Thanksgiving recipe

[SquirrellyMama]

Hi! I need a side dish to take to a Thanksgiving dinner. It needs to be something that can/is:

1. Travel for 4 hours

2. Not need heating

3. Low sugar

4. Low fat

5. Low salt

 

Kelly

[LisaKinVA]

Bread...

 

Other than that, it depends upon your tastes.

 

Bruschetta fits the bill, but isn't a typical "Thanksgiving" food.

Green salad of some sort. (you can keep lettuce in a ziplock baggie with some paper towels to help reduce moisture in a small cooler with a couple of blue ice blocks -- then add the toppings/dressing once you reach your destination)

Black Bean Salad (again, not a typical Thanksgiving Dish)

 

I get stuck on the low sugar, low fat and low salt aspect.  Sorry!

[Jenn in FL]

Hmmm...assuming you can keep things chilled while traveling...

 

A really pretty vegetable tray

 

Hummus and a combination of vegetables and pita bread to use for dipping

 

A deviled egg platter

 

Tiny tea sandwiches cut into decorative quarters (like maybe cucumber filled)

 

A cold spinach salad (served with a low fat dressing)

 

Another type of salad

 

 

 

[Baseball mom]

Deviled eggs is my go to

 

How about drinks? Since you are traveling so far would they (whoever you are eating with) let you bring drinks?

 

 

[Carol in Cal.]

What I do for that is blanch trimmed but uncut green beans (blue lake if I can find them), quench them in cold water, and toss with minced shallots and a strong dijon mustard vinaigrette, keeping the beans all pointed more or less the same way, like straws in a dispenser.  I pop the whole thing into one of those Tupperware marinaders and put it in the fridge, turning occasionally.  On the road I turn it every time we stop for gas or whatever.  When we arrive, I lift the beans onto a long narrow serving dish.  They look nice, and they are perfect with a heavy meal because they have a strong flavor that cuts the mooshy fatty flavors of a typical heavy meat meal, like a palate cleaner.  Plus they totally travel well.

 

Another possibility, but it's a TON of work, is to make a fall salad.  For every two bags of spinach leaves, you add one pomegranate worth of seeds, and two fuyu persimmons, and 4 oz of feta cheese.  BUT, you have to seed the pomegranates, and you have to peel and core and very thinly slice the persimmons, which takes forever.  The way I do this is make the vinaigrette--I use one with more of a lemon flavor than most for this recipe--whisk it together, and put it in the bottom of a big salad bowl.  Then I add the seeds and the slices of fruit, then the cheese, so they can soak.  I bring the bagged greens in a cooler, and add them and toss on site.  This is REALLY good.  A sprinkle of chopped toasted walnuts on top is very festive.  And the whole thing looks perfect for fall.

 

ETA:  Forgot to mention, for the beans since the vinaigrette is more of a marinade than a dressing, I leave out most or all of the olive oil so that it's a sharper flavor.

Edited November 19, 2016 by Carol in Cal.

[ktgrok]

How about some corn muffins? You should be able to find some lower sugar ones. 

[Tina]

I'm taking the broccoli salad that has bacon bits and raisins in it.

[zoobie]

Roasted vegetables can be served at room temp. Butternut squash, sweet potatoes, parsnips, carrots, onion/red onion, Brussels sprouts, mushrooms, whatever you like.

 

Fruit salad

[Arctic Bunny]

Cooked/roasted beets with a vinegrette that are kept cold until you leave, then can be served room temp.

[Janeway]

I am just curious. Why would anyone, knowing you are traveling 4 hours, expect you to bring a side dish, and expect you to not have to hear it once you get there?

[Janeway]

Cranberries makes sense. But is someone else already bringing that? If all the guests are picking their own side dish to bring, you might end up with tons of the same thing.

[Tap]

If you have an idea that you would like to take, but needs to be warmed...take your crockpot if you have one.  I use it for things like dinner rolls or yams all the time at family gatherings or work events.  I wouldn't start something cold in it and expect it to cook while you are there, but to warm something that is already cooked or maintain a safe temp for something heated in the microwave, it works great. 

 

 

If you can take fruit.. I would likely take something like a kale and mango salad.  I like to chop the fresh mango into small 1cm pieces. It goes nicely with a turkey dinner. I'm not crazy about the coconut on it, so I tend to go light or sprinkle it around the edges so people can avoid it if they want or just skip it altogether. ```` ETA: Sorry, I didn't think about the salt on the cashews....it may not be low salt after all. LOL  You could probably use unsalted raw cashews (they are a bit sweet), but you would want to try it first to make sure the dish doesn't need the salt to pull it together. 

Edited November 21, 2016 by Tap