The traditional Thanksgiving dinner consists of vegetables (usually mixed greens, such as a mustards/turnips/kale combo, green bean casserole, herbed green beans, green beans almondine, broccoli/cauliflower mix, seasonal squash or candied carrots); starches (usually candied yams, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, lasagna, rice medley, and/or potato salad); desserts (anything from fruit pies such as apple or peach to sweet breads, cakes, sweet potato pies and/or pumpkin pies); and of course the dish de’ resistance, the turkey and dressing. 

Vegetable seasoning generally consists of herbs and spices such as red pepper, lemon pepper, onions or chopped onion seasoning, olive oil or vegetable oil, celery, carrots, green and/or red bell peppers, garlic powder, white salt, and fresh meat such as smoked turkey or smoked turkey ham or neckbones.   For the green bean casserole, 1 can of mushroom soup, milk and fried onions are required.  And, the candied carrots require honey and sliced almonds.

Although many of you enjoy macaroni and cheese (some prefer to use more than one variety of cheeses in this dish); potato salad (usually made with fresh potatoes, mayo, mustard, onions, bell peppers, and eggs); rice medley (generally consisting of boxed long grain and wild rice, with the addition of oil or margarine, celery or mushrooms); what would Thanksgiving dinner be without our sweet potatoes or candied yams?  Sweet potatoes can just be baked in a conventional oven with their skins on, and served with butter or margarine, but most people prefer to have candied yams (skinned and cut up sweet potatoes, placed in a casserole dish saturated with cooking spray, and dressed up with honey, margarine, cinnamon and brown sugar).

Now, for the star attraction:  the turkey and dressing.  After the turkey is thoroughly washed and cleaned out, rub some olive oil on the skin and season with season salt, season pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, poultry seasoning, and/or chopped onion seasoning and lemon pepper.  But, whatever you do, do not forget to use sage, a must-have ingredient in any turkey preparation.  Some of you might prefer to marinate your bird in a mesquite or jerk seasoning sauce.  You  might want to compliment the mesquite sauce with garlic powder and parsley flakes or celery flakes; for the jerk sauce you can use jerk seasoning and garlic powder as compliments. 

Its time for the dressing:  this is where most of you get really versatile.  Traditional dressing ingredients include:  cornbread (with meal, flour, baking powder, salt, milk, oil or margarine and eggs); celery, onions, bell peppers, vegetable or chicken broth, season pepper, sage, white salt and eggs, plus stuffing mix (herb-seasoned, onion-seasoned, or sage-seasoned croutons, prepared according to package directions).  But, I know some of you get really fancy, adding your own touch by employing such ingredients as breakfast sausage, walnuts, shrimp, or dried fruit such as cranberries, raisins, apricots and/or dates.  And, this is just a partial list of some of the ingredients people use to ‘stuff’ their bird.

Next, we’re on to the desserts.  Pumpkin pies and sweet potato pies are the Thanksgiving staples.  However, some people prefer fruit pies (especially apple and peach), while others prefer cakes (from pound cakes to chocolate or pineapple upside down or banana cake or anything and everything in between).  Some of you might even prefer banana or rice pudding.

Yum, yum, “I can’t wait to dig in”, you say?  But where does one find the necessary ingredients for such a Thanksgiving feast?  And, how do you eat healthy and stay within your budget?  Have no fear, I have the secret to the perfect, healthy Thanksgiving dinner that won’t cost an arm and a leg. 

In recent years, many people prefer ‘organic’ or fresh ingredients to those found at their local grocers.  Homegrown or locally grown organic ingredients such as meat and poultry (turkeys, hams, chickens; dairy such as milk, eggs, and cheese to prepare your cornbread, macaroni and other starches; herbs and spices to season your vegetables, meats, dressing and desserts; dried fruit, potatoes, and pumpkins to prepare your desserts and other side dishes) can be found at nearby farms, farmers markets or farm stands.

Chicago area residents can find a wealth of farms located in the city or nearby.  Some of these include:  Delray Farms, Inc. (820 W. Jackson in Chicago, 312-243-0040); Beulah Land Global Farms (4151 W. Lake in Chicago, 773-826-1000); Lam Farm, Inc. (2350 S. Canal in Chicago, 312-225-7997); and Babson Farms, Inc. (400 N. Michigan in Chicago, 312-661-7055).    Additionally, Organic Valley (located in Wisconsin and found at organicvalley.com) carries fresh eggs, milk, cheese and seasonal produce, while County Line Orchard (200 S. County Line Road in Hobart, IN, 219-947-4477, just 45 minutes from Chicago’s loop) boasts fresh apples, apricots, blueberries for your pies, and possibly your dressing ingredients.

The Local Harvest website lists an indoor winter farmers market, the Unitarian Universalist Church of Elgin (on Highland Ave in Elgin, IL), as well as a winter farm stand, (66 E. Randolph in Chicago), boasting such specialties as fresh fruits and vegetables, seasonal herbs and spices, and baked goods.

According to the Healthy, Tasty and Easy website, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods and Nuts Online are the way to go.  Trader Joe’s has an inexpensive line of herbs and spices, nuts and dried fruits (many cooks love using dried fruits such as cranberries and apricots in their dressing recipes).  Whole Foods has organic turkeys and butternut squash to grace your table.  And, Nuts Online has such specialties as dried fruits such as dried whole cranberries, and organic wheat flour, as well as nuts. 

But that’s not all, many department stores such as Wal-Mart, K-mart, and Target now carry a wide variety of groceries including herbs and spices, fresh poultry, chicken, hams, and fresh fruits and vegetables.  In addition, Health Food Stores such as Southtown, located on Chicago’s southside carries dried fruit and nuts, and herbs and spices.  So, if you’re looking to find ‘fresh’ ingredients for your Thanksgiving dinner, check out some of the aforementioned locales.  I’m sure you’ll be thrilled with the results.