No turkey? No problem! Two plant-based recipes to try this Thanksgiving

Adventist Health Roseville’s Vitaliz Café has some special fall recipes to add to your table this Thanksgiving! Below are the recipes for Honeycrisp Hot Apple Cider and Pecan Vegetable Medley Dressing.

Thank you to the Vitaliz Café team for sharing their skillful passion for plant-based recipes this holiday season and all year long. Photos courtesy of Elysse Moore, Vitaliz Café team member.

Vitaliz Café Honeycrisp Hot Apple Cider

This easy recipe for Hot Apple Cider is perfect for Thanksgiving and the holiday season! Made with Honeycrisp apples, oranges, lemon, ginger, dates, cinnamon sticks, cloves, black pepper and allspice to warm you right up!

Ingredients

• 5 Honeycrisp apples, cored and sliced into cubes(can substitute gala, fuji and other red sweet apples)
• 2 orange, sliced and seeds removed
• 1 lemon, sliced and seeds removed
• 3 cinnamon sticks or 1 tsp cinnamon
• 5 to 6 cloves
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• ½ inch fresh ginger
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• ¼ tsp all spice
• 5 to 6 dates or 1 - 2 tbsp sugar or other sweetener, optional
• 7 cups water

Instructions

Add all the ingredients to a saucepan. Cook for 2 hours, partially covered over medium low heat. Transfer the mixture to a strainer and press and mash to strain the cider.

Honeycrisp Apples are great to eat whole, too!
The health benefits from eating apples are numerous. One medium Honeycrisp apple has 5 grams of fiber and only 80 calories. Because of the amount and type of fiber, an apple will help a person feel full longer, helping him or her to consume fewer calories daily. The pectin in apples may also help lower cholesterol. The flesh and peel are packed with disease-fighting antioxidants and phytochemicals that may protect against breast and lung cancer. These disease-fighting nutrients work best when the peel and flesh are eaten together.

Chef Nina's Pecan Vegetable Medley Dressing

Yield: 4-6 servings

Ingredients

• 4 cups pecans, ground to a crumbly texture in a food processor
• 2 cups chopped cauliflower florets
• 1 cup carrots, peeled and diced small
• 1 cup celery, diced small
• ½ cup white onion, peeled and diced small
• 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
• 1 ½ tablespoons minced thyme
• 1 tablespoon minced rosemary
• ½ teaspoon truffle oil
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place cauliflower in a food processor and process until it has a rice texture. Place in a large bowl and set aside.

Place one tablespoon of the grapeseed oil in a sauté pan over medium heat, add carrots, celery and onions and sauté just until tender. Remove from heat and add to the bowl with and cauliflower. Mix in pecans and all other remaining ingredients and combine well.

Place the mixture in a lightly greased baking dish and place in the oven for 20 minutes.

Serve hot.