My Favorite Anti-Inflammatory Recipes for Holiday Festive Feasts

Following an anti-inflammatory diet to help manage your psoriasis can be difficult during the holiday season, but there are some great alternatives and recipes available.

If you’re living with an inflammatory condition, like I am, you may find that following an anti-inflammatory diet helps you manage your pain and inflammation. You may also find, just as I do, that it’s very difficult to stick with these healthy food choices throughout the winter holidays and celebrations.

Here are some of my favorite tasting holiday recipes that won’t derail your healthy habits this season and may even convince your friends and family to follow an anti-inflammatory diet, too.

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Roasted turkey

Depending on how you prepare it, a traditionally roasted turkey can be anti-inflammatory without any special efforts. When making your traditional holiday bird, avoid using fats like lard and butter, avoid deep frying, and avoid using high salt brines. I love to marinate my turkey for a few hours, or even overnight when possible, before I roast it with the following mixture:

Seasoning ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 whole cloves garlic, sliced or crushed
• 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 8-10 leaves of fresh sage
• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon of dried marjoram
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• A pinch of black pepper

Instructions

1. Mix all the seasonings in the olive oil and rub the mixture all over the outside of the turkey and under the skin, being sure to get it in all the nooks and crannies.
2. For extra pops of flavor, slice small linear holes in the turkey and put chunks or slices of fresh garlic right inside.

Stuffing

I don’t stuff my turkey with traditional stuffing. Instead, I use not-so-common, but healthier ingredients. This is always a hit year after year. It makes the pictures look social-media worthy and it makes your home smell amazing. Plus, the sweetness from the fruit and the strong flavor from the onions add a depth of flavor that’s still anti-inflammatory.

Ingredients

• 3 to 4 apples, cubed to bite-sized and cored
• 1 sliced orange, unpeeled
  • Thinner slices are prettier, but more work.
  • Peeled and sliced are easier to eat for small children, but are slightly less flavorful.
• 1 sliced lemon, unpeeled
• 1 large purple onion sliced into thin rings
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

1. Mix the apples, orange slices, lemon slices, onion rings, olive oil and cinnamon and stuff the inside of the turkey until nothing more will fit.
2. Bake the turkey according to temperature and weight-based recommendations from the manufacturer or your oven’s recommendations. (The general rule is to cook at 350ºF (177ºC) for 13 minutes per pound.) When done, the internal temperature should be between 170ºF to 175ºF (77ºC to 79ºC).
3. When the bird is cool enough to handle, remove the “stuffing” and place it surrounding the turkey on a ginormous serving plate. (I have a 30” ceramic plate that I use only when I roast a turkey.) It makes for a beautiful presentation, and is also completely edible.

Sweet potato bake

Instead of traditional buttery, salty mashed potatoes, try making a sweet potato bake.

Ingredients

For the potatoes:

• 3 pounds, or 6 to 9 (depending on the size), sweet potatoes or yams
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground or dried cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp fresh ginger
• 1/4 tsp fresh or dried ground nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (omit if avoiding peppers or don’t like any spice)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• salt and pepper to taste

For the crumb topping:

• 1 cup pecans, ground
• 1/3 cup flour (almond flour is OK)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp brown sugar (coconut palm sugar is OK)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF (177ºC).
2. Wash the sweet potatoes, wrap in foil, and bake for about 40-60 minutes until fork tender.
3. Let the potatoes cool until comfortable to handle.
4. Gently remove the skin from the potatoes.
5. Put the potato flesh (no skin), coconut milk, eggs, maple syrup, and spices in a bowl and blend with a hand mixer or hand-held potato masher — stirring frequently. (I have also done this with a potato ricer and just 2 forks before, and it all works just fine.)
6. Spread the potato mixture in a 9×9 pan (or whatever pan you have on hand).
7. Set aside.
8. Pulse pecans in a chopper if not already chopped. You can use a hand or electric chopper, you can buy them pre-chopped, or you can do as my grandmother did and put them in a ziploc bag and roll and hit them with a wooden rolling pin.
   • Pro-tip: If you don’t feel like doing this step, you can leave the pecans whole and it turns out totally fine, too!
9. Combine pecans, flour, cinnamon, cayenne, and salt. Give this mixture a stir.
10. Add the olive oil and use your hands to mix and make a crumbly, pebble-like topping.
11. Evenly distribute this on top of the potato mixture.
12. Sprinkle the sugar evenly on top of everything.
13. Bake at 350ºF (177ºC) uncovered for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until topping is just barely turning brown.
14. Serve immediately, as this one is best enjoyed fresh the same day.

A twist on mashed potatoes

If you’re trying to limit your potatoes or introduce your family to sweet potatoes or other alternatives, try your usual mashed potato recipe with half russet (brown) potatoes and half sweet potatoes. They may not even notice the difference.

Another mashed potato alternative

A baked potato bar is always a hit, and you can include any topics you’d like. This is a great way to customize each person’s dietary requests, too. One year, my family made the entire meal as a baked potato bar, and it was a lot of fun!

No-cream vegetable casserole

Avoid those creamy, buttery, and cheesy vegetable casseroles this holiday season, and try this flavor-packed lemon, olive oil, and spinach recipe instead. Olive oil has strong anti-inflammatory properties. Spinach also contains quercetin, which is an antioxidant that reduces inflammation. 

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 fresh cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 large bag of fresh spinach (or 2 fresh, large bunches)
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium to low heat.
2. Add the garlic and cook gently for 2 to 3 minutes, or until just barely browned.
3. Add the spinach and cover the pan.
4. Turn off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes, or until the spinach is wilted.
5. Drain all of the water from the bottom of the pan.
6. Add lemon juice, salt, and pepper and toss to combine.

Mixed colorful vegetable bake

Another one of my favorite anti-inflammatory vegetable dishes is easy and colorful, and even kids love it.

Ingredients

• 1 bag mini rainbow carrots (or baby carrots)
• 1 bundle of asparagus, trimmed
• 10 to 20 Brussels sprouts, quartered
• 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lemon sliced into about 5 to 10 thin slices

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC).
2. Mix the carrots, asparagus, and Brussels sprouts with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.
3. Cover a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
4. Lay the mixed vegetables in a very thin layer on the parchment paper.
5. Cover with an even layer of the thin lemon slices.
6. Bake at 350ºF (177ºC) for about 45 minutes.

Bottom line

With these creative recipes, your holiday celebrations can stay in line with your anti-inflammatory lifestyle and still be delicious!