Beets - A Post A Day Has Left Me With Little To Talk About

Me: "Do you like beets? I'm thinking of making roasted beets for Thanksgiving next week."

John: "Eh. They're alright."

Me: "I read somewhere today that they can have aphrodisiac properties."

John: "We should eat more beets."

*

Thanksgiving for our family doesn't usually vary much. Sure, we may have apple pie instead of pumpkin, or start the meal with a salad instead of pigs in a blanket but the main course is almost always the same: turkey, mashed and sweet potatoes, steamed broccoli, green bean casserole, sausage stuffing, dinner rolls. Oh, and cranberry sauce. From a can. We can't help it. We like it this way.

This year, with picky children who won't eat half of what I'm going to make anyway, I'm going to adjust to the liking of the adults, some of whom should be watching their sugar intake, all of whom need to eat healthier.

So, I'll halve the amount of starchy sides. Just stuffing and a small amount of mashed potatoes. Up the vegetable offerings to roasted beets, roasted cauliflower, green bean almondine and broccoli because my kids, who won't eat fruit will scarf down the broccoli. Maybe homemade rolls instead of store-bought crescent. For appetizers, I might go crazy and stuff dates with almonds, then wrap 'em in bacon (this is a really good appetizer if you like sweet/salty and chewy/crunchy combinations) and a little goes a long way. Maybe a salad with pears, walnuts and blue cheese.

Still a decadent meal, but healthier because of better-for-you ingredients and more vegetables even if I have to tell my husband there might be something else in it for him for a healthier heart.