3 Delicious Garden Vegetable Side Dishes for Thanksgiving

When it comes to Thanksgiving dinner, the classic roast turkey is essential, but you can get a little more creative with your side dishes, vegetables, and appetizers. Now, anyone familiar with traditional holiday dinners knows that the food can get pretty rich. If you’d like to enjoy a little bit of everything on the table without having to worry about loading up on carbs, you’ll love these recipes! They’re all packed with fresh garden vegetables that are in season right now in Fort Lauderdale.

Try out one (or all!) of these three delicious holiday sides this November. They might end up becoming new favorites for all your future family dinners!  

Rosemary Cauliflower Stuffing

For an easy, low-carb alternative to classic stuffing, you have to try this veggie-loaded cauliflower stuffing with delicious, aromatic herbs. You can even make it vegan by substituting the butter for coconut oil and using vegetable stock instead of chicken broth!

Ingredients:

• ½  cup vegetable or chicken broth
• 4 tbsp butter or coconut oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped 
• 1 medium cauliflower head, chopped
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms
• A pinch of sea salt
• Black pepper (preferably fresh ground)
• 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
• ¼  cup fresh parsley, minced
• 1 tbsp fresh sage, minced  

Directions:

1. Melt the butter in a non-stick skillet, and fry up the carrots, celery, and onion until soft.
2. Add the cauliflower and mushrooms, then season with salt and pepper. Cook for another 10 minutes. 
3. Add all the herbs, then pour in the broth and continue cooking until all the liquid has been absorbed. 

Squash, Sage & Pecan Flatbread

This delicious vegetarian flatbread pizza can be sliced into small, two-bite pieces and served as an appetizer while dinner is getting ready. (We’ve all experienced a few holiday dinners where the turkey wasn’t quite ready on time, and tummies were left grumbling for an extra half hour!) You can even prepare the pizza ahead of time and then pop it in the oven right before guests arrive.

Ingredients: 

• 1 ball of prepared pizza dough
• ¼ cup salted butter
• 2 tbsp heavy cream
• 1½ tbsp fresh sage, minced
• ½ of one butternut squash
• ¼ cup soft goat cheese
• ¼ cup chopped pecans
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°
2. Slice off the outer skin of your butternut squash, and then chop it up into thin slices, about 2 inches long and ¼ inch thick. 
3. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, spread the squash across, and coat them with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Roast until the squash is soft and only slightly browned, about 10–15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Leave the oven on. 
4. Melt butter in a pan, and fry up the sage and pecans. Add the heavy cream and a bit of pepper to taste. Turn off the element and set aside. 
5. Roll out pizza dough and spread on a pizza pan or cookie sheet. Spread a layer of goat cheese on the dough. 
6. Take your roasted squash and layer it onto the dough, with the pieces overlapping. 
7. Drizzle on the butter sauce with sage and pecans. 
8. Bake the pizza until the crust is a light golden brown—about 20 minutes, depending on your chosen dough. 

Ultimate Green Bean Casserole

If you’ve ever wondered what the most popular vegetable dish served at Thanksgiving is, the answer is most undoubtedly green bean casserole. This creamy, savory casserole with crunchy onion topping is the ultimate comfort food, yet it’s packed with so much fiber and plenty of vitamins from those nutrient-rich green beans. Plus, the leftovers are great when reheated the next day, so you can always load up a few Tupperware containers for lunches the following week. You’ll need a cast-iron skillet for this recipe, so if you don’t have one, see if you can borrow one from a neighbor!

Topping Ingredients: 

• 2 medium onions, sliced thin
• ¼ cup flour
• 2 tbsp panko crumbs
• 1 tsp salt
• Oil

Filling Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp salt (plus 1 tsp salt, separate)
• 1 pound green beans, washed, trimmed, and sliced in half
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1½ cup chopped mushrooms
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• ½ tsp pepper
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup half-and-half 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 475°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mix the onions, flour, panko, and salt. 
3. Coat a cookie sheet with oil, spread the onion mixture on top, and bake for 30 minutes until crispy. Toss them up with tongs a few times during the cooking process to make sure they crisp up evenly. When they’re done, remove from the oven, set aside, and turn the oven down to 400°F. 
4. In a large pot, bring a gallon of water plus 2 tablespoons of salt to a rolling boil. Add the beans and blanch them for 5 minutes. Drain the beans, then toss them into a bowl of ice water ASAP so that they don’t continue to soften. Drain again, then set aside.
5. Melt the butter in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, salt, and pepper, and cook for five minutes until the mushrooms shrink down a bit in size. Add the garlic and nutmeg and cook for a few more minutes. 
6. Sprinkle flour over the mixture, and use a whisk to mix it in and smooth out the lumps. Pour in the chicken broth and simmer for 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium-low, and then pour in the half-and-half. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens, which will take about 6–8 minutes. 
7. Remove from heat, and then stir in ¼ of the crunchy onion mixture. Pour the remaining onions in a layer on top of the beans. Toss the skillet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes until bubbly and brown. 
   

Want to start growing more veggies in your garden so you can enjoy your harvest at future holiday dinners? Visit Living Color Garden Center to get all the necessary supplies, from seeds to starter plants, potting soil, fertilizer, and all the tools you could ever need for a deluxe, fully loaded veggie garden! We have home delivery and curbside pickup available upon request, so feel free to call us to make arrangements. 

From all of us at Living Color, have a safe and happy holiday, and be sure to treat yourself to a second helping of stuffing!  

Sharing is caring!