by erin thursby scopes1925@msn.com
Just because the holidays are a time of indulgence, doesn’t mean you can’t make healthy holiday meals that taste good and are good for you. I spoke with Aaron Gottlieb, owner of the Native Sun Natural Food Market, about his passion for providing the best, most natural foods, both on the shelves and in the deli case. Getting people to eat what’s good for them is a challenge anytime of the year, holidays or not. Says Gottlieb: “If you look at the list of what people enjoy, you find that…[it] is filled with everything unhealthy because our palates…are geared towards sugar.” Gottlieb and his chefs do what they can to slip healthy alternatives into traditional recipes and they also start with all-natural, all-organic ingredients. “We sneak in whole grains, bake instead of fry…and use oils that are good for…your heart, skin, and nails—good for your overall body, like taking a multivitamin.”
If you’re looking to stock up with the healthiest food for the holidays, whether it be the prepared food from the deli case or alternative ingredients for holiday recipes, Jacksonville’s Native Sun locations can help. The deli offers organic spiral cut ham, which has been a big hit this holiday season. All the meats offered at Native Sun are antibiotic free. They hold the term antibiotic free to a higher standard. “If a turkey is labeled antibiotic free…that can sometimes mean that it was off antibiotics for the last twelve weeks of its life…(that’s the government’s standard for the label). Native Sun works to ensure that… all the turkey provided has been antibiotic free for its entire life.”
Those looking for a meat-free turkey alternative can turn to a Quron Roast, which is made from a mycoprotein that comes from Fusarium venenatum, a type of mushroom discovered in England. The texture is much more convincing than Tofurkey and other soy based meatless meats.
Holiday desserts are never very healthy, but they’re a favorite part of the holidays. It’s ok to indulge yourself once in a while, but there are things you can do to make your holiday desserts a smidge healthier without sacrificing the taste. “The easiest thing people should do,” recommends Gottlieb “if they’re buying pre-made pie crusts, is to go to a whole wheat or spelt pie crust.” As always, you can look for organic ingredients and use whole wheat flour instead of white, processed flour.
In many recipes that require milk, you can substitute soy milk if you’re sensitive to dairy. Gottlieb recommends Earth Balance’s Organic Buttery Spread for a non-hydrogenated non-dairy butter substitute. If you’re avoiding dairy and eggs, here’s a recipe from Native Sun as a tasty alternative to regular egg nog:
3 cups White Wave Silk Soy Milk
¼ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons hemp seeds
Yield: 3 cups
Blend all the ingredients in a blender, and serve. Sprinkle additional nutmeg on top if you like.
(Source: Native Sun’s Fall Open House Recipes)
This fresh cranberry sauce recipe from Native Sun uses turbinado sugar, also known as sugar in the raw. It’s made from the cane sugar from the initial pressing of the cane, allowing the innate molasses to remain in the crystals. The crystals are a light brown, imparting a sweet and rich flavor to the recipe.
1 large orange
1 cup tubinado sugar
½ teaspoon grated ginger
4 cups fresh cranberries
Grate the orange peel and add to the pot with sugar and ginger. Add the juice from the orange into the pot and simmer over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add cranberries and cook 3 to 5 minutes
until the skins pop open. Mash berries with spoon or fork until of desired consistency. Serve warm or chilled
(Source: Native Sun’s Fall Open House Recipes) The crisp texture of fresh cranberries can add holiday flair and an unexpected panache to an otherwise commonplace salad. I use yellow squash, watercress, sun-dried tomatoes, sprouts and fresh cranberries to make my Seasonal Watercress and Cranberry Salad. You can use those ingredients in what ever ratio you see fit, but use a very sweet and spicy vinaigrette to offset the cranberries!
Here’s a another holiday favorite of my own. I’ve replaced the celery that customarily goes into this type of dressing with flavorful asparagus.
1- 12oz. package of Canterbury Naturals Rosemary Sage Cornbread Dressing Mix
12 medium sized Argentine Green Organic Asparagus
1 large chopped onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh organic parsley
1 teaspoon dried Frontier Thyme
1 1/3 cups of Pacific Natural Foods Organic Mushroom Broth
1 tablespoon oil (grapeseed is best)
Chop about a 1/8 of an inch of the bottoms of the asparagus, and discard. Next, continue chopping the asparagus in 1/8 of an inch segments until you get to the tips. Cut the entire tips off. Put the chopped asparagus in a bowl and coat with ½ tablespoon of oil. Heat a pan to medium high heat, toss in the asparagus and bring the heat to high. Stir and heat for 1 minute, then take the heat to low, pour in about a tablespoon of water and place a lid on the asparagus for about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan heated to medium, throw in your chopped onions, chopped parsley and thyme with ½ table spoon oil. Sauté. When the 2 minutes are up, take the asparagus tips out and set them aside. The rest of the asparagus can be put in the saucepan with the onions and herbs. Mix in the broth and dressing mix. Stir, bring heat up to high. When the liquid reaches a simmer, turn the heat down to low and place the lid on the pot for 12 minutes. Stir and serve. Garnish with asparagus tips.
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