FruitFast

Part three of our healthy sides are these two alternatives to traditional stuffing. The first recipe uses couscous instead of bread stuffing. The second is a low calorie bread stuffing. In both cases, cook stuffing separately from the turkey and save additional fat and calories.

COUSCOUS STUFFING WITH DRIED FRUIT

This is an excellent accompaniment to turkey or other bird.

1 Tbsp butter
1 /2 cup onions, finely diced
1 /2 cup carrots, finely diced
1-1 /2 cup low-sodium chicken stock
1 /2 cup finely chopped FruitFast Dried Cherries or Dried Blueberries
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 /4 tsp each salt & pepper
Pinch of cinnamon
1 cup couscous
1 cup pistachios, chopped
Fresh parsley for garnish

Melt the butter in large saucepan. Add onions and carrots; cook until soft. Stir in chicken stock, fruit, lemon juice and spices. Bring to a boil; add couscous. Remove from heat, cover and let stand about 5 minutes.

Fluff with a fork and add pistachios. Garnish with parsley.

BREAD STUFFING WITH DRIED TART CHERRIES
This recipe is modified from a recipe found on the Mayo Clinic web page. Their version uses fresh cranberries. We substitute dried fruit for the cranberries.
Ingredients:

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
10 slices whole-wheat bread, toasted and cut into cubes
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tsp dried tarragon
1/2 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup FruitFast  Tart Cherries
1 cup whole water chestnuts
1 cup chopped apple

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly coat a 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray.
In a large skillet, heat the chicken broth over medium heat. Add the celery and onion and sauté until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
In a large bowl, combine the bread cubes, parsley, tarragon, paprika, nutmeg, dried cherries, water chestnuts and chopped apples. Add the onion and celery mixture. Stir to mix evenly.
Spoon stuffing into the prepared baking dish. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 more minutes. Serve immediately.
For more moisture in this recipe, add more chicken broth or water.