Healthy Sage Recipes

Pork tenderloin is about as lean as it comes so it's a great healthy option, but it shouldn't be overcooked as it can dry out. Maple and mustard make a sweet-and-savory mahogany-colored sauce. A delicate note of sage gives it a wintery touch. Fresh thyme or rosemary also work if you prefer. Serve with barley, roasted squash and a Pinot Noir.

This sophisticated take on creamy mushroom soup is rich with earthy porcini mushrooms and has the added goodness of whole-grain barley.

Apples add just a hint of sweetness to this velvety pumpkin soup. Try it as a delightful first course for a special meal.

Currants add a surprising touch of sweetness to this simple sauté of chickpeas, spinach, squash and gnocchi. We prefer the texture of shelf-stable gnocchi, but if sodium is an issue for you, opt for frozen instead. Serve with a glass of chardonnay.

In northern Italy, the influences of neighboring Austria and Switzerland are apparent in dishes like this pasta featuring Savoy cabbage and mushrooms in a light wine sauce. Serve with Caesar salad and bread sticks.

In this healthy, creamy mustard chicken recipe, thin-sliced chicken breasts (sometimes labeled chicken cutlets) cook quickly and are delicious smothered in a velvety, light mustard sauce and garnished with fresh chopped sage. If you can't find chicken cutlets, cut boneless, skinless chicken breast into 4-ounce pieces and place between pieces of plastic wrap. Pound with a meat mallet, rolling pin or heavy skillet until flattened to about 1/2 inch thick.

Once again, rotisserie chickens can really relieve the dinner-rush pressure-especially in this Italian-inspired soup that cries out for a piece of crusty bread and a glass of red wine.

Cooking the lentils in red wine adds rich, earthy flavor to this one-dish skillet supper. We prefer French green lentils in this dish--they're smaller, cook faster and hold their shape better than brown lentils. Look for them in well-stocked supermarkets or natural-foods stores.

Saltimbocca is an Italian word that literally means “jump mouth,” presumably because of its bold flavors. The dish is traditionally made with veal and seasoned with sage and prosciutto. We love these flavors in our simple version made with shrimp. Store-bought polenta turns golden brown under the broiler for an easy accompaniment. Serve with: Sautéed green beans and red peppers.

This method produces all the good looks and moist flavor you dream of in a Thanksgiving turkey. Make sure you show this beauty off at the table before you carve it. Garnish your serving platter with fresh herb sprigs and citrus wedges.

This root vegetable stew is flecked with sausage and topped with whole-wheat herbed dumplings. Turn up the heat by using hot Italian sausage or make it crowd-pleasing with sweet sausage. If you find beets or turnips with their greens still attached, the greens of one bunch should yield just enough for this dish. Otherwise use whatever dark leafy greens look fresh at the market.

This beef stew for two replicates the flavors in tzimmes, a sweet stew traditionally served at Rosh Hashanah to start the New Year. This version gets natural sweetness from cherries and butternut squash.

Cornbread stuffing, a Southern favorite, is a nice change from more traditional white-bread stuffing. Our delectable recipe uses Italian turkey sausage, rather than pork, and omits all the butter and cream to cut the fat by two-thirds. The stuffing is lower in sodium as well and so easy to make that it's sure to become a favorite side year-round.

The mashed potato-covered shepherd's pie was originally created to use up the leftovers from a festive roast. This version blends peas, leeks and carrots with diced turkey, all in a creamy herb sauce. The dish is a perfect way to create a second meal with the holiday turkey but if you like, use leftover roast chicken, duck or goose.

This classic stuffing pairs turkey sausage with the tangy sweetness of apples. By using turkey sausage instead of pork, we cut the fat content from 19 grams to 4.

Fresh herbs make all the difference in this light, summery bean salad that in turn makes an aromatic bed for the easy grilled shrimp. The shrimp and salad are wonderful together but you could also make them separately. Consider skewering and grilling scallops as another delicious option.

This kale and spinach soup has a beautiful complexity. It's slightly sweet, with a bright note of lemon and the subtle aromatics of thyme, sage and garlic. Japanese yams are marvelously flavorful; they have a dark purplish skin and are snow-white inside. Ask for them at your farmers' market or grocery, but if they are unavailable, regular sweet potatoes can be substituted. Recipe by Anna Thomas for EatingWell.

This savory apple soup for two gets body from Yukon Gold potatoes and a touch of heat from paprika. Float some cocktail shrimp or a mound of lump crabmeat in each bowl to make it a main course.

We use portobello caps to make these dinner-sized stuffed mushrooms that are big on flavor without being overly rich. Rather than the traditional sausage filling, this recipe calls for lean ground turkey blended with fresh herbs and spices, topped with golden, melted fontina cheese. Add a tossed salad and a slice of crusty whole-grain bread to complete the meal.

In this vegetable-studded vegan dish we braise cauliflower, butternut squash and pasta in white wine and broth in an unconventional technique that yields delicious results. Serve with a spinach salad with red onion, orange segments and a light vinaigrette.