40 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs and 3 T olive oil together in a small bowl.  Sprinkle mixture over the vegetables and continue roasting for another 20-25 minutes - until the vegetables are soft.  Enjoy!!

Do you have favorite, family recipes you make every year at Thanksgiving or do you look for new ideas each year?

Disclosure: The bloggers featured in the Clear Conscience Blog “In Their Expert Opinion” series have received product samples and compensation from Watkins, Inc.

“In Their Expert Opinion” features three bloggers who bring special expertise on living a natural lifestyle to The Clear Conscience Blog. Each month, we’ll share tips and advice on how to live a little greener from a few of our favorite experts.

By Lori Popkewitz Alper, GroovyGreenLivin.com

           [Photo used under Creative Commons from D. Sharon Pruitt/Flickr]

Thanksgiving is a holiday loved by many.  Not only is it the start of the holiday season, it’s also a time for family gatherings, holiday meals and a time to offer thanks for all that we have. It’s also the perfect time to show your thanks by giving back to the planet.  

This Thanksgiving, kickoff your holiday season on a greener foot with these simple, eco-friendly tips:

1. Don’t use disposable products. When you gather a large crowd together it’s sometimes tempting to use disposable plates and utensils.  Using disposable, single-use products creates a tremendous amount of unnecessary waste.  Also consider using reusable napkins instead of the single-use paper disposables. 


2. Buy local. Most produce in the U.S. is picked 4 to 7 days before being placed on supermarket shelves, and then has to travel long distances before being sold. Buying locally grown food whenever possible helps protect our environment and puts money back into the local economy. 


3. Stay local.
   
   
   
   • Flying. Flying isn’t a very green option, but there are steps you can take to make it more eco-friendly. If you are planning to fly try to find a non-stop flight.  Flying direct means flying fewer total miles, less take-off and landings and less emissions released. 
   
   
   • Train, bus or carpooling. If possible, use public transportation to get to your destination. You will save on gasoline and will also help save the planet. Carpooling is another great alternative to driving solo. Each of these alternatives will save you money and reduces pollution due to auto emissions.


4. Recycle.  During your Thanksgiving feast set up a convenient recycling station near the garbage cans.  Encourage guests to recycle and clearly label recycling bins. If the recycling system is user-friendly, bottles, packaging and empty containers will easily find their way into the bins rather than the trash can.

As you can see, it’s simple to make Thanksgiving, and all of the holidays that follow, easy, eco-friendly, and fun holidays for all. 

What ‘green’ tips do you have for Thanksgiving?

Disclosure: The bloggers featured in the Clear Conscience Blog “In Their Expert Opinion” series have received product samples and compensation from Watkins, Inc.

“In Their Expert Opinion” features three bloggers who bring special expertise on living a natural lifestyle to The Clear Conscience Blog. Each month, we’ll share tips and advice on how to live a little greener from a few of our favorite experts.

By Elizabeth Dehn, BeautyBets.com 

                                    Photo Credit: We Heart It

Forget the turkey. On Thanksgiving Day, I load up on two things: stuffing and pie, preferably pecan. Oh, and plenty of bubbly, which goes with everything. Basically, the least-nutritious things on the buffet. Come Black Friday, when everyone else is waiting in line for cashmere sweaters and giant flat-screen TVs, I start some sort of detox (I do the same thing in January, post NYE). Before you stop reading this post and reach for a Twinkie, rest assured I’m not about to suggest anything gimmicky or extreme, like drinking only lemon water for 11 days straight (see Master Cleanse). Instead, I’m here to make this super easy. Because although there are no shortcuts to a true cleanse or “elimination diet”—no alcohol, caffeine, sugar, dairy, wheat, soy, red meat, nuts—there are safe and easy detoxifying tricks that will leave you feeling energized and healthier after a holiday of carbo-loading and couch crashing. 

Drink Your Veggies. Because goodness knows you haven’t been getting enough of them at all of those holiday parties. The most convenient way to play catch-up is to mix up a green drink. Packed with probiotics, and more vitamins and nutrients than a salad bar, a daily dose will improve digestion, circulation and immunity. They look like an algae pond and kind of taste like one, but you’ll get over it once your skin starts to glow—another welcome benefit. Try: Vibrant Health Green Vibrance

Brush Your Body.  Yes, I realize how strange that might sound, but our bodies eliminate a significant amount of toxins through the skin. You can encourage the process by using this ancient technique, which not only softens and exfoliates skin but improves digestion, reduces cellulite, and increases blood and lymph circulation. Brushing only takes a few minutes and is one type of detox you can do daily: Start at your feet using long strokes and work your way up, taking care to brush toward your heart. And please don’t reach for you hairbrush. Special natural-bristled brushes can be found at most natural food stores  and drugstores for less than $10. I like the ones from Earth Therapeutics.

Sweat it Out. You could hit the treadmill, but a faster, lazy-girl’s approach is to soak in a steaming tub filled with all sorts of detox-enhancing goodies. My favorite DIY bath soak recipe includes hydrogen peroxide and fresh ginger, both of which increase sweat and encourage toxin elimination. For the recipe, visit BeautyBets.com.

Take a Juice Day. Or three if you can. Nothing counteracts impurities in our bodies, purges out the build-up of a poor diet, and restores regularity (hey, it’s important!) like giving your body a break from heavy, unhealthy foods. The gentlest and easiest way to do that is to do a fruit or juice fast. Lately I’ve been reaching for Genesis Today’s line of organic “super-fruit” juices. These time-honored fruits, such as Acai and Goji Berry, improve natural energy (oh so essential on a detox), gastro-intestinal health and antioxidant levels in the body. They’re super potent, like contain no sugar or additives. I also reach for them instead of sports drinks, soda or coffee after a night of too much bubbly!

Disclosure: The bloggers featured in the Clear Conscience Blog “In Their Expert Opinion” series have received product samples and compensation from Watkins, Inc.