A Guide to Surviving the Holidays (Part 3)

What would a three-part guide to surviving the holidays be without our favorite recipes? Our graphic shows some super easy swaps for your own recipes, plus we’re sharing our favorite holiday recipes.

Below you’ll find Jade & Shawna’s favorite healthy (and healthy-ish) substitutions for traditional holiday eats. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Custard
This one is SO EASY. Take that favorite pumpkin pie recipe you’ve been using for years, and ditch the crust. Next, sub out any sugar for equal parts coconut sugar, or half parts maple syrup or honey. We like to do a little of each. Then, add a few extra eggs to get a more custard texture. You can bake in a traditional pie plate (greased with coconut oil or grass-fed butter if dairy is ok for you) or opt for individual ramekins.

If you’re not big on making your own adjustments and want to try something a little different, check out these yummy twists on a traditional pumpkin custard:
NOM-NOM PALEO PUMPKIN CUSTARD CUPS

Sweet Potato Pie
While sweet potatoes are certainly nutritionally dense in their own right, why not change it up a bit for a slightly sweet but oh-so-savory bit of squash served up with some nuts and berries? This one is a favorite for kids and adults alike.

Sumptuous Acorn Squash Pie
Pie:
2 acorn squash
4 tablespoons real maple syrup
2 tablespoons coconut cream
2 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoon dried, unsweetened cranberries
2 tablespoons unsweetened raisins
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts or pecans
Topping:
2 tablespoons coconut sugar
2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil, melted
1 or 2 tablespoons cassava flour

Cook acorn squash in the oven by slicing in half, discarding seeds and strings, and placing cut side down on a baking tray in the oven at 375 for 35-40 minutes. Alternatively, pop them in your InstantPot for about 12 minutes.

Scoop out squash into a large mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients (maple syrup through pecans) and mix well. Spoon into 8×8 glass baking dish, smoothing the top evenly.

In a small bowl, mix coconut sugar and melted butter or coconut oil. Slowly add cassava flour, mixing with each addition, until a crumbly texture forms. Sprinkle the crumble over the top of the acorn squash.

Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes, until crumble is slightly melted and pie is hot. Enjoy!

Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
If you haven’t swapped out your mashed potatoes for cauli-mash, you are missing out! Less carby (so you have room for more of that humanely raised, pastured turkey) and with a higher nutrient density, cauli-mash is perfect for those trying to make Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner healthier, but without losing those tasty traditions. And our cassava flour and liver gravy will add a nutrient dense, flavorful creamy addition to that cauli-mash!

Cauli-mash:
1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped and steamed until tender-crisp
4 tablespoons grass-fed butter OR coconut cream
2-4 tablespoons bone broth
pinch Himalayan sea salt
pinch black pepper

Add all ingredients to a high speed blender like a Vitamix or Blendtec. Starting on low, blend until creamy. If you need more butter or coconut cream, add as desired.

Gravy:
4 tablespoons tallow, bacon grease, or lard of choice
1-3 chicken livers
1-3 tablespoons cassava flour
Milk or non-dairy alternative (Ripple works well)

Melt animal fat in a medium cast iron skillet or pan over medium heat. Slowly add cassava flour, 1 teaspoon at a time, until a roux forms (just as you would with traditional gravy). Once the roux forms, slowly add milk or non-dairy alternative as you whisk the roux and milk together. Allow to thicken, adding milk to thin as desired. Once desired thickness is achieved, slowly and carefully pour gravy into a blender. Add cooked, chopped chicken liver and blend until smooth.

The liver is optional, but adds a deep, delicious flavor to this gravy!

Holiday Mocktails
Avoiding alcohol during the holidays can be rough if everyone else is indulging, but these fun alternatives will make everyone want to join you instead!

Pomegranate Ginger Spice (serves 6)
250ml cranberry juice (natural, 100% juice with no added sugar)
500ml pomegranate juice (natural, 100% juice with no added sugar)
750ml ginger beer
Juice from 1 lime
1 lime, sliced
fresh pomegranate seeds (you can buy these frozen if you’re not a fan of de-seeding an actual pomegranate)
fresh ginger
Fill large pitcher halfway full of ice. Add juices (including lime) and ginger beer. Mix carefully by stirring. Pour into 6 glasses of your choice, adding a very small handful of pomegranate seeds to each glass, and garnishing with a lime wedge and fresh ginger slice if desired.

Kombucha Mocktail
This one is totally customizeable! Some of our favorite combos are strawberry mango, blueberry pomegranate, and pear ginger. Get crazy and make up your own!

2, 16 oz bottles unflavored kombucha (we love GT’s around here)
2 cups juice, no sugar added
fruit to garnish

For pear ginger, use 2 cups of pear juice and grate ¼” piece of fresh ginger, shaking in just the pear juice before mixing together with kombucha (shaking the kombucha would be a bad idea!)