Oh my, oh my. Can you believe that Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away? I am so excited for spending time with family while digging into fantastic food and delicious desserts.
In honor of this special holiday, here are a few sumptuous pecan dishes to serve alongside the Turkey this Thanksgiving.
Cream Cheese-and-Olive Pecan Bites - This time-friendly and budget-friendly appetizer only has 5 ingredients, plus it creates a perfectly popable snack for guests to munch on while the turkey finishes browning.
Harvest Sweet Potato Pecan Pie Tarts - Pre-prepared mini phyllo shells make this recipe super quick and simple to throw together. Serve it as an appetizer or side dish in place of traditional sweet potatoes.
Pecan Pie Bars - Exactly like pecan pie, only in bar form so you don’t have to worry about making a perfect crust.
If you have any fantastic Thanksgiving recipes that you love to serve, let me know! These are just a few of my favorites that I’ve found for one of my favorite holidays of the year.
I just found this fantastic article that breaks down all the nutrition you need to know about nuts. And the CNN.com article confirms what we’ve been saying all along - the pecan is one naturally nutritious nut! Here’s why:
Unsaturated fats - It’s not entirely clear why, but it’s thought that the “good” fats in nuts - both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats - lower bad cholesterol levels.
Omega-3 fatty acids - Many nuts are also rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are a healthy form of fatty acids that seem to help your heart by, among other things, preventing dangerous heart rhythms that can lead to heart attacks. Omega-3 fatty acids are also found in many fish, but nuts are one of the best plant-based sources of omega-3 fatty acids.
L-arginine - Nuts also have lots of l-arginine, which is a substance that may help improve the health of your artery walls by making them more flexible and less prone to blood clots that can block blood flow.
Fiber - All nuts contain fiber, which helps lower your cholesterol. Fiber also makes you feel full, so you’ll eat less later. Fiber is also thought to play a role in preventing diabetes.
Vitamin E - Researchers still aren’t sure, but it’s thought that vitamin E may help stop the development of plaques in your arteries which can narrow them, leading to chest pain, coronary artery disease or a heart attack.
Plant sterols - Some nuts contain plant sterols, a substance that can help lower your cholesterol. Plant sterols are often added to products like margarine and orange juice for additional health benefits, but sterols occur naturally in nuts.
There you have it! For more information on pecan nutrition, check out some of our older posts, or head on over to ILovePecans.org today.
Thanksgiving is just around the corner, which means it is time to start picking out your favorite recipes for this holiday season. My favorite part about Thanksgiving dinner is the dessert! I love pecan pie and chocolate and I have found the perfect recipe to combine both ingredients. I can not wait to try out this recipe and add it to my holiday favorites!
                           Â
Â
For those of you who’ve read my blog posts before, you already know that I’m a huge fan of super simple, yet delicious recipes. And for me, nothing can get much better or easier than cooking with a slow cooker.
Now that the weather has finally cooled off a bit, I’ve been making a lot of slow cooker recipes like chili and beef stew - the perfect meals for a crisp fall day. But, I have to admit I’ve never cooked dessert in the slow cooker before. I’ve seen plenty of recipes, but none that I thought were worth trying, until now.
This recipe comes from Southern Living, and is perfect because it uses everyday ingredients, is cheap to make and captures all the flavors of fall in every bite.
All you need are:
5 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into ¼-inch thick slices
Place the apples in a lightly greased 6-quart slow cooker, drizzle with lemon juice, and then toss to coat.
Combine the flour, dark brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two forks until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle flour mixture over apples.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours or until apples are tender. Sprinkle with pecans and serve with warm ice cream.
You know, there’s only about 4 weeks left until the first annual Sahuarita Pecan Festival and we couldn’t be more excited!
Come on down on Saturday, December 5th, 2009 for a day of pecan-filled fun at The Green Valley Pecan Company farm in Sahuarita. There’s going to be an estimated 5,000 - 10,000 people in attendance and we want you to be one of them.
Join us for great food, wholesome family fun, hayrides, harvest demonstrations and Santa on a big green tractor. You can also cheer for everyone in the family fun run or run it yourself. No matter how you celebrate the day with us, it’s going to be a fantastic festival for all.
Get all the details and latest updates here and don’t forget to mark your calendars for the first annual Sahuarita Pecan Festival!
So, you already know that the nuttiest festival in the Southwest is happening at our farm on Saturday, December 5, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and that there’s going to be a Santa on a giant green tractor, local arts and crafts vendors and delicious food. But, did you also know that there’s going to be a race and a family fun run?
The Sahuarita Pecan Festival is teaming up with Tagg Running Events to host the eight-mile Pecan Classic running event on the day of the festival. Race around the farm, and after you’re done, you can reward yourself with a giant slice of homemade pecan pie and other tasty treats at the Sahuarita Pecan Festival. Don’t forget that you can also get the whole family involved with The Nut Run, our 1.5-mile fun run!
Register by November 21, and you’ll receive a commemorative Pecan Classic/Nut Run t-shirt and a bag of Green Valley Pecan Company pecans. Winners of each division will also be handsomely rewarded at the event.
For more information on race times and registration information, visit www.taggrun.com or Active.com today.
I love, love, love fall in Arizona. It’s the best time of the year. Sure, we don’t really have leaves that change colors, there’s no real need for mittens or scarves and the sun shines pretty much all season long, but the weather makes it perfect for baking!
This recipe for Pecan-Topped Pumpkin Bread is the quintessential fall bread recipe from Cooking Light and is great for breakfast with a nice strong cup of coffee or as a mid-afternoon snack when I need something to power through the rest of the day. Plus, it’s actually got some great health benefits from the pecans and pumpkin. Lots of antioxidants and a pretty decent serving of fiber and protein in each slice.
Check out the full recipe and get ready to have the hypnotic scent of freshly baked pecan pumpkin bread wafting through the house. Just be sure to let it cool before you dig in.
