The Grove Park Inn Thanksgiving 2011

I have it really good at Thanksgiving. I mean REALLY good. It may surprise some of you to know that I don’t LOVE cooking. I intentionally named the blog Organic EATER, not “Organic Cook”. I love the eating part, but the cooking part, not so much. I do it because I’ve disciplined myself to do what I know is right and best for my family, the exact same way I’ve been exercising and all of my other disciplines. This whole “real food, low sugar, low grain, #lowcrapdiet” thing is only a couple of years old in my world, and it has not caused me to miraculously start loving the cooking process unfortunately. So, having it “good” at Thanksgiving means I don’t cook, but it’s still awesome food!  My in-laws have either taken us to the beach (and a fabulous restaurant) or to The Grove Park Inn for the past several years during the week of Thanksgiving. Before those trips, they cooked the traditional turkey meal at their home and invited us over, and my mother in law is a fantastic cook!  With my husband’s job requirements now, we can’t travel during Thanksgiving week, so we are going back to the Traditional Turkey meal at their house again. I will bring a gluten-free cranberry apple dish (with oats) that is delicious and pretty easy. Oh, and I may bring the iced tea. That’s it. Oh, Happy Day!! And the best part is that my husband and I have convinced them to buy an ORGANIC turkey this year! Hooray! That was the only “missing link” for me to have spectacular Thanksgiving eating this week. BUT….

For those who do have to cook this week, I am going to list some of my favorite recipe blogs for you to check out. NO guarantees of only organic, but I will try to include only REAL FOOD links, and you make it organic if you can find the organic ingredients.  It is a holiday, so I wouldn’t fret over whether or not it’s organic if someone else is cooking for you. Let’s be polite guests, right? But I WOULD take a small portion (or none), if I knew GMO ingredients were used in the making of something I’m getting ready to eat. But that’s just my preference, and you guys need to figure that out for your own family’s situations, depending on how much stress and discomfort that may add to your holiday. If you are a parent or spouse, it’s probably best to have a discussion with your kids/spouse BEFORE you get to the holiday house. So here are my real food recipe resources for you:

Cheeseslave has a LONG list of Thanksgiving recipe links organized by food type

The Wellness Mama has an ENTIRE Real Food Thanksgiving menu, recipe for each item, and the shopping list you need to prepare all of it! This makes it super easy! I’m making the cranberry relish for left-over turkey sandwiches on Friday.

Food Renegade has a list of 11 Breakfast ideas for Thanksgiving Day, and a grain free menu for lunch/dinner. 

Whole New Mom has LOTS of contributing bloggers post recipes, specifically for allergy free needs

This Bruce Bradley post was my favorite because it not only has links to recipes, but it explains WHY you don’t want to eat those specific processed food items!  Mr. Bradley is a former corporate food marketer, so I think he knows what he’s talking about!

If you want to go “all organic at Thanksgiving” here’s a link at iVillage to show you how.

Two thoughts I leave with you: once you’re finished eating your holiday meals, and maybe one round of leftovers, get back to the good life of eating the food that really makes you feel great! Enjoy your family and your traditions, then back on track with eating and exercise. Don’t wait until January 2, 2013! Secondly, this is Thanksgiving, so let’s be thankful no matter what we eat. For some Americans, they don’t even have a table to sit at this year because it was washed away in a storm or blown away in a tornado. Many have been without jobs for months or years and are thankful for the kindness of someone’s generosity towards them, even if it is “processed” food. Many are eating in a shelter and thankful just to have anything to eat on Thursday. If we’re able to read a blog and make some choices about what and how we eat this Thanksgiving, let’s be EXTRA grateful for that!! 

Encouraging Health, and praying you have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Organic Eater

Psalm 100:4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His name!

Tell me what you’ll be doing this week, and what choices/compromises you may have to make to “keep the peace” in your families. Or if you’re going all “real food” or “all organic” this year, I’d love to know that too! Also, if you have a great recipe or link you wanna share in these last couple days of shopping for food, share it with us!!!