Feast of Gratitude

 The morning sunlight set the blossoms of my Thanksgiving cactus on fire, brightening our morning meditation.

Since our family gatherings will take place on different days than this, we set about creating a day of grateful ease for ourselves. I made a special feast for a late lunch. One of the stars of the meal -- of course, every part of it shines, but -- was roasted radishes.

One of my favorite reasons for planting a fall/winter garden is the winter radish. Winter radishes are larger and denser than the little spring radishes, and I can get a lot of pounds in a relatively small space.

Here you see slices of Szechuan Red (which are supposed to be red all through, but some are white with red skin), purple daikon (my favorite), Watermelon radish, and the green Shawo Fruit Radish (which is not sweet, but rather spicy. Lovely roasted or baked.)

I toss the radish slices with avocado oil (which has a higher smoke point and so does not produce toxic substances as quickly as other oils when heated); lay them in a single layer on a parchment lined cookie sheet; season with salt and pepper and other seasonings as desired; and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, or until at desired doneness.

And easy and delightful dish.

Along with the radishes, we had brussels sprouts roasted with apples and onions, and roasted carrots. Both had been cooked weeks ago and frozen. So it was easy just to put them in the oven to warm. Baked shrimp rounded it out as the protein portion.

It's not traditional turkey, but we like shrimp for special meals.

As a nod to "traditional" Thanksgiving fare, my husband made a "pumpkin" pie, no added sweetener, no egg, no dairy, and a gluten-free crust. It is killer, proof you don't need to add sugar to get a wonderful dessert. He used baked sweet potato, coconut milk, flax seed and tapioca flour. It stands up beautifully. The crust is made with tiger nut flour -- expensive, but he can't eat nuts, so almond flour is out.

Tonight we'll have nettles and button mushrooms, along with some chicken thighs, and more dessert. This time a blueberry cobbler, again, with no sugar and a gluten-free crust. Yes, it's good. Oh, and a little Rogue River Bleu cheese, one of the best cheeses in the world -- seriously.

I took a break from my keto diet today in order to enjoy some treats. When I started that diet, I did not mourn desserts, or wine, or any of those typical things. I wasn't consuming them much, anyway. For me, not being able to eat vegetables with abandon was the most difficult part of it. Even though I'm eating low-carb, non-starchy vegetables, those carb grams add up quickly. I've done some tweaks to allow for a little more satisfying amounts of vegetables. However, I am not eating nearly as large of quantities as I was, and I have to weigh and record it all. It's getting easier. One day I'll write a bit about it.

Today, I'm grateful that I have nutritious and delicious food to eat. May that be so for everyone.