5 Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes for Seniors

I love to cook for my senior family members. I know they have diet restrictions but it’s fine to indulge once in a while. I add ingredients such as salt and butter to the dishes I make. I know they are not supposed to have them more than necessary. But as I previously said, it’s okay to have some fun during the festive season. Having said that, I have tried to make these thanksgiving recipes as healthy as possible. 

Here are the healthy and delicious thanksgiving recipes for seniors

1. Slow roasted turkey 

You will need a fresh Turkey which is grown without growth hormones of any kind. You can pick the size of Turkey as per your needs, but I suggest going for a medium size (about 12-15 pounds) dish that is meant for 1-2 seniors. 

Required ingredients:

• 3-4 Scallions (spring onions)
• 1 onion 
• Seasoning (red pepper, oregano, chili flakes, thyme, etc)
• 1 turkey 
• A handful of garlic cloves 

Put Turkey in a large bowl. You can rinse the meat, but most suppliers will do it for you already. 

Now it’s time to season it with household seasonings such as chili flakes, oregano, soya sauce, salt, etc. Rub the seasoning all over Turkey. Do not forget to turn it over.

Chop the onions and scallions. Put them inside Turkey. Next, you can cook the meat right away but some people prefer to let it marinate overnight. Marination adds taste to the bland Turkey meat. 

Now the meat is ready for slow roasting. You can use an electric roaster or a roasting pan. Slow roasting takes about 4-5 hours but it is a healthy way to cook meat for a senior person. 

2. Low-calorie mashed potatoes with sour cream

Mash potatoes are a side dish that is popularly consumed with the thanksgiving dinner. Although this dish is tasty, it can be unhealthy as well, especially when you add loads of cream or butter. This is where sour cream comes into the picture. 

Instead of unhealthy fats, you can add sour cream or greek yogurt. You can also go for the low-fat ones if the senior you are preparing this dish for is conscious of their weight. 

Required ingredients:

• 2 pounds potatoes
• 4-5 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• Butter
• Salt and pepper 
• Seasoning

Cut the potatoes into small chunks. Toss the cut potatoes in a pot of boiling water. 

Add some salt to the water. The salt will keep the potatoes from breaking up in the boiling water. And it also adds taste.  

Next, add garlic cloves to the boiling water. Let it cook for about 20 minutes. 

Now turn off the flame. Drain the water from the pan. The water is of no use, hence you can throw it. 

Now you have perfectly boiled potatoes mixed with some garlic in a pan. Add vegetable broth, some butter (optional), and sour cream (or greek yogurt) to the pan. 

You can begin mashing them. 

Once the mashing is done. You can now season the dish with some pepper or other spices you may like. Take the contents in a serving bowl, and now it is ready to eat. 

3. Green Bean Casserole

Not everyone likes the taste of green vegetables. This recipe is formulated to remove the grass-like taste of green beans. The onions will add much-needed crunchiness to the dish. You can also make this dish fully vegan by going for dairy-free, and egg-free ingredients. The vegan version will taste just as good if you get the composition right. 

Required ingredients:

• Green beans
• Almond milk 
• Cracked black pepper
• Hot sauce
• Onions
• Chopped Mushrooms 
• Chopped garlic 
• Flour
• Seasoning

First, we will prepare the cream of mushroom soup. And later we will pour this soup over fresh green beans. I will tell you exactly how it’s done. 

Heat up a pan on low flame. Add a spoonful of butter. 

Add some chopped opinions to the melted butter. Let it cook for about a minute. 

Add a bowl of chopped mushrooms to the pan, once the onions begin to turn yellow. Stir well for about a minute and then add chopped garlic. 

As the mushrooms get cooked, add some salt along with the seasonings of your choice. I prefer cracked black pepper and chili flakes. 

Next, you can add some flour (your choice, I prefer corn flour) along with some almond milk. Keep stirring. Let the mushrooms absorb the milk. 

Cut up some green beans as the cream of mushroom soup is getting cooked. Make sure to remove the ends (from both sides). You can cut them into 2-inch pieces. 

Take a casserole dish, and add the cut-up green beans to it. Pour the cream of mushroom soup on top of the beans. Add some hot sauce as well. Stir well. 

Bake it for about half an hour in an oven. Your green dish is ready to be served. 

4. Baked Sweet Potato

Sweet potatoes are quite easy to cook. They are tasty and most importantly filling. This food item is perfect for seniors who wish to avoid snacking on unhealthy dishes. They can have a couple of baked sweet potatoes instead of something greasy. I am sure this Thanksgiving dish will make them forget hunger for 4-5 hours.  

Required ingredients:

• 2-3 sweet potatoes 
• Baking sheet
• Seasoning 
• Onions
• Salt and pepper
• Butter

Rinse the sweet potatoes under a running tap to make sure there’s no dirt on their skin. You want to preheat the oven to about 400 degrees Fahrenheit. You can barbeque them on a grill— the choice is yours. 

After you are finished washing the sweet potatoes, place them on a baking sheet. Make sure the baking sheet is well-built. It will take about an hour for the potatoes to fully bake. 

Once the potatoes are fully cooked they become soft and mushy. To check whether they are cooked well, poke one of them with a fork or a knife. 

Once they are done, take them out and let them cool down for a few minutes. Next, make a cut in the middle. You can add seasoning, some butter, and chopped onions from the cut you make in the middle of the potato. 

5. Healthy pan gravy 

Pan gravy is one of the healthiest thanksgiving recipes for seniors trying to avoid putting on weight during the festive season. You are going to cook this gravy in the same pan you cooked the Turkey in. The pan will have some pan sauce and some shreds of meat on it. You will be needing that for this recipe. 

Required ingredients:

• Giblet stock
• Chicken broth
• Salt and pepper for taste 
• Pan sauce
• Seasoning 
• Flour 

The Giblet stock is the primary ingredient of pan gravy. Before you bake Turkey for thanksgiving, it’s important to remove the Giblet stock so you can use it later for soup or gravy. 

Put the Giblet stock in a saucepan. Add 3-4 cups of water to the pan. Now let it cook— on a low flame— for about an hour. Keep checking every fifteen minutes as you might have to add more water to the pan. 

After about an hour of cooking the Giblet stock, you will have a rich and smooth broth. 

Take the broth out in a bowl. 

Next, add the pan sauce to the Giblet stock broth. Mix well. You can add some of the fat left on the pan as well. 

Now heat up the pan you cooked in Turkey in. Add some deglaze if needed. Pour in the pan sauce+Giblet stock broth mixture in the pan. 

You must add some slurry to this mixture. To make a slurry add chicken broth in some flour. Mix well and your slurry is ready. 

Add the slurry to the boiling gravy. Cook for 10 minutes and your healthy pan gravy is ready for serving. 

Summary 

I know Thanksgiving comes once a year and seniors want to indulge a little. They want to have traditional Thanksgiving food without their family members giving them the look. There are some creative ways in which seniors can prepare themselves for Thanksgiving. 

Seniors can lose some weight beforehand, so they can eat all their favorite Thanksgiving food items. Another thing they can do is eat small portions. Lastly, they should go easy on alcoholic beverages. Substitute them with sugarless soda, or homemade sharbat.

I hope this article was helpful.